FBN January 2016

Farm Bureau News

JANUARY 2016

A historic crop, in a new age

VAFARMBUREAU.ORG

The Voice of Virginia’s Agricultural Producers

Farm Bureau News

Volume 75, Number 1 January 2016

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Features 10

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“There’s lots more incentive for growth

A historic crop, in a new age

When the federal tobacco quota system was dismantled, some expected the worst. A decade later, some Virginia tobacco operations are flourishing.

since the buyout.”

—JIM JENNINGS, Mecklenburg County flue-cured tobacco grower

2015 Farm Bureau photo contest winners

Photo contest entries celebrated many aspects of Virginia farms.

Departments Save the Date

9 Viewing Virginia

An article about county Farm Bureau scholarships in the September/October 2015 issue of Virginia Farm Bureau News mis-identified Clarke County Farm Bureau and Frederick County Farm Bureau, which are two separate entities. Clarke Farm Bureau awarded $2,000 in scholarships in 2014, and Frederick Farm Bureau awarded $1,500.

Members — Address change? If your address or phone number has changed, or is about to change, contact your county Farm Bureau. They will update your membership and subscription information.

All advertising is accepted subject to the publisher’s approval. Advertisers must assume liability for the content of their advertising. The publisher maintains the right to cancel advertising for nonpayment or reader complaints about services or products. The publisher assumes no liability for products or services advertised.

EDITORIAL TEAM

5 CORRECTION

Postmaster: Please send changes of address to, Virginia Farm Bureau Federation, Farm Bureau News, P.O. Box 27552, Richmond, VA 23261-7552; fax 804-290-1096. Editorial and business offices are located at 12580 West Creek Parkway, Richmond, VA 23238. Telephone 804-290-1000, fax 804-290-1096. Email virginiafarmbureaunews@vafb.com. Office hours are 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday.

Member: Virginia Press Association

Convention marked 90th anniversary

Members gathered to shape Farm Bureau policy, honor their peers’ achievements and mark the beginning of the federation’s 90th year.

KATHY DIXON

Virginia Farm Bureau News (USPS 017-763) (ISSN 1525-528X) is published four times a year. January, April, September, November.

It is published by Virginia Farm Bureau Federation, 12580 West Creek Parkway, Richmond, VA 23238. Periodicals postage rate is paid in Richmond, VA. The annual Subscription Rate is $1.42 (included in membership dues).

Greg Hicks Vice President, Communications Pam Wiley Managing Editor Kathy Dixon Sr. Staff Writer/Photographer Sara Owens Staff Writer/Photographer Pat Hooten Graphic Designer Maria La Lima Graphic Designer Cathy Vanderhoff Advertising

VIRGINIA FARM BUREAU FEDERATION

Officers Wayne F. Pryor, President Scott E. Sink, Vice President

For Your Benefit

Board of Directors

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Heart of the Home

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Marketplace

Emily Edmondson 1 Tazewell Richard L. Sutherland 2 Grayson Evelyn H. Janney 3 Floyd Gordon R. Metz 4 Henry Russell L. Williams II 5 Rockbridge Peter A. Truban 6 Shenandoah Thomas E. Graves 7 Orange Leigh H. Pemberton 8 Hanover William F. Osl Jr. 9 Cumberland Robert J. Mills Jr. 10 Pittsylvania J. M. Jenkins Jr. 11 Lunenburg W. Ellis Walton 12 Middlesex M. L. Everett Jr. 13 Southampton David L. Hickman 14 Accomack Janice R. Burton * Halifax Grant A. Coffee ** Lunenburg

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PUBLICATION SCHEDULE

ON THE COVER

Producer members will receive their next issue of Virginia Farm Bureau News in April. The magazine will be published quarterly this year.

Tobacco was the Virginia colony’s first viable cash crop for export to England.

DIRECTOR

DISTRICT COUNTY

*Women’s Committee Chairman **Young Farmers Committee Chairman

President’s Message

Virginia Farm Bureau is 90 years strong and not slowing down At our Annual Convention held last month in Norfolk, the Virginia Farm Bureau Federation marked the WAYNE F. PRYOR beginning of its 90th year. 2015 was a pivotal year for representing our members, and we are looking forward to great things in 2016. Our insurance company celebrated 65 years in business, and our lobbying program is 50 years old.

I want to start off the new year by thanking everyone who worked so hard on our membership efforts in 2015.

We fell short of our goal by only 245 members. That sounds disappointing until you take a closer look at the numbers.

We had 57 county Farm Bureaus that met their respective membership goals last year, compared to seven in 2014 and one in 2013. Last year I told you I believed we had turned the corner on membership growth. This year I confidently quote Clay Francis, our vice president of Membership and Field Services, when I say, “We’re back!”

our Young Farmers received national recognition at the American Farm Bureau Federation’s annual convention.

Jessica Jones of Pittsylvania County was one of three runners-up for the AFBF Excellence in Agriculture Award.

Our Women’s Program participants have stayed busy promoting agriculture in their communities. They also were last year’s largest contributors to Agriculture in the Classroom.

2015 was the second year AITC honored Virginia teachers who successfully incorporate agriculture into their core lessons. It also was the second year our state-level AITC Teacher of the Year earned a national AITC Excellence in Teaching award.

