Farm Scoop - January 2019 - Cooperative Extension: Agriculture - University of Maine Cooperative Extension

Farm Scoop – January 2019

January 2, 2019 Farm Scoop, News

Reminder/Last call for early registration… 2019 Harvest New England Agricultural Marketing Conference and Trade Show: Navigating Change – Strategies for Success

Apply by Tomorrow &
Attend for FREE!

Harvest New England is pleased to offer scholarships to qualified producers from New England to attend Harvest New England Agricultural Marketing Conference and Trade Show, February 27 and 28, 2019 in Sturbridge, MA.

Do you meet the criteria?

New farm (in business for less than 5 years)
Young Farmer (under age 35)
Distance of travel to conference – those traveling from a greater distance
First time conference attendee
Other demonstrated need

Apply for the scholarship by January 30 here (link).

Don’t meet the above criteria? You have one day left to register and save $$ with early registration for the 2019 Harvest New England Agricultural Marketing Conference and Trade Show: Navigating Change – Strategies for Success

$105 for the first full conference registration
$90 for each additional family/business member
$75 for a one-day conference registration.
Take advantage of discounted pricing while it lasts!

The 2019 conference will help you navigate change and create strategies for success for your farm business! Your full conference registration includes access to 26 workshops with some of the best farm marketers and speakers in New England, keynote speaker Kenneth Gronbach, general session speaker Lucy B. Amundsen, the New England Farmers’ Market Managers Seminar on 2/27, a national trade show, two locally grown lunches, and endless networking opportunities. Learn more about our speakers and all the conference workshops here (link).
Early Bird registration ends January 30. Sign up now and save $$. Register online here (link).

Resource: Education and advocate support for families working in agriculture and fishing

The Maine Migrant Education Program (MEP) provides free educational assistance to families who move to work in agriculture or fishing. Children in these families often struggle to succeed academically because of frequent moves, poverty, and other barriers. The MEP provides services to help migratory children and youth (ages 0-20) succeed in school by maintaining their grade level and meeting high academic standards. Program staff also advocate for families and connect them with other necessary services.

The Maine Migrant Education Program is administered by Mano en Mano / Hand in Hand, a nonprofit with offices Downeast and in Portland. Mano en Mano staff located throughout Maine work closely with families in their region providing services such as tutoring and advocacy.

To qualify for Migrant Education services, a family must have moved from one school district to another within the past three years to do seasonal or temporary work in agriculture or fishing. We work with families who move from one part of Maine to another, to Maine from other states, or to Maine from other countries.

If you or an employee of yours has moved within the past three years to do agriculture or fishing work and are interested in receiving free educational support, you may contact:
Sean Douglas, Enrollment and Outreach Coordinator
(207) 598-8925
sdouglas@manomaine.org

Upcoming Growers’ Association Meeting & opportunity to earn recertification credits for pesticide applicators

NH Vegetable & Berry Growers’ Association Annual Meeting
Saturday, February 2. 9:00 am – 3:30pm. Doubletree Hotel, Manchester, NH.

The agenda for this meeting includes strawberry and vegetable variety updates from David Handley at UMaine, what you need to know about labor regulations & FSMA, meeting our new IPM specialist, featured farm and more – as well as 3.5 pesticide credits.

No need to pre-register. Visit the University of New Hampshire Extension’s website (link) for more information on this meeting, including agenda and information for joining NHVBGA.

Upcoming Event: Harvest New England Agricultural Marketing Conference “Navigating Change, Strategies for Success”

Harvest New England and the New England State Departments of Agriculture are pleased to announce that they will once again be hosting the Harvest New England Agricultural Marketing Conference and Trade Show. The conference will be held at the Sturbridge Host Hotel & Conference Center in historic Sturbridge, Massachusetts, on February 27-28, 2019. Twenty-six breakout sessions, two general sessions, a New England Farmers Market Managers workshop, and a full trade show with nearly 100 vendors are planned over two days.

Agricultural producers from across New England will come together to learn new marketing ideas or fine-tune current strategies for business success. The goals of this biennial conference are to improve and develop new marketing ideas, to share information, and to improve state and agricultural business cooperation.

Learn more at www.harvestnewengland.org/events/. Register online at https://harvestnewengland.regfox.com/harvest-new-england-agricultural-marketing-conference-trade-show. Early registration ends January 30.

Upcoming Event: Tenth Annual Hop Conference

The tenth annual hop conference will be held in South Burlington on February 21st.

A talk by a British hop grower on hop production in his country is among several featured presentations at the tenth annual Hop Conference, Feb. 21 in South Burlington.

