Georgia Farm Bureau's Leadership Alert - June 16, 2010

June 16, 2010

www.gfb.org

Vol. 28 No. 24

GFB FARM TOUR HIGHLIGHTS AGRICULTURAL DIVERSITY From roadside markets to a potato harvest to electric power generation, the 2010 GFB Farm Tour, held in the GFB 8th District on June 11 and 12, had a little bit of everything for approximately 150 Farm Bureau members from around the state.

“It’s interesting to see the entrepreneurship of the farms around the state,” said GFB President Zippy Duvall. “It’s good fellowship, good food and great agriculture. Our members are interested in the products being grown and new technologies.”

On the first day, the tour participants, led by the GFB Young Farmer Committee and GFB 8th District Field Representative Ken Murphree, got an update on the programs offered by the Georgia National Fairgrounds and Agricenter, which has played host to more than 4,700 events since opening in 1990, drawing more than 15 million visitors to Perry.

The group got a tram tour around the orchards and facilities of the William L. Brown Farm in Montezuma, where Howard Brown and his wife Kim produce various row crops along with peaches and pecans, which they sell in their roadside market off Highway 49.

In addition to fresh produce they offer a wide array of gourmet foods and home decorating items.

The third stop on the first day of the tour was the National Peanut Research Lab (NPRL). A USDA Agricultural Research Service facility, the NPRL has 12 scientists conducting research projects across the country’s peanut-producing region, focusing on irrigation, planting, harvesting, storage, use of environmental and financial resources and control of aflatoxin.

“Our scientists are working on a lot of projects that are going to reduce the cost of production,” said NPRL Research Leader Dr. Marshall Lamb. “We’re working to address the needs and problems of the U.S. peanut industry.”

The day concluded with a visit to the 80-year-old dam at Lake Blackshear operated by Crisp County Power. The dam generates electricity for Crisp County while the lake serves as a recreation and wildlife area.

On June 12, the group toured Owen & Williams Fish Farm, the state’s largest privately owned fish hatchery, the Black Gold potato processing plant and a nearby potato field.

“I just didn’t know that these potatoes are in Georgia,” said tour participant Pat Bulloch of Talbot County. “It makes me proud of Georgia. That’s why I love these trips.”

The Farm Tour also included visits to the roadside markets at Calhoun Produce in Ashburn, watermelon fields at Jackson Farms in Cordele and Ellis Brothers Pecans in Vienna.

Leadership Alert page 2 of 4

DUVALL PITCHES GEORGIA AG PRODUCTS TO CUBA With the hope that more trade avenues with Cuba will be opened, GFB President Zippy Duvall traveled to Cuba last week as part of Gov. Sonny Perdue’s trade delegation that visited with Cuban trade officials and toured several spots in Havana.

“They’re in desperate need of the products we produce,” Duvall said. “We would like to be able to grow those products and see more of them shipped down there. It’d be good for Georgia agriculture and good for them.”

While the Georgia group of 43 industry, governmental and educational leaders sought to develop relationships that would facilitate trade growth between the two nations, Duvall said the message coming from the Cuban officials was clear: They want U.S. policy to change or the trade that is being done will be curtailed.

Much of the chicken consumed by Cuban citizens is produced in Georgia and Duvall also talked to Cuban officials about blueberries, onions, peanuts and peanut butter.

The process of exporting to Cuba is complicated because the money has to change hands through an intermediary, and full payment has to be made prior to shipment. Even so, according to published reports, the U.S. has been Cuba’s top source of agricultural goods since 2004, and among U.S. states, Georgia is the third-largest exporter to Cuba.

During the trip, the delegation visited a Cuban grocery store. Duvall was struck by the lack of merchandise on the shelves and by how few customers there were.

“It really made you appreciate what we have here,” Duvall said.

The U.S. has enforced a near-total trade embargo against Cuba since 1962. The embargo was relaxed in 2000 to allow medical, agricultural and humanitarian supplies to be shipped to the island nation located 90 miles off the southern tip of Florida. There are four bills in Congress that aim to lift the trade and travel restrictions. On June 10 House Agriculture Committee Chairman Collin Peterson (D-Minn.) released a letter signed by more than 70 pro-democracy Cuban leaders encouraging the passage of H.R. 4645, the Travel Restriction Reform and Export Enhancement Act Peterson introduced in February.

SENATE VOTES DOWN MURKOWSKI RESOLUTION By a 53-47 vote last week, the Senate rejected Senate Joint Resolution 26, a resolution of disapproval of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) endangerment finding on greenhouse gases (GHGs). S.J. Res 26, authored by Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), was an effort to stop the EPA from regulating GHGs. EPA regulations go into effect Jan. 2, 2011. The vote drew criticism from Sen. Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.), who voted in favor of the resolution.

“This backdoor attempt to regulate greenhouse gases will have dramatic negative effects on our manufacturing sector while also causing significant increases in the cost of power generation,” Isakson said.

Farm Bureau supported the resolution because EPA regulation of GHGs will have an adverse impact on agriculture and the economy as a whole.

The endangerment finding requires six major gases to be classified as pollutants under the Clean Air Act. Regulation of these gases will require agricultural operations that produce them to obtain permits.

