2016-2017 Model State Program University of Florida

View the project final report

Commodities

Practices

• Crop Production: application rate management, cover crops, crop improvement and selection, cropping systems, crop rotation, drainage systems, grafting, high tunnels or hoop houses, intercropping, low tunnels, nutrient cycling, nutrient management, row covers (for season extension)
• Education and Training: demonstration, display, extension, focus group, mentoring, networking, on-farm/ranch research, participatory research, technical assistance, workshop
• Farm Business Management: community-supported agriculture, farmers' markets/farm stands, grant making, market study
• Pest Management: biological control, cultural control, integrated pest management, mulching - plastic, weed ecology
• Production Systems: agroecosystems, organic agriculture, transitioning to organic
• Soil Management: organic matter, soil microbiology, soil quality/health
• Sustainable Communities: food hubs, local and regional food systems, new business opportunities, partnerships, public participation, quality of life, social capital, urban agriculture

Florida activities for 2016-2017 will build upon the basic framework for the model state program. Planned activities include integrating results of SARE funded research and Extension activities, and other relevant research, and use this information as resources for educational programs. We also plan to continue to strengthen our focus on targeted training for Extension faculty at the state and county level, representatives of non-profit organizations, representatives of state and federal government agencies, and farmer representatives. The Model State Program has three priorities: (1) we continue to focus on outreach and training that enhances the environmental and economic benefits of production agriculture, (2) for the past four years we have developed programs that focus on ways to maintain traditional agricultural businesses and foster the growth of new food and agricultural businesses, and (3) we are developing an emphasis on local and regional food systems in order to address issues like infrastructure for processing and marketing and policies that affect the food system.

We have four objectives that flow directly from these priorities: (1) maintain existing and establish new collaborative Extension training and programs with faculty members and county agents at the University of Florida and Florida A&M whose work addresses sustainability in production agriculture, (2) extend collaboration with the emerging organizations that are active in the post-production components of the food systems, particularly the non-profit organizations and governmental organizations whose work fosters the development of food and agriculture businesses, (3) support the development of Extension programs in food systems, including the work of regional Extension specialists whose work often includes both the on-farm production aspects of the food system and the post-farm gate aspects of food system development, and (4) expand the participation of minority, women, and limited resource farmers and professionals in SARE activities and programs, ensuring that these groups and organizations are well represented in the full range of SARE-funded professional development opportunities.

To fulfill these priorities and objectives, our training program funds will be used to address training programs in three subject matter areas: (1) new and emerging solutions for Florida agricultural production, (2) advancing extension capacity in sustainable agriculture, and (3) entrepreneurial innovation in sustainable agriculture.

Our expected outcomes are: (1) state, regional and county Extension faculty will participate in annual SARE in-service training programs that focus on emerging technologies in agricultural production that address critical issues like water deficit and emerging pathogens and pests, and will use this information in their own Extension programs, (2) county faculty members will participate in regional and national training programs in sustainable agriculture, such as the SARE Cover Crops Conference, and will apply the lessons learned in their own programs, such as models for the development of value added products or use of cover crops, (3) at least two of the statewide Extension priority teams will include information and resources about sustainable agriculture and SARE in their professional development training programs and Extension programming, (4) through SARE, Extension agents and farmers will identify opportunities for the development of alternative crops and enterprises and will play key roles in outreach and research projects that focus on alternative crops and enterprises, such as SARE-funded Research & Education, Professional Development, and On-Farm Research projects, (5) regional and local county agents will develop new collaborations with organizations, agencies, and groups working in sustainable agriculture, including non-profit and for-profit organizations involved in post-farm gate food processing, marketing and distribution and policy development, and (6) state, regional and county Extension faculty members and agents will make increased use of resources to support programming in sustainable agriculture, including fiscal resources such as Southern SARE grants.

Our overall goal is to incorporate sustainable agriculture into three of Florida’s five Extension programming areas: agriculture and natural resources management, community and rural development, and food systems. The latter of these three programming priorities is a new area of emphasis for Florida Cooperative Extension. Our intent is to apply the systems approach that SARE has developed in its approach to research and extension to SARE programming in Florida through a focus on three areas. (1) We continue to focus on outreach and training that enhances the environmental and economic benefits of production agriculture. (2) For the past four years we have developed programs that focus on ways to maintain traditional agricultural businesses and foster the growth of new food and agricultural businesses. (3) We are developing an emphasis on local and regional food systems in order to address issues like infrastructure for processing and marketing and policies that affect the food system. We have four objectives that flow directly from this systems approach to sustainable agriculture training in Florida:

I. Maintain existing and establish new collaborative Extension training and programs with faculty members and county agents at the University of Florida and Florida A&M whose work addresses sustainability in production agriculture.

II. Extend collaboration with the emerging organizations that are active in the post-production components of the food systems, particularly the non-profit organizations and governmental organizations whose work fosters the development of food and agriculture businesses. Florida has developed new positions in community and rural development that focus on economic development and we will develop collaborative activities with these county and regional agents. The community and rural development focus in Florida Extension reflects the opportunities that are emerging to grow food and agriculture related businesses and represents an opportunity to foster linkages between Extension and the emerging non-profit and private sector leadership in a period in which expansion of food and agriculture businesses serving local and regional food systems is growing.

III. Support the development of Extension programs in food systems, including the work of regional Extension specialists whose work often includes both the on-farm production aspects of the food system and the post-farm gate aspects of food system development. Florida Extension is developing for the first time positions identified specifically with the development of local and regional food systems. We will provide training in sustainable agriculture and support these agents’ programmatic development. We will draw on SARE’s developing work in food systems and use SARE resources such as bulletins (e.g., “SARE and Local Food Systems”), examples of successful projects, and regional field days, conferences and other training programs that emphasize the relationships between sustainable agriculture and food systems.

IV. Expand the participation of minority, women, and limited resource farmers and professionals in SARE activities and programs, ensuring that these groups and organizations are well represented in the full range of SARE-funded professional development opportunities. Partnerships with key leaders in the development of small-scale food and agricultural related businesses and the non-profits that support them are particularly critical in order to ensure that the opportunities for growth in these emerging components of the food system reflect the entire community of players in the food system. Women, for example, have been particularly important in Florida in the development of small-scale processing facilities.