Tom Spilsbury of J W Spilsbury & Co., will share information on hop production and processing with a hop kiln and dry strategies. The grower and his father Philip cultivate several varieties of hops, including Goldings, Challenger and Progress, on 50 acres at Oreton Court Farm in Worcester, England.

The conference, hosted by University of Vermont (UVM) Extension at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Burlington and Conference Center, will run from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Registrations will be accepted through Feb. 15.

The fee, which includes lunch and all conference materials, is $75 or $65 for Northeast Hops Alliance members. Anyone unable to attend in person may watch the conference as a live broadcast for $35.

To register go to www.regonline.com/2019hopconference. Contact Susan Brouillette at (802) 524-6501, ext. 432, or (800) 639-2130 (Vermont calls only) by Feb. 5 if you require a disability-related accommodation to attend.

Paid Farm Apprenticeships in Rockport, Maine

For your consideration, please find below a notice to share with students regarding paid apprenticeships at two Maine Coast Heritage Trust preserves in Rockport, Maine: Aldermere Farm (webpage), a beef cattle farm, and Erickson Fields (webpage), a vegetable farm. Benefits for both apprenticeships will include a $1,000 monthly stipend, benefits and shared housing. Interested applicants may email Joelle Albury at jalbury@mcht.org for more information or visit https://www.aldermere.org/volunteers/internships.php.

Free Webinar on Whole Farm Revenue Protection

Date: January 24, 2019
Time: 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m.
Cost: Free. Registration is required. Click here to register online for the webinar.

Farmers are invited to learn about the Whole Farm Revenue Protection crop insurance program prior to the March 15 enrollment deadline with a free webinar from noon to 1:00 p.m. on January 24th.

The webinar will use real farm examples from the Northeast that include information about the types of risks covered and the records needed to enroll, and an overview of the gross revenue protection program. A question and answer session will follow.

For more information, contact Erin Roche at 207.949.2494 or erin.roche@maine.edu.

Speakers include crop insurance education program managers from the University of Maine, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Vermont and Delaware Cooperative Extensions. Funding for this program is provided by the USDA Risk Management Agency Targeted States Program.

USDA Press Release: USDA to Reopen FSA Offices for Additional Services During Government Shutdown

Washington, D.C., January 22, 2019 – U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue today announced that all Farm Service Agency (FSA) offices nationwide will soon reopen to provide additional administrative services to farmers and ranchers during the lapse in federal funding. Certain FSA offices have been providing limited services for existing loans and tax documents since January 17, and will continue to do so through January 23. Beginning January 24, however, all FSA offices will open and offer a longer list of transactions they will accommodate.

Additionally, Secretary Perdue announced that the deadline to apply for the Market Facilitation Program, which aids farmers harmed by unjustified retaliatory tariffs, has been extended to February 14. The original deadline had been January 15. Other program deadlines may be modified and will be announced as they are addressed.

“At President Trump’s direction, we have been working to alleviate the effects of the lapse in federal funding as best we can, and we are happy to announce the reopening of FSA offices for certain services,” Perdue said. “The FSA provides vital support for farmers and ranchers and they count on those services being available. We want to offer as much assistance as possible until the partial government shutdown is resolved.”

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has temporarily recalled all of the more than 9,700 FSA employees to keep offices open from 8 am to 4:30 pm weekdays beginning January 24. President Trump has already signed legislation that guarantees employees will receive all backpay missed during the lapse in funding.

For the first two full weeks under this operating plan (January 28 through February 1 and February 4 through February 8), FSA offices will be open Mondays through Fridays. In subsequent weeks, offices will be open three days a week, on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays, if needed to provide the additional administrative services.

Agricultural producers who have business with the agency can contact their FSA service center (link) to make an appointment.

FSA can provide these administrative services, which are critical for farmers and ranchers, because failure to perform these services would harm funded programs. FSA staff will work on the following transactions:

Market Facilitation Program.
Marketing Assistance Loans.
Release of collateral warehouse receipts.
Direct and Guaranteed Farm Operating Loans, and Emergency Loans.
Service existing Conservation Reserve Program contracts.
Sugar Price Support Loans.
Dairy Margin Protection Program.
Agricultural Risk Coverage and Price Loss Coverage.
Livestock Forage Disaster.
Emergency Assistance Livestock, Honey Bees, and Farm-raised Fish Program.
Livestock Indemnity Program.
Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program.
Tree Assistance Program.
Remaining Wildfires and Hurricanes Indemnity Program payments for applications already processed.

Transactions that will not be available include, but are not limited to:

New Conservation Reserve Program contracts.
New Direct and Guaranteed Farm Ownership Loans.
Farm Storage Facility Loan Program.
New or in-process Wildfires and Hurricanes Indemnity Program applications.
Emergency Conservation Program.
Emergency Forest Rehabilitation Program.
Biomass Crop Assistance Program.
Grassroots Source Water Protection Program.

