Labor, Trade Highlight FFVA Letter to USDA

Clint ThompsonFlorida

The Florida Fruit and Vegetable Association (FFVA) is urging the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to strengthen Florida’s specialty crop industry. The FFVA submitted a letter to the USDA last week, outlining recommendations on how it could better support the state’s specialty crop industry, through the USDA’s Specialty Crop Competitiveness Initiative. The recommendations stemmed from the current challenges Florida growers …

Sen. Tuberville Leads Effort to Freeze AEWR

Clint ThompsonAlabama, Labor

Count U.S. Senator Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) as one legislator trying to use his political influence to reverse recent action on the Adverse Effect Wage Rate. Along with nine other senators, Tuberville sent a letter (dated Feb. 6) to the leadership of the House and Senate Appropriations Committees, requesting action to freeze H-2A wage rates at the January 2023 levels and …

Representative Austin Scott: I’m worried About the Farm Bill

Clint ThompsonGeorgia

Representative Austin Scott: I’m Worried About the Farm Bill By Clint Thompson Georgia Representative Austin Scott understands the political ramifications if a farm bill is not in place sooner rather than later. It would be in danger of not getting passed this year. “I’m worried about it. Obviously, we’ve got a March deadline on some of the funding aspects on …

Seventy-Five Reps Plead for Freeze to Current AEWR

Clint ThompsonLabor

A total of 75 congressmen recently issued a bipartisan letter to House and Senate appropriations leaders asking that the Adverse Effect Wage Rate (AEWR) be frozen in an upcoming spending package. AEWR has more than doubled since 2005, with the nation’s average AEWR reaching $17.55 per hr in 2024. A temporary wage freeze would alleviate the increaased financial burden and …

Sen. Ossoff: I’m a Big Believer in Precision Ag

Web AdminPrecision Ag

By Clint Thompson Precision agriculture will be of vital importance in specialty crop producers remaining sustainable for the foreseeable future. U.S. Senator Jon Ossoff (D-GA) understands that fact after discussing with Georgia producers what their most significant needs are. It is why he partnered with U.S. Senators Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Raphael Warnock (D-GA) to introduce bipartisan legislation that authorized …

Robotic Harvesters Could Be Challenge in Vegetable Production

Web AdminPrecision Ag, Technology

By Clint Thompson Precision Ag innovations are needed for specialty crop producers to remain sustainable now and into the future. The only problem with that reality may be vegetable’s sensitivity. A robotic harvester may not be feasible for some of those crops because they could get damaged during harvest, believes Jessica Kirk, director of food safety and marketing at Lewis …

Florida Strawberry Grower: Food, National Security Are One and the Same

Web AdminFarm Bill

By Clint Thompson Dustin Grooms is not just a fourth-generation specialty crop farmer in Plant City, Florida, he is an army veteran and proud American who recognizes the dangers this country is in if it does not prioritize providing more support to producers across the country. Grooms was one of the many speakers during Monday’s Farm Bill listening session. He …

Fertilizer Prices to Remain High for Specialty Crop Producers

Web AdminFertilizer

By Clint Thompson The high fertilizer prices gripping the agricultural world should improve some for farmers this year. But just a little. At the very least, costs are not expected to increase, says Glen Harris, University of Georgia (UGA) professor and Extension agronomist in environmental soil and fertilizer. “If you look back, fertilizer prices went up in 2008 but came …

Alabama Extension to Host Nutrient Management Meeting

Web AdminFertilizer, Specialty Crops

Alabama Extension will host a nutrient management meeting, focusing on farmers’ concerns about the rising fertilizer prices. The meeting will be held on Tuesday, Dec. 6 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Autauga County Extension Office in Autaugaville, Alabama. Rishi Prasad, Alabama Extension specialist and assistant professor in Crop, Soil and Environmental Sciences at Auburn University, said the …