Final report for SNE21-009-NJ
Project Information
In New Jersey, the agricultural industry is extremely diverse in farm size, farm products, marketing, and business models. Each farm has unique needs from agricultural service providers (ASPs). The problem is knowledge and educational training related to base services for farmers, has been lacking and needs to increase to maximize efficient program delivery. This issue is of particular importance for Rutgers Cooperative Extension (RCE) Agriculture and Natural Resources (ANR) Department members who are written into state legislation or are called upon for regulatory interpretation which often results in the need to network with other agencies and NGOs who serve farmers. Many ANR personnel conduct programming not specifically related to commercial agriculture, leaving a void in some areas of the state for farmer services. However, it is still important for local ANR staff to understand agricultural issues and help identify services offered by other ASPs related to farm regulations, risk management, production agriculture, and marketing services. In the past, networking groups and agriculture-related programs provided opportunities for information sharing amongst ASPs. In the last decade, these programs have been discontinued leaving significant gaps in information sharing between ASPs. Services for the agricultural community are essential for farm viability. ASP programming must be effectively managed regardless of programmatic focus to ensure much needed service delivery to the agricultural community.
To support agricultural service providers a series of training sessions was conducted to 1) train ASPs on the base services for farmers, 2) offer networking opportunities for extension, agricultural agencies, NGOs and others, and 3) provide in-person and on-farm opportunities for ASPs to demonstrate programs and communicate services that may align with other providers to enhance service efficiencies. This project provided ASPs the platform to improve their knowledge and share the diverse and numerous resources available to assist farmers. As a result of this project, ASP's and support staff reported learning about the services provided by other agencies and service providers. Supervisors, particularly from Extension reported that the programs assisted staff in identifying the proper ASP's to answer clients questions or to provide the best service within Extension. The program also helped to foster collaborative programs between Extension and other ASP's and provided additional services to clientele.
Twenty-five ASPs will participate in the program and will improve communications with other ASPs working in various agencies to deliver services more efficiently to farmers. ASPs will demonstrate improved professional networks, collaborations, and services for farmers. Fifteen ASPs will provide services to at least 2,000 farmers through this project.
Agricultural Need: The agricultural industry in New Jersey is extremely diverse and constantly evolving. The U.S. Department of Agriculture 2017 Census of Agriculture showed the number of farms in New Jersey had risen by more than 800 since the previous census in 2012. In 2017, NJ was listed as having 9,883 farms. The amount of land in farms had an increase of almost 20,000 acres standing at 734,000 acres. It is anticipated the next census will once again show this trend of increased farm numbers in the State. Many farms are small-scale and are often managed as secondary businesses for landowners with abundant needs from ASPs. In addition, many ASP clients are beginning farmers with entry-level questions, needing guidance to navigate agricultural regulations, risk management issues and services for crop production and marketing. As a result, ASPs must provide multiple services for the producer and/or identify the agency that would best provide the needed service. In the past, inter-agency cooperation occurred through various professional organizations that provided both networking opportunities and the ability for agencies to promote their services and programs. As ASP’s, especially extension personnel, have focused on other issues in the state, traditional agricultural organizations have become less active or non-existent resulting in limited opportunities for information sharing and promotion of services for farmers. The diversity of operations in the state, combined with changing farmer demographics and less ASPs focusing on commercial agriculture programming makes information sharing critical for ASPs to serve farmers effectively and efficiently. ASP focus must once again be aimed at serving the agricultural industry in the State worth over $1.1 Billion annually.
Solution: To support agricultural service providers a series of training sessions was conducted to 1) train ASPs on the base services for farmers, 2) offer networking opportunities for extension, agricultural agencies, NGOs and others, and 3) provide in-person and on-farm opportunities for ASPs to demonstrate programs and communicate services that may align with other providers to enhance service efficiencies. This project provided ASPs the platform to improve their knowledge and share the diverse and numerous resources available to assist farmers.
Agricultural Service Provider Interest: RCE ANR professionals expressed an interest in learning more about base-services provided via the cooperative extension system, especially in county extension programs that do not traditionally provide programming for commercial farmers. The diversity and numbers of farms in New Jersey has increased, but the number of ASPs focusing on commercial agriculture programming has decreased. As staff and expertise become limited, service providers have expressed increased interest in shared service models and improved efficiency of services. Eleven agricultural service providers committed to participating in this project, providing training from technical support agencies like the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, extension professionals with various discipline areas including crop production, fisheries, environmental science, and agricultural lobbying organizations such as NJ Farm Bureau. This project has support from extension administration to facilitate information sharing and improve services between ASPs. More interest is anticipated through recruitment efforts and announcements of training sessions and annual ASP conference events.