With the Office of Management and Budget, USDA reviewed all of its funding accounts that are not impacted by the lapse in appropriation. We further refined this list to include programs where the suspension of the activity associated with these accounts would significantly damage or prevent the execution of the terms of the underling statutory provision. As a result of this review, USDA was able to except more employees. Those accounts that are not impacted by the lapse in appropriation include mandatory, multiyear and no year discretionary funding including FY 2018 Farm Bill activities.

Updates to available services and offices will be made during the lapse in federal funding on the FSA shutdown webpage (https://www.fsa.usda.gov/ help/shutdowninfo). Programs managed by FSA that were re-authorized by the 2018 farm bill will be available at a later date yet to be determined.

You can also visit the USDA website (link) for all USDA press releases.

Upcoming webinar series: Lanternfly Basics

In conjunction with the New York State IPM Program and the Department of Agriculture and Markets, the Northeastern IPM Center will host a collection of webinars, titled “Spotted Lanternfly Basics.” You can register online here (link).

Each webinar will focus on, and be tailored to, a specific commodity group:

Spotted Lanternfly Basics for Hops, Berry, and Vegetable Growers (Feb. 26, 2019, 10:00 a.m.)
Spotted Lanternfly Basics for Grape and Apple Industries (Feb. 26, 2019, 1:00 p.m.)
Spotted Lanternfly Basics for Christmas Tree Growers (Mar. 4, 2019, 10:00 a.m.)
Spotted Lanternfly Basics for Nursery, Greenhouse, and Landscape Industries (Mar. 4, 2019, 1:00 p.m.)

All webinars will follow a similar format that covers spotted lanternfly biology, identification, and hosts, monitoring and management strategies, and a regulatory update. While the content may be relevant to audiences throughout the Northeast, management practices covered will be specific to New York. Participants will be encouraged to ask questions.

For more information and registration links, go to the NEIPMC website.

The NEIPMCommunication-L list is owned by the Northeastern IPM Center, 340 Tower Road, Cornell University, Ithaca NY 14853.

The Northeastern IPM Center fosters the development and adoption of integrated pest management, a science-based approach to dealing with pests that brings economic, environmental, and human health benefits. We use the list periodically to publicize IPM funding opportunities, research and extension projects, and IPM news and information.

To join or unsubscribe from the list, please send a request via e-mail to NortheastIPM@cornell.edu.

Upcoming Webinar: Improve on-farm communication for farmers and farm teams

Do you find yourself wondering “what should I say?” or asking “what did I say?” Do you ever feel tongue-tied talking with customers or concerned about their reaction? Are you worried about discussing problems with your partner? Is it hard to find the time to have productive meetings? More information (link) and registration online (link).

Effective interpersonal communication is essential and cost effective for your farm operation. In this 3-hour interactive webinar, Improving Communication, participants will address real farm situations to learn about communication styles, ways to have better conversations, and have a chance to practice new skills. Each participant will identify unique needs and create a plan to address them.

On-farm communication is critical for farm viability, and is one of the most common sources of conflict and frustration for farmers, family members, employees, and customers.

If you:

Are part of a farm family or farm team
See the benefit of improved communication skills
Would like to have conversations that aren’t so awkward
Are ready to tackle difficult conversations
Find the stress of farm life difficult to express to others

Your participation in Improving Communication will give you tools to adapt to different communication styles, structure dialogue between generations, identify obstacles to shifting management roles, improve internal and external communication, build your relationship capital to improve farm operations, have information-sharing conversations, and create positive, rewarding personal and professional relationships.

You will finish the webinar with (at least) one personal and one farm goal and steps to reach them.

WHEN: Feb. 5, 9 a.m.–noon, online only

UMaine Extension human development specialist Leslie Forstadt, and Family and Community Mediation director Karen Groat will lead the workshops. Each participant will identify unique needs and create a plan to address them. Webinar attendees from Maine are eligible to apply for up to four coaching sessions at no cost. The farm coaching sessions will focus on farm decision-making, goal setting or communication.

COST: $10/person for online session. Register online (link).

For more information or to request a reasonable accommodation, contact Angela Martin, 207.581.3739; angela.martin@maine.edu. More information also is online (link). The webinar and coaching are made possible by a grant from the United States Department of Agriculture, National Institute of Food and Agriculture Northeast Extension Risk Management Education.

