Virginia Farm Bureau is a member of the Animal Agriculture Alliance, a national organization dedicated to bridging the communication gap between farm and food communities. Each year, the Alliance hosts a Stakeholders Summit, which is a fantastic opportunity to interact with a wide variety of people involved in the livestock industry, from farmers to scientists to nutritionists, and learn about the latest developments in all things animal agriculture. For the past two years, the event has been virtual, but still informative and engaging. Here are some of my takeaways from the presentations and discussions at this year’s conference:

1. Animal agriculture has learned a lot about communication over the years. Dr. Alison Van Eenennaam, an animal biotechnology and genomics expert from the University of California, Davis, shared that 37% of U.S. adults believe GMOs are safe to eat compared to 88% of scientists and reminded us that fears are difficult to address using logic and reason. While it’s frustrating to see some groups use the “FUD” tactic (Fear, Uncertainty, Doubt) against us, we as an industry can do better than that. Animal agriculture has a positive and compelling story to tell if we share it early, before the narrative is shaped for us, and in a creative manner. There’s not just “one” way to communicate information. To increase transparency for customers, Smithfield Foods created an ingredient glossary to explain what exactly those unknown ingredients on the back of the package are used for. Corteva Agriscience focuses on “putting agriculture’s voice in unexpected places”, such as partnering with the BBC on their Follow the Food series. Filament, an animal agriculture marketing company, goes to great lengths to make sure all the graphics they create accurately represent farming realities—even making sure a hay icon looks like alfalfa and not straw!

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Virginia Farm Bureau hosted the second episode of its new webinar series, “Faces of Virginia Farming” on May 6^th.  Behind every piece of food and fiber is a person with a unique story, and Faces of Virginia Farming gives the public an opportunity to hear directly from these farmers and connect with the people who grow what they eat and wear.

Just in time for Mother’s Day, the episode featured an engaging group of women from across the state who are directly involved in all aspects of their farms, hold leadership positions on boards and community organizations, and work off-farm jobs–all while keeping their families straight!

Putting the “real” in Real Farm Moms were Shelley Butler Barlow of Cotton Plain Farms in Suffolk; Sarah Rudolph of Double R Farms in Wythe County; and Kari Sponaugle of Church Hill Produce in Highland County. They shared authentic and entertaining stories of life on the farm, misconceptions they face, and why they trust our food and fiber supply.

If you missed the episode, you can watch it here. To stay informed of future events, follow Virginia Farm Bureau Federation on Facebook or email facesofvafarming@vafb.com with questions.

Legislation that would help farmers participate in carbon markets has been reintroduced to the U.S. Senate for consideration after clearing the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry on April 22.

The Growing Climate Solutions Act would establish a certification program through the U.S. Department of Agriculture to eliminate barriers that have limited farmers’ involvement in carbon credit markets. The bill previously was introduced in 2020.

The Greenhouse Gas Technical Assistance Provider and Third-Party Verifier Certification Program would address previous issues relating to carbon markets, including a lack of reliable market information and access to qualified technical assistance providers and credit verifiers.

The certification program would ensure third-party assistance providers and credit verification services have agricultural expertise. It also would connect farmers with groups that would assist in monetizing sustainable land management practices.

Additionally, USDA would create a website to provide information for farmers interested in participating in carbon markets.

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Check out this week’s Merchandiser Minute.

Planting season is well on its way, and you can just see the small grain growing. Before you know it, combines will be rolling in the fields. With that in mind, I thought it would be a good time to remind farmers to know their limit when hauling products to market.

It’s even more important to know what you can do, and where you can do it. I say this because the Virginia Department of Transportation is under guidance from the U.S. Department of Transportation to review and post weight limits on all bridges in the Commonwealth. So, you must pay attention to the bridges you cross to get from farm to market. Exemptions and allowances enjoyed by various industries do not allow you to violate weight limits on bridges. Some of the new postings have prompted discussions with agencies to find solutions to downgraded bridges until they can be improved or replaced.

Farmers enjoy several exemptions and allowances in a variety of areas of hauling agricultural products, but it’s important to have a good understanding of what they are and how they apply.

One of the best allowances we have is when you have your truck registered with the registered Farm Vehicle (F-tag) from the DMV. When you have this plate, you get an extra 5% allowance of weight. It’s one of the benefits of putting a registered farm plate on your vehicles. This is included in § 46.2-1128 of the Virginia Code.