Educational Approach
Education Plan
Recruitment
A multi-faceted recruitment strategy was conducted beginning in October-December 2021. Additional ASPs who wished to participate after the recruitment period were welcomed into the program. Project participants were recruited using person-to person discussions, email groups, online promotional materials, and reaching out to ASP administrators. RCE administration, agency leaders and NGO facilitators to assist in identifying ASPs for recruitment to participate in the program.
Education
To support agricultural service providers, a series of training sessions were conducted to 1) train ASPs on the many base services for farmers, 2) offer networking opportunities for extension, agricultural agencies, NGOs and others, and 3) provide in person and on-farm opportunities for ASPs to demonstrate programs and communicate services that may align with other providers to enhance service efficiencies. These trainings were delivered online as synchronous webinar trainings and recorded and posted on the Rutgers SARE website to maximize outreach and potential participation. Eleven, one-hour sessions were conducted and delivered by Rutgers Extension faculty and other participating agricultural service providers. These programs included an overview of the agencies' duties, as well as a detailed explanation of the services provided by that organization. In addition to the webinars, two, one-day annual ASP conferences were conducted as on-farm events to allow ASPs to promote their services and to facilitate networking between agencies as well as three presentations at additional Extension events to promote the various ASP programs and the SARE program as a whole.
Overview of Networking Opportunities
The goal of this project was not only to share information between ASP’s, but also to facilitate relationships between agencies, producers and others involved in agriculture. To facilitate this, the 11 online educational webinars consisted of 1) an informational program hosted by an ASP, to explain the services provided and how these services assist farmers in New Jersey, 2) a question-and-answer session designed to promote interaction between groups and to focus on how groups may interact or enhance the services provided by the ASP, and 3) in-person events and discussions to share additional information.
Verification
A series of surveys and interviews were conducted to quantify the effectiveness of programs delivered. A post survey was conducted to quantify levels of knowledge participants have about the services provided by various participating agencies. At the conclusion of this project, a follow-up survey and in-person interviews were conducted to 1) evaluate the program's effectiveness, to determine if the program resulted in improved agency programmatic delivery, and 3) quantify the number of producers reached by individual participants in this program.
Overview of Survey Methodology
Initial knowledge: The objective of the initial knowledge survey was to quantify the understanding each ASP has related to other groups participating in the program. The team asked respondents to assess their understanding of the other ASP programs, mainly as a Likert-scale type response (1=no knowledge, 5=very knowledgeable). These surveys were also used to determine if individual groups typically partner with one another or direct producers to other groups for service.
Follow-up surveys: Participants were be asked to complete surveys to quantify their level of knowledge gain. These surveys were designed to quantify individual participants who reported learning any new information about an ASP and to quantify their intent to promote an ASP, or partner with them in the future. These surveys were conducted primarily at a series of in-person programs targeting Extension faculty and staff, and other participating ASP groups at various public programs.
Final Survey: A final survey was conducted to determine how participation in the program impacted programmatic delivery. Using the initial survey for pre-program assessment, the final survey was designed to quantify the specific actions taken by program participants and to assess if any new partnerships were developed, if ASP's directed clientele to reach out to another ASP, and to obtain participants' assessment of the program. Program participants were asked a series of questions to assess their level of interaction and understanding “before” participating in the program and “after” participation. The final survey consisted of eight questions including a series of selection questions, post/pre assessment questions and a space for general comments about the program. The questions were designed to assess participants knowledge gained from the programs, their intention to share the information learned with others, and to quantify the interactions with clientele by ASP's to share the information presented during the programs.
Milestones
Milestone 1:
October-December 2021: Recruit 25 ASP participants for program. Develop and disseminate promotional materials including promotional flyers, electronic communications, in-person promotion via extension department meetings and other agency events such as State Board of Agriculture meetings.
25
37
December 31, 2021
Completed
November 28, 2022
Participants were recruited by email announcement. Each week, a separate e-mail announcement was shared with Extension faculty and staff and other ASP's in New Jersey. Participants were asked to share the announcement with anyone who may have interactions with the agricultural community. Each program speaker was selected by a member of the SARE program team. Although speakers were selected in advance, there were instances when a speaker either cancelled, a topic was changed, or a meeting was postponed. In these situations, participants were notified, and the program schedule was adjusted accordingly. As a result, additional programs will be conducted in 2024.
Mandated Roles DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE AND NATURAL RESOURCES
Flier New Jersey Agricultural Service Provider Training (002)
Milestone 2:
October-December 2021. Introduction of the training series to agricultural service providers and extension personnel. Confirm training session speakers and schedule.