Webinar: Raising organic broccoli in the East

Wednesday January 23, 12:00 – 1:00 pm EST

Eastern buyers are eager to source more Organic broccoli locally. Fortunately, broccoli is suited to Organic practices. Nevertheless, meeting that demand will require efficient production.

This webinar will cover management approaches for Organic production that help production efficiency. The presentations include lessons learned by an all-star cast. Prospective growers will come away with a better sense of how to achieve success, and current Organic broccoli growers are likely to pick up some useful ideas to increase their profitability.

Presenters

Jeanine Davis, Margaret Bloomquist and Richard Boylan, North Carolina State University, experts on organic production systems
Thomas Björkman, Cornell University, vegetable physiologist
Bryan Brown, NYS IPM, Weed management specialist and expert on organic weed management
Jill Eccleston, Cornell University, Integrated control of emerging insect pests

Topics

Organic nutrition for a nitrogen-hungry crop
Weed management in high fertility and short season
Insect management amid many hungry pests
Varieties suitable for organic production in the East
The market for organic broccoli

Join the webinar by clicking this link: https://cornell.zoom.us/j/855304241 on a computer, tablet or smartphone. To test your Zoom connection in advance, please visit https://zoom.us/test. It may take a minute or so to install the small software.

To get the audio only on a telephone, call +1 646 876 9923 and enter meeting id 855304241.

Sponsored by the Eastern Broccoli Project (a multi-institutional project funded by USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture, Specialty Crop Research Initiative). See our website at EasternBroccoli.org

Upcoming Free Conference: LA Region Farmland Access & Growing the Food Economy

March 7, 2019 8am-12pm. Snow date: March 21.

The Lewiston-Auburn (LA) Region has a historic opportunity to utilize abundant natural resources and springboard economic development in the Food and Farm business sector. Across the state, momentum is building as entrepreneurs, farmers, manufacturers, culinary professionals, and the tourism industry have been growing the food economy in Maine, and we have the potential in our region to attract and retain people to “Grow it Here.” The LA Region is also rooted in farming heritage and contains vast farmland with prime agricultural soils. Many existing farm owners will be considering retirement in the next 5-10 years and much of this land will change hands. At the same time, the LA Region is home to many who are searching for land to farm.

Recognizing an opportunity for relationship-building and education around this historic opportunity and the abundance of options, the Good Food Council of Lewiston-Auburn — in cooperation with local, state, and regional partners — is organizing an LA Region Farmland Access & Growing the Food Economy Conference.

Who should attend?

Maine farmland seekers
Land owners in the Lewiston-Auburn region
City/town officials, staff, economic & community development professionals
Community members interested in supporting farm & food business

You can read full details about the conference or join the email list to receive more details about this event at The Good Food Council of Lewiston-Auburn’s website (link).

USDA to Reopen FSA Offices for Limited Services During Government Shutdown

Washington, D.C., January 16, 2019 – U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue today announced that many Farm Service Agency (FSA) offices will reopen temporarily in the coming days to perform certain limited services for farmers and ranchers. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has recalled about 2,500 FSA employees to open offices on Thursday, January 17 and Friday, January 18, in addition to Tuesday, January 22, during normal business hours. The offices will be closed for the federal Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday on Monday, January 21.

In almost half of FSA locations, FSA staff will be available to assist agricultural producers with existing farm loans and to ensure the agency provides 1099 tax documents to borrowers by the Internal Revenue Service’s deadline.

“Until Congress sends President Trump an appropriations bill in the form that he will sign, we are doing our best to minimize the impact of the partial federal funding lapse on America’s agricultural producers,” Perdue said. “We are bringing back part of our FSA team to help producers with existing farm loans. Meanwhile, we continue to examine our legal authorities to ensure we are providing services to our customers to the greatest extent possible during the shutdown.”

Staff members will be available at certain FSA offices (link) to help producers with specific services, including:

Processing payments made on or before December 31, 2018.
Continuing expiring financing statements.
Opening mail to identify priority items.

Additionally, as an intermittent incidental duty, staff may release proceeds from the sale of loan security by signing checks jointly payable to FSA that are brought to the county office by producers.

Information on the locations of FSA offices to be open during this three-day window will be posted:

On the USDA website
On Twitter at @SecretarySonny and @USDA
On USDA’s Facebook

While staff are available in person during this three-day window, most available services can be handled over the phone. Producers can begin contacting staff on January 17 here (link).

Additionally, farmers who have loan deadlines during the lapse in funding do not need to make payments until the government shutdown ends.