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National agriculture associations are urging farmers to engage with local first responders to prepare action plans for farm emergencies. Some of Virginia’s agriculturalists are already a step ahead.

The U.S. Poultry and Egg Association and other commodity groups recently released the first in a series of videos that will help farmers identify essential aspects of emergency action plans for their operations.

The initiative emphasizes the advantages of engaging with local emergency professionals—a measure one Hanover County farm family implemented in March. The farm hosted personnel from Henrico Technical Rescue Team who demonstrated grain bin extrication equipment provided by Virginia Farm Bureau Federation’s Farm Safety Advisory Committee.

Such coordination efforts allow responders to better understand the potential hazards they may face when responding to an on-farm emergency. They also give farmers insight into the accident response capabilities available within their communities.

Henrico County’s specialty unit is trained for unusual rescue situations like extrications or incidents involving confined spaces. The March trainings at Engel Family Farms in Hanover County were led by Lt. Charles Smith of Henrico Firehouse 1.

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A study that examined waterways in Accomack County has revealed the rapid expansion of poultry operations in the county has had no detectable effects on local water quality.

The research was conducted in response to concerns that the proximity of commercial poultry houses and the increased use of poultry litter as fertilizer would contaminate Eastern Shore waterways.

However, after examining data from 86 streams in Accomack, the Virginia Institute of Marine Science determined there was no correlation between water nutrient levels and the presence of poultry operations.

“The goal of the study was to find out if there was any measurable impact from these poultry operations,” said VIMS director Richard Snyder, who helped conduct the research. “The basic conclusion of the report is that there is no significant difference between watersheds that have poultry operations and those that do not.”

The study monitored dissolved ammonia, liquefied nitrates and nitrites, dissolved oxygen, total phosphorus and nitrogen levels, temperature, salinity and turbidity in Accomack County streams. Values were collected during two 1-inch rainfall events and over an extended period of drought in 2020.

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Check out this week’s Merchandiser Minute!

The number of women in farming is on the rise.

The U.S. Census of Agriculture, which has been surveying the gender, race and ethnic origin of principal farm operators since 2007, reported more than 36% of American farmers were women in 2017. Twenty-nine percent were principal operators, and 78% of all female producers said they are involved in daily decisions.

In Virginia, female farmers are involved with 23,575 farms, and they are principal operators of 16,456.

Joanne Jones, who manages her husband’s family’s 450-acre, third-generation Dark Leaf Farm in Appomattox County, is one of them.

“I feel like women always have played more of a role than what’s been recognized,” she said.

In addition to harvesting and planting soybeans, tobacco and wheat, Jones handles the farm’s paperwork.

“If you’re the one doing that, you know what’s making money and what’s not—what’s losing, what’s gaining.”

Jones, who also works as a full-time Virginia Cooperative Extension agent in Charlotte County, admits it was difficult getting people to take her seriously in the early days, but six years as president of Appomattox County Farm Bureau helped her build respect.

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Virginia Farm Bureau unveiled a new webinar series, called “Faces of Virginia Farming”, on April 8^th.  Behind every piece of food and fiber is a person with a unique story, and Faces of Virginia Farming gives the public an opportunity to hear directly from these farmers and connect with the people who grow what they eat and wear.

In partnership with the Federation of Virginia Food Banks, the first episode featured the inspiring story of Richlands Dairy and Creamery, located in Blackstone, VA. Coley Drinkwater and TR Jones shared how, in order to continue the family operation, they expanded their dairy farm to include a creamery. To give back to the community, Richlands has followed through on a pledge to donate 1 gallon of milk for every 10 gallons purchased.

Richlands has the mindset of, “if you want people to support you, you have to support the people around you, as well,” said TR.

In addition to Coley and TR, Eddie Oliver with the Federation of Virginia Food Banks, Senator Ghazala Hashmi, and Delegate Wendy Gooditis joined a panel discussion.

Eddie provided an overview of the Federation of Virginia Food Banks and its mission. For more information on the Federation, visit their website.

Senator Hashmi and Delegate Gooditis spoke to the impact recent legislation establishing the Virginia Agriculture Food Assistance Program and Fund will have on communities and farmers.

If you missed the episode, you can watch it here. To stay informed of future events, follow Virginia Farm Bureau Federation on Facebook or email facesofvafarming@vafb.com with questions.