25
37
December 31, 2021
Completed
November 28, 2022
A total of 4 webinars and one in-person full-day workshops were conducted during year one of the project. During these meetings a total of 111 people, representing various Extension programs, non-profit groups, and other agricultural service providers participated. Thirty-seven unique participants were represented.
Milestone 3:
Summer 2022, 2023, 2024 Determine locations, dates, presenters for annual in person, on-farm, day long ASP conferences
25
25
August 31, 2024
Completed
July 25, 2024
Summer in person programs are described below in Milestone 4.
Milestone 4:
January 2022 to July 2024. Conduct synchronous webinar training sessions every other month.
Schedule:
January 2022 Training Session 1. Overview of base services for farmers presented by project team.
March 2022 Training Session 2. Farm Vehicle Regulations in NJ, presented by NJ Farm Bureau specialist.
May 2022 Training Session 3. NJ Department of Agriculture, Plant Industry Division services, speaker TBD.
July 2022 Training Session 4. NJ Farm Bureau membership and the relationship with county boards of agriculture/stakeholder groups. Speaker TBD.
September 2022 Training Session 5. Fostering leadership in agricultural organizations and keeping the organization viable. Speaker Michelle Infante-Casella.
November 2022 Training Session 6. NJ Department of Environmental Protection Agency, Agricultural Water Allocations Program.
January 2023 Training Session 7. USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service farmer assistance programs. Speaker Fran DeFiccio, NRCS-NJ.
March 2023 Training Session 8. USDA Farm Service Agency farmer assistance programs.
May 2023 Training Session 9. NJ Department of Environmental Protection Agency, Pesticide Control Program pesticide applicator requirements and inspections.
July 2023 Training Session 10. Rutgers soil testing services and interpreting soil test reports. Speaker Stephanie Murphy.
September 2023 Training Session 11. NJ State Agricultural Development Board, roles and responsibilities of the SADC, County Agricultural Development Boards and Agricultural Agents. Speaker Susan Payne.
November 2023 Training Session 12. Soil Conservation Districts in NJ and their roles in agriculture.
January 2024 Training Session 13. USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service and the benefits of accurately reporting information. Speaker Bruce Eklund.
March 2024 Training Session 14. Working with agricultural commodity organizations. Speaker TBD
May 2024 Training Session 15. County Agricultural Agent roles when working with other county departments. Speaker Michelle Infante-Casella.
July 2024 Training Session 16. NJ Fish and Wildlife farmer depredation and hunting permit programs. Speaker TBD.
25
225
July 31, 2024
Completed
July 31, 2024
2022
A total of 4 webinars and one in-person full-day workshops were conducted during year one of the project (2022). During these meetings a total of 111 people, representing various Extension programs, non-profit groups, and other agricultural service providers participated. Thirty-seven unique participants were represented.
Slides for 3.28.22 SARE ASP webinar
2023
A series of 3 webinars were conducted including; 1) NRCS Programs, Kaitlin Fabrotnik, Soil Agronomist. Kaitlin discussed the various NRCS programs, explained how farmers apply and shared specific contact information for USDA service centers around NJ to participating ASP's; 2) New Jersey State Ag Development Committee representatives, Susan Payne, and David Kimmel. Presenters from NJSADC discussed the importance of SADC programs including the NJ Special Events rules, how farmers can learn more and who ASP's should direct farmer inquiries to; 3) Michaela Kramer and Craig Christo, USDA Farm Service Agency, NJ. Representatives from USDA/FSA explained the Farm Bill programs, provided regional Center information and shared specific contact information with ASP's.
In addition, 2 in-person sessions were conducted including; 1)9/15/23 Base Services Training at RCE of Ocean Co. Topic: SARE Grant Categories, SARE Farmer Grants and Roles for Technical Advisors. Stephen Komar and Michelle Casella led a discussion and conducted a presentation related to SARE programs and affiliated ASP's, 2) NJ Agricultural Agents Annual Retreat and Meeting. Stephen Komar led a discussion with Agriculture and Natural Resource Department members and guests to determine the effectiveness of the SARE funded programs, to determine additional trainings needed and to reinforce the importance of sharing information between ASP's.
Due to scheduling conflicts, the presentations varied from the planned agenda. In addition, one critical topic, "Special Occasion Events," was presented in response to a recent change to Farmland Preservation rules. To assist local ASP's, this topic was addressed to notify as many support staff as possible how to address these calls. This SARE project provided the infrastructure and communication to provide this information to Extension staff as well as other ASP's in a timely and efficient manner.
