American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall today joined a special national agriculture roundtable highlighting a recent wave of nuisance lawsuits targeting North Carolina hog farms. The event, which was held in Raleigh, North Carolina, brought together legislators and agriculture leaders to discuss the growing threat to farmers and exposed how out-of-state trial lawyers are using nuisance lawsuits to circumvent state right-to-farm laws.
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Farm Bureau’s Merchandiser Minute with Robert Harper- August 3, 2018
FY19 Funding Available to Protect Virginia Wetlands (WRE) through Agricultural Conservation Easement Program (ACEP)
USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) is now accepting applications from Virginia landowners and governmental and non-governmental groups interested in protecting the state’s wetlands and working farms through the Agricultural Conservation Easement Program (ACEP).
This signup includes both the Wetland Reserve Easement (WRE) and Agricultural Land Easement (ALE) components of this 2014 Farm Bill program. Applications are accepted on a continual basis, but NRCS requires individuals (WRE) and entities (ALE) interested in fiscal year 2019 funding to submit applications on or before August 31, 2018. If funds are still available, a second signup period will be held with a deadline of October 19.
August Virginia Forest Landowner Update Now Available
A majority of Virginia’s forestland is privately own, much in conjunction with farms. The Virginia Forest Landowner Education Program (VFLEP), develops a newsletter to inform landowners of information and opportunities to best manage their forest resources. We plan to begin sharing this newsletter as it’s available on Plows and Politics. You can read the latest issue here.
Dairy MPP is Delivering in 2018
Driven by improvements made by Congress in the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 and the Agriculture Department’s efforts to inform dairy farmers about the enhanced program, as of early July more than 21,000 dairy farm operations had enrolled in the Dairy Margin Protection Program for the 2018 coverage year. More are putting the final touches on their enrollment applications. Once final enrollment is tallied, more than 50 percent of licensed dairy operations in the U.S. will be participating. These farmers purchased MPP coverage on 131 billion pounds of milk, representing approximately 60 percent of the U.S. milk supply.
USDA Asks Producers to Report Crop Yields
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) is surveying Virginia producers for its County Agricultural Production Survey (CAPS) small grains survey. The survey will collect information on total acres planted and harvested, and yield and production of small grains crops. CAPS will provide the data needed to estimate acreage and production of winter wheat and barley in Virginia.
“The data provided by producers will be used to set county average yields, which are needed in federal farm programs, such as the Agriculture Risk Coverage (ARC),” said Herman Ellison, Virginia state statistician. “I hope every single producer understands the importance of these data and will take the time to respond if they receive this survey. Producers lose out when there is no data to determine county yields, crop insurance price elections and more. When enough producers do not respond to surveys, NASS is not able to publish data. Without data, agencies such as USDA’s Risk Management Agency or Farm Service Agency do not have information on which to base the programs that serve those same producers”.
Within the next few weeks NASS representatives will contact selected growers to arrange telephone or in-person interviews for conducting the survey. NASS safeguards the privacy of all respondents and publishes only aggregate data, ensuring that no individual operation or producer can be identified. County average yields will be published on December 13, 2018.
For more information on NASS surveys and reports, call the NASS Virginia Field Office at 1-800-772-0670.
Farm Bureau’s Merchandiser Minute with Robert Harper- July 27, 2018
National Affairs Update: The Local Impact of National Policy
By Ben Rowe, National Affairs Coordinator
In my first few weeks with Virginia Farm Bureau, I have enjoyed the opportunity to meet with our members from across the Commonwealth, and represent your interests in our nation’s capital and our statehouse in Richmond. We have enjoyed a busy July at VAFB where we have been focused on several national policy issues ahead of Congress’ August recess.
Earlier this month, I traveled with a group of Southwest Virginia Young Farmers to DC to meet with their representatives and discuss four policy areas important to these young farmers: farm bill, trade tariffs, broadband connectivity and expansion, and electronic logging devices and trucking hours of service. This trip was a valuable opportunity for our members to sit across the table from their legislators and discuss the impact of these policies on their operations, and districts.
Farm Bureau’s Merchandiser Minute with Kaitlyn Maxian- July 20, 2018
Virginia Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Co. Named to Ward’s 50
Virginia Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Co. was named among the prestigious 2018 Property-Casualty Ward’s 50 Companies.
The list is compiled by Ward Group, a consulting firm specializing in the insurance industry and a leading provider of industry benchmarking.
“To be named one of the 50 top P&C companies in the country is a tremendous honor,” said Darlene Wells, VFBMIC executive vice president and general manager. “It is a privilege to work for an organization that strives for and delivers excellent results. It is a testament of employees’ fortitude, focus and discipline on growing our company in a healthy, financially responsible manner that gives us a stronger financial position to grow and better serve our policyholders for the long term.”
