Project Overview
Commodities
- Fruits: melons
- Vegetables: broccoli, cabbages, greens (leafy), okra, sweet corn, sweet potatoes
Practices
- Crop Production: agroforestry, alley cropping, conservation tillage, contour farming, cover crops, crop improvement and selection, cropping systems, crop rotation, double cropping, fertilizers, greenhouses, high tunnels or hoop houses, irrigation, multiple cropping, no-till, nutrient management, organic fertilizers, seed saving, silvopasture, stubble mulching, varieties and cultivars, water management
- Education and Training: decision support system, demonstration, extension, farmer to farmer, networking, on-farm/ranch research, technical assistance, workshop, youth education
- Energy: energy conservation/efficiency, energy use, solar energy
- Farm Business Management: agricultural finance, agritourism, apprentice/intern training, budgets/cost and returns, business planning, cooperatives, e-commerce, farm-to-institution, farm-to-restaurant, farmers' markets/farm stands, farm succession, financial management, labor/employment, land access, market study, marketing management, risk management, value added, whole farm planning
- Natural Resources/Environment: biodiversity, carbon sequestration, drift/runoff buffers, grass waterways, habitat enhancement, soil stabilization, strip cropping
- Pest Management: cultivation, cultural control, field monitoring/scouting, genetic resistance, integrated pest management, mulches - general, mulches - killed, mulching - plastic, physical control, row covers (for pests), weed ecology
- Production Systems: agroecosystems, dryland farming, holistic management, integrated crop and livestock systems, organic agriculture, transitioning to organic
- Soil Management: composting, green manures, nutrient mineralization, soil analysis, soil chemistry, soil microbiology, soil quality/health
- Sustainable Communities: community services, employment opportunities, food access and security, food hubs, infrastructure analysis, leadership development, local and regional food systems, partnerships, public participation, quality of life, social capital, social networks, sustainability measures, urban/rural integration, values-based supply chains
Summary:
Cooperatives are widely recognized as a means for people to gain economic advantages they could not achieve individually. Drawing from successful examples of cooperatives in Alabama, Georgia and elsewhere, the East Alabama Black Belt Farmers’ Cooperative (EABBFC) was organized in February 2020 by 7 local farmers and the Tuskegee Bullock / Barbour Counties Alabama Extension Educator. They collectively own over 1,000 acres of land with approximately 200 tillable with 15-20 in vegetable production. Each farmer is in the process of developing their farm business plan and all the farm plans are being combined into the co-op’s business plan. Presently, they’re planting 16 different vegetables delivering to 5 grocery stores. They have intentionally limited participation in the cooperative due to the pandemic situation. As they move through and beyond the pandemic, the goal is to recruit and expand members and partnerships.
The objective of EABBFC is to increase and improve the sustainable farming practices of its members and other Black Belt farmers. The first EABBFC project is to participate in the Federation of Southern Cooperatives and Mission Alabama’s “Farm to Food Box'' Initiatives. The project involves producing 30,000 – 40,000 pounds of collards for spring 2021 distribution to food selves and other community service organizations.
The project will involve comparing 2 varieties of collards (Georgia collards and a Bonnie’s variety) using 3 different types of mulching (plastic, hay straw and pine straw) for weed control and water conservation. The demonstration will be 3 acres with 6 half-acre plots (2 varieties using 3 types of mulches). With this project the EABBFC will also explore the possibility of developing and marketing the “Black Belt” brand of greens and eventually other agricultural products.
This project addresses Sustainable Agriculture in several ways by providing training through Educational Classes and Workshops in the areas of Sustainable Fruit, Nuts and Vegetables Production, Leadership Development, Conservation and Natural Resource Management, all of which will improve the quality of life and economic well-being of the region
Project objectives:
Develop 3-acre research and demonstration site comparing 2 varieties of collards using 3 different mulching materials.
Lead workshops on Cooperative organizational structure & business planning for our farmer to expand their leadership capacity and skills.
To develop a business plan in order to secure better financing, space, transportation and equipment which will generate more sales, income and equity for our members.
Train our growers in Farm Planning, Business Planning and In-Field Crop Growing through Workshops and One-on-One Sessions. The farmers will participate in five free workshops and five one-on-one sessions, including two pre-season business and crop planning, two in-field sessions during the growing season and one post-season evaluation.
Conduct meetings with prospective customers to determine fresh and frozen vegetable purchasing volume, specifications and pricing. Catalog and list requirements for selling to processors, buying clubs, public/private/charter schools, and other institutional buyers.
Partner with Tuskegee University to launch an aggregation & processing site and identify target markets that want to buy our value-added vegetables.
Support our farmers to apply for the USDA’s crop insurance program for produce so that they will be protected in the event of a weather or pest disaster.