Other FSA Programs and Services

Reopened FSA offices will only be able to provide the specifically identified services while open during this limited time. Services that will not be available include, but are not limited to:

New direct or facility loans.
New Farm loan guarantees.
New marketing assistance loans.
New applications for Market Facilitation Program (MFP).
Certification of 2018 production for MFP payments.
Dairy Margin Protection Program.
Disaster assistance programs, such as: Livestock Indemnity Program.
Emergency Conservation Program.
Wildfires and Hurricanes Indemnity Program.
Livestock Forage Disaster Program.
Emergency Assistance for Livestock, Honeybees and Farm-Raised Fish.

While January 15, 2019 had been the original deadline for producers to apply for MFP, farmers have been unable to apply since December 28, 2018, when FSA offices closed because of the lapse in federal funding. Secretary Perdue has extended the MFP application deadline for a period of time equal to the number of business days FSA offices end up being closed, once the government shutdown ends. These announced days of limited staff availability during the shutdown will not constitute days open in calculating the extension. Producers who already applied for MFP and certified their 2018 production by December 28, 2018 should have already received their payments.

More information on MFP is available at www.farmers.gov/manage/mfp.

Upcoming Workshops with Atina Diffley: MOFGA’s 2019 Food Safety Track

Produce Farmers Are Food Handlers! Let’s Do It Profitably
For more information and to register: mofga.org/MOFGA-Events

Food Safety Workshop with Atina Diffley

January 31 – February 1, 2019
8:30 a.m. – 5 p.m.
$30 registration, limited space
MOFGA’s Common Ground Education Center, Unity

Integrating food safety systems into postharvest practices and market relationships supports the development of farm systems that are viable, cost-effective, and scale appropriate. This two-day food safety workshop is hands-on and designed for active learning. Farmers will: do risk assessments in the classroom to identify potential hazards; discuss all the areas of food safety on the farm and ways to implement cost-effective strategies in line with the work; discuss record keeping systems that support decision-making, and maximize profitability while also meeting food safety requirements. Class participants receive a free 3-ring binder food safety plan template and a copy of “Wholesale (or) Direct Market Success” (farmer’s choice).

Family Farmed and MOFGA partner to offer this two-day workshop with Atina Diffley at the MOFGA Education Center, Unity, Maine. This training was made possible by USDA Risk Management Education funds.

IMPORTANT NOTE: This workshop may satisfy staff training requirements as described in the FSMA Produce Safety Rule in §§ 112.21(a) and (b). As there is not yet an equivalency evaluation process, the workshop does not currently satisfy supervisor training described in the FSMA Produce Safety Rule 21 CFR Subpart C § 112.22(c).

Produce Safety Alliance Grower Training at MOFGA

February 8 (snow date Feb. 15), 2019
9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
MOFGA’s Common Ground Education Center, Unity
Register online by Feb. 1 at this website: extension.umaine.edu/food- health/food-safety/northeast- produce-safety-training/

Learn about produce safety best practices, key parts of the FSMA Produce Safety Rule requirements. Time for questions and discussion; participants will share their experiences and produce safety questions. Offered in collaboration with the Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry, and AgMatters LLC.

The PSA Grower Training Course satisfies the FSMA Produce Safety Rule requirement outlined in § 112.22(c).

Post-Harvest Handling and Packshed Design with Atina Diffley

Post-Harvest Handling on March 4th, 8:30 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Packing Shed Design on March 5th, 8:30 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Note: These back-to-back workshops can be attended individually, but registration priority will be given to those attending both.

$30/person for both days, includes lunch each day, or $15/person for one day, includes lunch.

Day 1 focuses on post-harvest handling, the cold chain and efficiency of systems, quality and safety throughout the process – harvest, cleaning, cooling, packing, storing, transport.

Day 2 is Packing Shed Design. Active drawing and design. Attendees of both days will utilize their post-harvest handout from day 1 in the design of a packinghouse.

These workshops are hands-on and designed for active learning. Class participants receive a copy of Direct Market Success or Wholesale Market Success. This training will place farmers in an excellent position to implement both efficient postharvest practices and a food safety plan for their farm.

Family Farmed and MOFGA partner to offer this two-day workshop with Atina Diffley at the MOFGA Education Center, Unity, Maine. This training was made possible by USDA Risk Management Education funds.

Reminder: Online Workshop Series – Know the Law, Protect Your Farm with UNH Extension Workshop

Online course for New England farmers begins Jan. 28.

Give your farm a fresh start in 2019 and learn how to protect your operation, your employees and your family from legal risks with UNH Extension’s online legal workshop for farmers. New England farmers can register online (link).

The online course covers the basics of employment law, creating leases, farm financing and insurance, how to structure businesses to protect personal and business assets, agritourism and value-added regulations and more. UNH Extension educators and legal experts, including Rachel Armstrong, founder and executive director of Farm Commons, and Paul Goeringer, an Extension legal specialist at the University of Maryland, will work closely with participants during three video discussions in February and March.