New Jersey "Special Occasion Events": training on new allowance for preserved farmland
Survey Results
A preliminary survey consisting of 4 questions was delivered to Rutgers Extension faculty and staff 0n 9/21/2023 to determine the potential impacts of the SARE funded program. Among respondents (n=12) 25% indicated that the base services training was important to the effective operation of their office, while 66% reported that it was very important. when asked if the program improves staffs understanding of ASP services to farmers, 66% said "yes" while 33% did not know. In addition, 100% of respondents reported that they learned something from the program. Additional program deliverables have been generated in response to open-ended survey responses including a "mandated services for Extension" document. This initial survey will serve as the basis for the final project survey to be conducted in 2024.
Selected agricultural service providers and support staff were interviewed by the project team to determine how the project impacted their programmatic deliver to farmers in New Jersey. Among the results 12 respondents said they learned 2 or more new programs available for farmers in New Jersey and reported that the information presented by ASP's informed their ability to direct clientele to the best agency for the client's needs or to the correct faculty member within Extension. This program was a contributing factor in the development of various ASP partnerships and collaborations. One such partnership was the development of a partnership between Rutgers Extension and the Warren County Community College WCC Drone Program. This innovative partnership combined the expertise of Extension faculty in production agriculture with the drone expertise offered by the WCC. The services provided by the collaborative effort were shared with participants in the ASP services trainings to maximize the outreach. As a result, nearly 4,000 acres of agricultural fields were flown representing 3 New Jersey Counties. This collaboration is expanding to partner with both North Jersey RC&D, NRCS, and the New Jersey Department of Fish and Game. Although not created as a direct result of the project, the educational programs delivered during the project allowed for increased sharing of the services and more collaborative efforts.
|
Session |
Topic |
participants |
|
2/27/23 Kaitlin Farbotnik, Soil Agronomist, NRCS |
NRCS Programs |
18 |
|
5/22/23 Susan Payne, NJ State Agricultural Development Committee |
SADC Programs, Special Occasion Programs |
17 |
|
6/26/23 Michaela Kramer and Craig Christo, USDA Farm Service Agency, NJ
|
Farm Service Agency Program Overview |
14 |
|
9/15/23, Michelle Casella, Stephen Komar, SARE PDP Coordinators |
SARE Grant Categories, SARE Farmer Grants and Roles for Technical Advisors
|
32 |
|
9/21/23, Stephen Komar, SARE PDP Coordinators |
Base Services Training at 4-H Camp, Diversity of SARE Program Recipients |
21 |
|
ASP Program Effectiveness Survey |
ASP Program Effectiveness |
12 respondents |
2024
- January 2024 Training Session 13. USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service and the benefits of accurately reporting information. Speaker Bruce Eklund (Delivered at A&R dept meeting).
- March 2024 Training Session 14. Working with agricultural commodity organizations. (7 participants)
- April, 2024, Warren Community College Drone Program. Discussed drone uses in agriculture and technical services provided by the WCC Drone program(45 participants)
- May 2024 Training Session 15. County Agricultural Agent roles when working with other county departments. Speaker Michelle Infante-Casella (35 participants).
- July 2024 Training Session 16. NJ Fish and Wildlife farmer depredation and hunting permit programs and wildlife damage to agricultural crops (11 participants).
Milestone 5:
July to September 2024 Final project evaluation and participant surveys.
25
25
September 30, 2024
Completed
September 30, 2025
Initial survey respondents (n=11) reported that learning about base-service providers was important to their effective operations, supervisors (n=8) reported that the trainings improved staff understanding of base services and supervisor's ASP's (n=11) reported learning something new about a partnering ASP/agency.
Final Survey
A final survey was conducted at the completion of the project. The goal of the survey was to quantify participants' knowledge gain and to determine how the information was shared with clientele. Of the 13 respondents, eighty-five percent (11) reported significant knowledge gain from participating in the program. Among respondents, the majority (11) reported learning a great deal of information, with the remainder (2) reporting some new information learned.
Survey respondents were asked to select specific examples of actions taken as a result of participation. Among respondents, sixty-two percent (8) reported adding new ASP's to their contact lists, eighty-five (11) percent reported learning about an ASP for the first time. This new learning translated into measurable action from participants with sixty-two percent (8) reporting that they referred a client to an ASP that they learned about during the program, and sixty-nine percent (9) reported sharing the information with a colleague. In addition, twenty-three percent (3) reported posting information about ASP's on a web-site or through social media. One participant reported sharing information through an e-mail distribution list consisting of 500 members.