Leadership Alert page 3 of 4

EPA PROPOSES DRAFT PERMIT FOR PESTICIDE USE The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued its draft of the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit farmers will be required to have in order to apply pesticides on crops under the Clean Water Act. The draft follows an April 2009 ruling by the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals in the case National Cotton Council v. EPA that pesticide discharges to U.S. waters are pollutants. The ruling vacated the EPA’s 2006 rule allowing applications of pesticides to U.S. waters without NPDES permits.

The draft permit drew criticism from lawmakers and agricultural groups, who expressed concern that the permitting requirements duplicate those already in place and will increase input costs for farmers while providing little environmental benefit.

“More regulation is not the key to economic recovery, especially when the regulation does absolutely nothing to further protect or enhance the environment,” said Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R-Ga.), the ranking member of the Senate Agriculture Committee.

According to an EPA press release, the proposed permit would require all operators to reduce pesticide discharges by using the lowest effective amount of pesticide, prevent leaks and spills, calibrate equipment and monitor for and report adverse incidents.

Additional controls like integrated pest management practices are built into the permit for those who exceed an annual treatment area threshold.

The EPA plans to finalize the permit in December and it is scheduled to take effect on April 9, 2011. The agency will hold three public meetings, a public hearing and a webcast on the draft general permit. It is accepting written comments until July 19. To submit a comment, visit www.regulations.gov and search for docket No. EPA-HQ-OW-20100257.

USDA TO CONDUCT SURVEY OF THREATS TO HONEYBEES Searching for answers to the drop in numbers of honeybee colonies in recent years, the USDA has launched a 13-state survey of honeybee pests and diseases.

According to the USDA, bees from apiaries are used to pollinate more than 90 commercial crops and add more than $15 billion in value. But the health of U.S. honeybee colonies has been in decline since the 1980s and in the last four years colony collapse disorder (CCD), where adult bees leave the hive and do not return, has become a growing threat.

The voluntary survey, which will collect data from 350 apiaries, including some in Georgia, will last through the end of the year. It is a joint effort between the USDA’s Agricultural Research Service (ARS), Animal and Plant Health Information Service (APHIS) and Penn State University. The 2008 farm bill allocated $550,000 for the study.

“This survey will help us to better understand the factors threatening our honeybees so we can take effective action to protect them and the crops they pollinate,” said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack.

Survey kits have been sent to state apiary specialists. Samples of bees and debris from the apiaries will be collected, and ARS and APHIS will test them for specific pests and pathogens. One of the questions the study aims to answer is whether foreign mites of the genus Tropilaelaps have entered the U.S. The study results will be summarized on the APHIS web site (www.aphis.usda.gov).

Leadership Alert page 4 of 4 UPCOMING EVENTS

UGA COTTON SCOUT SCHOOL June 22 Southeast Georgia Research and Education Center Midville This training program will begin at 9 a.m. and conclude at 12:30 p.m. For more information contact Guy Collins at guyc@uga.edu or 229-386-3006.

FRESH FRUITS AND VEGETABLE PRODUCTION FIELD DAY June 24 Cane Creek Farm Cumming This event will include a session on high tunnel hoop houses and the USDA EQIP program, which provides financial incentives for installing the hoop houses and a session on the new GA EBT Farmer’s Market Program. To register, call 706-894-1591 or email chris.groskreutz@ga.usda.gov.

61st ANNUAL WATERMELON DAYS FESTIVAL Through June 26 Cordele Festival activities are currently underway in Cordele as the Watermelon Capital of the World celebrates it famous commodity. Visit www.cordelecrispga.com for a complete list of events. The main day of the festival is June 26 when the festival parade will kick off at 9 a.m. on 14th Ave., proceed on 7th Street North, take a right on 2nd Ave. to the Crisp Regional Hospital Park where festival attendees will enjoy an arts and crafts show, entertainment, a display of antique tractors, cars and trucks, and numerous watermelon contests. Call 229-273-1668 for more information.

VOTE FOR GEORGIA IN THE GREAT PEANUT DEBATE Through June 29 Online The “Great American Peanut Debate” is a competition to see which state has the best peanuts. Voting ends at 5:00 p.m. on June 29, and the state receiving the most votes will be awarded a trophy at the annual Congressional Baseball Game on that day. Get everyone you know to vote for Georgia Peanuts! Cast your vote at www.cqrollcall.com/baseball STRIPLING IRRIGATION RESEARCH PARK FIELD DAY June 29 Stripling Irrigation Research Park Camilla This event will feature field tours and presentations covering irrigation research. A free lunch will be provided beginning at noon. Please preregister by contacting Heather Hunter at Stripling Park at sirp@uga.edu or 229-522-3623.

2010 SUNBELT AG EXPO FIELD DAY July 8 Spence Field Moultrie Trams begin departing for field tours at 8:30 a.m., but visitors are encouraged to arrive early.

Attendees who register by 8:15 a.m. will be entered in an early bird drawing for $100. More than 140 varieties of cotton, peanuts, corn, soybeans and grain sorghum from 25 companies will be on display.

The field day will also feature plots of energy grasses including switchgrass, biomass sorghum, sweet sorghum and miscanthus. Attendees will also be able to check out the alfalfa forage plots of Bulldog 805 and 505 that are thriving in the south Georgia climate.

The research plots of the University of Georgia’s Cotton and Peanut Teams will spotlight the latest pesticide and irrigation technology research. Certified crop advisor credits will be given for attending the event. Lunch will be served around noon. Visit www.sunbeltexpo.com or call 229-985-1968 for more information.