This course is free and includes a self-directed independent course option that opens on Jan. 28. Participants in New Hampshire, Maine and Vermont wishing to take the course with others can take part in three online sessions on Feb. 7 and 21 and March 7. Each session takes place from 10:30 a.m. to noon.

The course is presented in partnership with the USDA, Farm Commons, the University of Maryland and Northeast Extension Risk Management Education.

Full Calendar of Workshops and Events (link).

Changes in Tax Law and Impacts for Farmers

Mon, 01/28/2019 | 1:00pm – 3:00pm | Cost: Free

FREE webinar from Carol Starkie, EA, a tax consultant with Farm Credit East, will be joined by Kelly McAdam, UNH Extension Field Specialist, to discuss:

Changes in Exemptions and Deductions for You and Your Business
How Net Operating Loss is Carried Back/Forward
Changes in Depreciation Rules

Join the webinar here.

Inheriting a Farm-Passing on the Farm to the Next Generation, Webinar

Tue, 02/12/2019 | 12:00pm – 1:00pm | Cost: Free

Inheritance is often times an easy way to pass on the family farm. Learn how a property passes through an estate and what to watch for when considering this method of asset transfer in a farm succession plan.

Gifting vs. Selling as a means of Transferring Farm Assets, Webinar

Tue, 03/12/2019 | 12:00pm – 1:00pm | Cost: Free

Gifting can be a simple option to start transferring the farm assets now, but do you understand gift tax filing requirements? Will you consider an installment sale, what is a bargain sale, what are the tax implications for these methods? We’ll discuss considerations to think about before gifting or selling farm assets.

Additional Resources:

Pre-Recorded Webinar: Estate Planning Webinar: Wills vs. Trusts, Longterm Healthcare

Estate Planning often involves setting up a will and/or trust. Learn the pros and cons of each to decide what’s best for your family and farm situation.

View the pre-recorded webinar here.

New Publication Available from UNH Cooperative Extension: Sales Forecasting for Agricultural Businesses

After several years in business, you’re thinking about expanding your operation by adding a new product, growing more of what you’re already producing, or moving into a totally different line of products. […] We’ve designed this publication as a practical, common-sense guide to help you move step-by-step through the process of conducting your own market research.

View the resource here.

3D Printing in Agriculture Workshop

We are holding an intro “3D Printing in Agriculture” workshop at the Kennebec Valley Community College Farm on JANUARY 25th from 9-12pm. We are located at 24 Price Road in Hinckley, right off of Route 201. It is free and open to all.

3D printing is a way to express your true “farm hack” nature, innovating to create super affordable parts and tools (or prototypes) that do exactly what you need them to do. The focus of this workshop will be on the 3D printing software and farm applications of the printers. We then hope to connect regional farmers with area printers.

This fall we worked with a group of pilot farmers to teach the potential of 3D printing on the farm as well as give printers to start 3D printing “hubs” for farmers around the state. So far some of the projects that have been made with our pilot group of farmers include:

customized seed processing equipment
customized seed wheels
soil block makers
landscape fabric cutters
clips to hold remay and plastic onto EMT conduit
seed counting plates for germination tests
replacement parts for a root washer
fence insulators for pipe gates

You can check out more of this work at our website:

https://farm3d.weebly.com/

Upcoming Webinar: Whole Farm Revenue Protection Crop Insurance

Orono, Maine — Farmers are invited to learn about the Whole Farm Revenue Protection crop insurance program prior to the March 15 enrollment deadline with a free January 24th webinar from noon–1:00 p.m.

The webinar is free; registration is required. Register online here. For more information, contact Erin Roche, 207.949.2940; erin.roche@maine.edu.

Respirator Fit-testing at the Agricultural Trade Show

Join UMaine Extension and the Board of Pesticides Control for respirator fit testing at the Annual Agricultural Trades Show at the Augusta Civic Center.

Time slots for fit tests are 30 mins long and will take place in the locker room starting at 2pm on Tuesday, January 15th and Wednesday, January 16th.

Click here for more info and to register for Respirator fit testing (link).

For more information about the Board of Pesticides Control visit: thinkfirstspraylast.org

Online Resources: Know the Law, Protect your Farm!

Protecting Your Farm from Legal Risks for ME, NH, VT, DE and MD 2019

Join from your kitchen table! Learn and review:

employment law
creating leases
farm financing
farm insurance
business structures to protect personal and business assets
agritourism and value-added regulations

This online program allows you to go back to the material at any time. Interactive exercises apply directly to your farm. The online module opens on January 28, 2019 and is self-paced.

