by Gary Cooper It was a packed house Wednesday as the new crop of South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD) Governing Board members met in West Palm Beach for their first workshop. Input from the audience was tightly controlled. Even though there was an expert on the guest panel who is involved in working with agriculture in the region, agriculture …
Georgia Grower Discusses Ag Labor in D.C.
By Alison DeLoach Bill Brim begins his testimony at 48:20. Growers in the United States are facing many challenges when it comes to the current H-2A agricultural visa program. On April 9, Bill Brim, owner of Lewis Taylor Farms in Georgia and board member of the Georgia Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association, testified on his struggles with agricultural labor to …
Tomato Suspension Agreement Battle May Not Be Over Yet
The termination of the Tomato Suspension Agreement may be stopped in its tracks after associations representing the Mexican tomato industry have proposed changes to the agreement. The agreement was set to be terminated on May 7. The associations recently presented their proposal to the U.S. Department of Commerce. According to a report from Abasto (https://abasto.com/en/mexican-growers-tomato-imports/), the changes proposed by the …
Rubio, Colleagues Raise Concerns Regarding Lack of Effective Trade Enforcement for Seasonal Produce in USMCA
U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Representatives Vern Buchanan (R-FL), Stephanie Murphy (D-FL), and Al Lawson (D-FL) led a bipartisan group of Senators and Representatives in a letter raising concerns to United States Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer regarding the lack of progress in the new U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) with respect to improved mechanisms to initiate and sustain legitimate anti-dumping and countervailing …
The Benefits of Beneficials
For organic growers, the tools to control pests are scarce. However, using insects to fend off pests may be a good option. Ayanava Majumdar, Alabama Cooperative Extension entomologist with Auburn University, has been studying the impacts of beneficials for years and is constantly getting questions from growers about how best to use these pest management tools. Majumdar says beneficials, or …
Fried, Lawmakers Eye Hurricane Damage
Florida Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried continued Friday to push for state and federal hurricane relief for the Panhandle as she led a bipartisan group of lawmakers and staff members through rural communities still struggling from deadly Hurricane Michael. Saying farmers are “suffering,” Fried said the trip to see Calhoun County timber land, where decades-old slash pines reaching maturity were wiped …
Growing Medical Marijuana in Florida
By Alison DeLoach Growing hemp and medical marijuana continues to be a hot topic for growers in Florida. Jim Spratt, owner of Magnolia Strategies LLC, discussed the challenges of growing medical marijuana at the Florida Agricultural Policy Outlook Conference in February. Spratt said while the Florida Legislature ventured into medical marijuana, he had the opportunity to be involved in some …
Advancing Technology in Agriculture
By Alison DeLoach High-price specialized agricultural equipment is not affordable for many family farms. Glen Rains, professor at the University of Georgia in the College of Agricultural & Environmental Sciences, is working to create a solution to this problem. Rains participated in a panel discussion on the future of agricultural technology at the 2019 Southeast Regional Fruit and Vegetable Conference. …
‘If You Eat, You Are Involved in Agriculture’
By Sen. Ben Albritton I have enormous respect for Congressman Francis Rooney and his life of public service. However, I have grave concerns about the congressman’s recent misinformed, inaccurate and hostile comments about agriculture in Florida. Describing any sector of Florida agriculture as a “menace” clearly shows a lack of understanding of how agriculture has been a highly successful partner …
A Balancing Act
In the world of small business there is a constant balancing act between what needs to be done versus what can be properly achieved with the resources available. For a grower, this means some farm improvements may be put off while addressing the main priorities of producing and harvesting a marketable crop. In the sector of niche journalism, under which …



