Participants were asked to estimate how likely they were to share the information learned with clientele in the future. Twenty-three percent (3) reported being likely to share, while seventy-seven percent (10) reported being very likely to share the information learned. When asked to estimate the number of potential clients they were likely to share the information with, eight percent (1) reported 1-10, twenty-three percent (3) estimated 11-25 and forty-six percent (6) estimated more than twenty five potential contacts.
In addition, fifty-four percent (7) of respondents reported already sharing the information with between 11-25 clients, thirty-one percent (4), reported between 1-10 contacts and fifteen percent (2) reported not sharing the information.
Milestone Activities and Participation Summary
Participation Summary:
Learning Outcomes
Survey respondents (n=11) reported that learning about base-service providers was important to their effective operations, supervisors (n=8) reported that the trainings improved staff understanding of base services and supervisor's ASP's (n=11) reported learning something new about a partnering ASP/agency.
A more in-depth survey administered at the conclusion of the project. Of the 13 respondents, eighty-five percent (11) reported significant knowledge gain from participating in the program. Among respondents, the majority (11) reported learning a great deal of information, with the remainder (2) reporting some new information learned.
Performance Target Outcomes
Performance Target Outcomes - Service Providers
Target #1
Twenty-five ASPs will participate in the program and will improve communications with other ASPs working in various agencies to deliver services more efficiently to farmers. ASPs will demonstrate improved professional networks, collaborations, and services for farmers. Fifteen ASPs will provide services to at least 2,000 farmers through this project.
| Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | 12 | 13 |
Participants in the programs reported via survey responses to have shared the information and/or contact information of a TSP that was introduced during the program with clientele through various means.
| Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | 0 | 115 |
| Activity | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Curricula, factsheets and other educational tools | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Consultations | 0 | 0 | 115 | 115 |
| On-farm demonstrations | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| Published press, articles, newsletters | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Study circles / focus groups | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Webinars, talks and presentations | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| Other | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
A total of 225 ASP's, support staff and producers participated in one or more educational programs that were delivered as a component of the project. These programs were delivered through various methods including in-person programs, workshops, and online webinars. Two unique survey instruments were developed to assess the effectiveness of these programs and to quantify the delivery to producers.
An initial survey was conducted following year one of the program. All participants who registered for the program (N=111) were sent a survey. Survey respondents (n=11) reported that learning about base-service providers was important to their effective operations, supervisors (n=8) reported that the trainings improved staff understanding of base services and supervisor's ASP's (n=11) reported learning something new about a partnering ASP/agency.
A final survey was sent to all participants at the completion of the project who completed a registration and included their e-mail address. The goal of the survey was to quantify participants knowledge gain and to determine how the information was shared with clientele.
Eighty-five percent of 13 respondents (11) reported significant knowledge gain from participating in the program. Among respondents, the majority 11 reported learning a great deal of information, with the remainder (2) reporting some new information learned.
Survey respondents were asked to select specific examples of actions taken as a result of participation. Among respondents, sixty-two percent reported adding new ASP's to their contact lists, eighty-five percent reported learning about an ASP for the first time. This new learning translated into measurable action from participants with sixty-two percent reporting that they referred a client to a ASP that they learned about during the program, sixty-nine percent reported sharing the information with a colleague. In addition, twenty-three percent reported posting information about ASP's on a web-site or through social media. One participant reported sharing information through an e-mail distribution list consisting of 500 members.
Participants were asked to estimate how likely they were to share the information learned with clientele in the future. Twenty-three percent reported being likely to share, while seventy-seven percent reported being very likely to share the information learned. When asked to estimate the number of potential clients they were likely to share the information with, eight percent reported 1-10, twenty-three percent estimated 11-25 and forty-six percent estimated more than twenty five potential contacts.
In addition, fifty-four percent (7) of respondents reported already sharing the information with between 11-25 clients, thirty-one percent (4), reported between 1-10 contacts and fifteen percent (2) reported not sharing the information.
Performance Target Outcomes - Farmers
SARE Outreach
SARE grant opportunities and information are shared with farmers, ag service providers and students in New Jersey via e-mail, personal communication, web-sites and electronic alerts and other social media outlets. SARE information is also shared at 3 statewide meetings via tabletop displays and handouts. When possible, SARE coordinators are present to ask specific questions and to share information.
Search Results for “sare” — Plant & Pest Advisory (rutgers.edu)
Recieved information about SARE grant programs and information resouces:
| Audience | Year 1 | Year 2 | Year 3 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Service providers | 75 | 31 | 65 | 171 |
| Farmers | 1350 | 1425 | 1500 | 4275 |