Have additional questions during the program? Three video discussions with experts will follow on February 7 and 21, and on March 7, 2019. The video discussion for ME, NH and VT will be from 10:30am to 12:00pm, and the video discussion for DE and MD will be from 2:00pm to 3:30pm.

Expert lawyers include Rachel Armstrong (Founder and Executive director at Farm Commons) and Paul Goeringer (Extension Legal Specialist at the University of Maryland).

Webinar Schedule (Updated January 17):

Changes in Tax Law and Impacts for Farmers

Mon, 01/28/2019 | 1:00pm – 3:00pm | Cost: Free

FREE webinar from Carol Starkie, EA, a tax consultant with Farm Credit East, will be joined by Kelly McAdam, UNH Extension Field Specialist, to discuss:

Changes in Exemptions and Deductions for You and Your Business
How Net Operating Loss is Carried Back/Forward
Changes in Depreciation Rules

Join the webinar here.

Inheriting a Farm-Passing on the Farm to the Next Generation, Webinar

Tue, 02/12/2019 | 12:00pm – 1:00pm | Cost: Free

Gifting vs. Selling as a means of Transferring Farm Assets, Webinar

Tue, 03/12/2019 | 12:00pm – 1:00pm | Cost: Free

Grants for Farmers and Agricultural Nonprofits

Agricultural Development Grants are available from the Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry (DACF). This program provides cost-share grants to conduct market promotion, market research and development, value-added processing and new technology demonstration projects. Apply by January 31 a 4 p.m. More information is available at the DACF website (link).

Agricultural Marketing Loan Funds are also available from DACF, which accepts applications from February through May. This program provides 5 percent interest loans for capital improvements for farms and farm-related businesses. FMI: Stephanie Gilbert at Stephanie.Gilbert@Maine.gov.

Northeast SARE Grants

Northeast Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education grants are available. Farmer Grants are for commercial producers who have an innovative idea they want to test using a field trial, on-farm demonstration, marketing initiative or other technique. A technical advisor must also be involved. Deadlines vary, and application materials will be released midsummer online (link).

Webinar: Getting the Best from Yourself and Your Employees

Location: Online
Dates: January 8, 15 & 22, 2019 from 10:30-Noon Eastern Time
Early Registration (by December 31, 2018): $35
Cost: $70 for the series.
A three-session workshop series
Co-sponsored by University of Vermont Extension and UNH Cooperative Extension

Are you ready to take your labor management to the next level?

Getting the Best from Yourself and Your Employees is a three-session workshop for farm operators based on the DiSC Workplace Profile.

Instructors Mary Peabody (UVM Extension) and Seth Wilner (UNH Extension) will guide you through an assessment of your preferences, your strengths and stressors. Then you’ll explore some strategies you can use to be a better communicator and a better manager with employees, customers, and family members who may, or may not, share your work style preferences.

Finally, we’ll offer insight into how to bring what you’ve learned back to the farm and use it to build a successful crew for the coming season.

The workshop will be offered virtually on three Tuesdays, Jan 8th, 15th and 22nd from 10:30 – noon.

The workshop series fee is $70. Thanks to support from the USDA-Risk Management Agency and USDA NIFA, registration through December 31 is half price, reducing the fee to $35.

This material is supported by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, U.S.D.A. (link), under award numbers 2014-68006-21873 and 2015-70017-23898 and the USDA Risk Management Agency Targeted States Program.

To request a disability-related accommodation to participate in this program, please email Mary Peabody or call (802) 656-7232 by 5 pm December 20, 2018. For all other questions, please email Beth Holtzman.

Click here to register online (link).

Weather-based Crop Management Tools Event (2019 Maine Ag Trades Show)

Weather-based crop management tools are a strategy farmers can use to increase resilience to extreme weather. Farmers and service providers are invited to five sessions (link) about using weather-based tools 9 a.m.–3 p.m. Jan. 17 at the Augusta Civic Center, Howard Room, 76 Community Drive.

The free sessions, to be held during the Maine Agricultural Trades Show, are sponsored by the Maine Climate and Agriculture Network (link), which is organized through UMaine.

Sessions will focus on challenges and opportunities that changing weather in Maine present for agriculture, and a variety of tools to help adapt to weather risks. Individual session topics include Ag-Radar; a tool to inform pest management; efficient irrigation; and a rainfall index insurance program for grassland. Farmers also are invited to share their favorite weather tools during a show-and-tell session. As well, all sessions will include time for participants to provide input on what types of agricultural weather data, forecasts, and tools are needed for Maine.

Pesticide and certified crop adviser credits are available for select sessions. For more information or to request a reasonable accommodation, contact Erin Roche, 207.949.2490, erin.roche@maine.edu.

2019 Maine Ag Trades Show Workshops

The Beginning Farmer Resource Network (BFRN) returns to the Ag Trades Show this year with free workshops focused on the needs of beginning farmers, including connecting farmers with agricultural service providers. The trades show runs January 15th-17th at the Augusta Civic Center. See the BFRN’s event page (link) for details.

Maine Agricultural Development Grant Proposals Now Being Accepted

Maine Agricultural Development Grant Proposals Now Being Accepted
The Division of Agricultural Resource Development at the Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation, and Forestry (DACF) has released its Request for Proposals for the 2019 Agricultural Development Grants.

This program provides grants to conduct market promotion, market research and development, value-added processing and new technology demonstration projects. Public agencies, private companies (such as farms and food producers), and non-profit organizations and institutions are eligible to apply. Proposals due by January 31, 2019. The grants are competitive, and matching funds (which can be in-kind) are required.

Each year, the DACF Commissioner determines priority issues for the grant program. This year’s priorities include projects that:

assist farms in increasing sales to institutions
improve sales to local buyers
help farms diversify markets
help Maine farms adapt to drought and other climate-related crop disturbances.

The Agricultural Development Grant program was created in 1996, capitalized by the interest earned on the Agricultural Marketing Loan Fund bond. Past grants have funded the development of new products, acquisition of production equipment, development of marketing initiatives, crop diversification projects, and more.

In 2018, LaJoie Growers, LLC of Van Buren was one of six successful applicants for a grant through the program. LaJoie Growers sought funding to expand their vegetable processing facility to dehydrate and mill beets. Company vice president Jay LaJoie commented that “the Ag Development Grant helped bridge the gap in overhead to start a new value-added product for our family farm. The application was short, simple, and to the point – very achievable, and not intimidating.”

A new Maine law, “An Act to Expand the Local Foods Economy by Promoting Local Foods Procurement,” will create new opportunities for farmers and food producers seeking to expand their local and institutional markets. Agricultural Development Grants are one way producers may pursue such expansion.

The Request for Proposals is available online at: https://www.maine.gov/dacf/ard/grants/agricultural_development.shtml

For more information, contact:

Leigh Hallett, Director, Division of Agricultural Resource Development, Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation, and Forestry, at 207-215-7388 (cell) or by e-mail at Leigh.Hallett@Maine.gov.

Workshop: Improving Communication

A New Year’s goal, or resolution – Improve on-farm communication with UMaine Extension – for farmers and farm teams

Effective interpersonal communication is essential and cost effective for your farm operation. In this 3-hour interactive workshop, Improving Communication, participants will address real farm situations to learn about communication styles, ways to have better conversations, and have a chance to practice new skills. Each participant will identify unique needs and create a plan to address them.

On-farm communication is critical for farm viability, and is one of the most common sources of conflict and frustration for farmers, family members, employees, and customers.

If you…

Are part of a farm family or farm team
See the benefit of improved communication skills
Would like to have conversations that aren’t so awkward
Are ready to tackle difficult conversations
Find the stress of farm life difficult to express to others

You will leave the workshop with at least one goal and steps to reach it.

WHEN:
Jan. 8, 10 a.m.–1 p.m., at University of Maine Cooperative Extension Hancock County office, 63 Boggy Brook Road, Ellsworth;
Feb. 5, 9 a.m.–noon, online only

UMaine Extension human development specialist Leslie Forstadt, and family and community mediation director Karen Groat will lead the workshops. Each participant will identify unique needs and create a plan to address them. All workshop attendees also are eligible to apply for up to four coaching sessions at no cost. The farm coaching sessions will focus on farm decision-making, goal setting or communication.

COST: $15/person or $25/couple, and includes workbook and refreshments for Ellsworth training; $10/person for online session. Register online (link).

For more information or to request a reasonable accommodation, contact Angela Martin, 207.581.3739; angela.martin@maine.edu. More information also is online (link). The workshops and coaching are made possible by a grant from the United States Department of Agriculture, National Institute of Food and Agriculture Northeast Extension Risk Management Education.

Core Training & Exam at Maine’s Agricultural Trades Show

There will be a Core Training for Private and Agricultural Basic pesticide licenses on January 15, 2019 during the Agricultural Trade show at the Augusta Civic Center. The Core exam and any selected commodity exams will be proctored following the training.

Pre-registration is required, and space is limited. When spots are filled individuals will be added to a wait list. Visit this webpage for details and sign-up (link).

For more information about the Board of Pesticides Control visit:
thinkfirstspraylast.org

Cooperative Extension: Agriculture