Our Commodity/Marketing Department helped sell 1.5 million bushels of grain for our members last year. Commodity/Marketing staff were among organizers and co-hosts of the seventh annual Governor’s Conference on Agricultural Trade and the second

annual Virginia Urban Agriculture summit. Our Virginia Foundation for Agriculture Innovation and Rural Sustainability helped producers and producer groups acquire nearly $2.75 million in USDA value-added grants.

Speaking up Fighting for Farm Bureau policy positions kept us busy throughout 2015. Whether they were opposing the EPA’s “Waters of the U.S.” regulatory over-reach or promoting commonsense immigration reform, Farm Bureau members spoke out loud and clear. We’re at the forefront of groups explaining why genetically modified foods are safe, and we’re participating in several legal challenges to federal regulations, including an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court over the EPA’s Chesapeake Bay recovery plan.

Farm Bureau is appealing to the Supreme Court to have the flawed bay cleanup program shelved. If approved,

Milestones met and bars raised The Young Farmers Program marked a decade of Summer Expos in late July on the Eastern Shore. Last year was also the sixth consecutive year one of

The 2015 Annual Convention marked the beginning of Virginia Farm Bureau Federation’s 90th year.

VaFarmBureau.org / JANUARY 2016

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President’s Message

it would clearly give complete federal control over local land use and water conservation decisions. Some have argued that government mandates are the only way to improve the environment. That’s wrong.

Farmers have shown time and again that working together, especially with adequate cost-share funds, is much more effective.

award for best advertising campaign for the 2014 State Fair of Virginia.

Unfortunately, the 2015 fair ended a few days early due to continued rains and the threat of a hurricane or tropical storm. The three-day youth livestock show was rescheduled and culminated with the revived State Fair Sale of Champions, which raised $61,000 to support the fair’s scholarship program.

Messages moving the meters

Help us help you

Farm Bureau’s messages have been getting out better than ever. The Communications Department brought home the AFBF’s Dave Lane Award for Media Excellence, and the venerable Virginia Farm Bureau News will mark its 75th anniversary this winter.

The International Association of Fairs and Expositions honored us with its

Plans are already in the works to make this year’s fair bigger and even better, and so are Farm Bureau’s efforts to make our communications to members more personal and more efficient.

As you begin making plans in the new year, I urge everyone to contact your respective county Farm Bureaus and ensure that the contact information in

your membership records is up-to-date.

Please also make sure your county Farm Bureau has your home email address.

Emailed communications are faster and more cost-effective than mailed ones, and email is often the best way for your insurance agent to reach you when time is of the essence.

As we contemplate Virginia Farm Bureau’s future, I can assure you that membership growth, enhanced member service and advocacy for Virginia agriculture will remain areas of focus. I thank each of you for being part of this organization’s next 90 years!

Wayne F. Pryor, a Goochland County beef and grain producer, is president of Virginia Farm Bureau.

111

Number of candidates for Virginia General Assembly seats who were endorsed by the Virginia Farm Bureau Federation AgPAC and won their respective races this past November.

The political action committee endorsed a total of 115 candidates (See related article on Page 7).

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VIRGINIA FARM BUREAU NEWS

Save the Date!

Members can save at Farm Bureau warehouse open house on Feb. 26

Volunteers will read The Cow in Patrick O’Shanahan’s Kitchen for 2016 Agriculture Literacy Project The Virginia Agriculture in the Classroom Agriculture Literacy Project will take place March 14-31.

National Ag Day is March 15; Agriculture Literacy Week will run concurrently with National Agriculture Week but has been extended to two weeks due to popular demand.

“We expanded from Agriculture Literacy Week to two weeks due to its increasing popularity and demand for volunteer readers,” said Tammy Maxey, senior education program coordinator for Virginia AITC. Virginia’s Agriculture in the Classroom program has selected The Cow in Patrick O’Shanahan’s Kitchen, a children’s book by Diana Prichard, as its 2016 Virginia AITC Book of the Year. The book encourages young readers to consider how their favorite breakfast foods arrive on their plates.

Last year 1,200 volunteers read to more than 50,000 children across the state. Volunteers have included participants in the Virginia Farm Bureau Federation Women’s Program and Young Farmers Program, FFA members, employees of the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services and other state agencies, and members of other agricultural organizations and businesses. Farm Credit of the Virginias and Southern States Cooperative Inc. have been major supporters.

For more information, visit AgInTheClass.org. Companion educational materials will be available on the website to accompany the book.

Farm Bureau members can save 10 percent on purchases from the Virginia Farm Bureau Service Corp.

Products Division at its Feb. 26 open house.

Since 1965, the Products Division has provided members with a variety of quality supplies, through Farm Bureau-certified local dealers and the Farm Bureau warehouse in Henrico County.

The open house will run from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the warehouse located at 1541 Mary St. in Sandston.

Refreshments will be available.

Members can save on a variety of parts, including tires, batteries and oil and grease products. They also can save on disk blades, plow parts, chisel teeth, roller chains and cutting parts for hay equipment and combines. The discount is available for all products except baler twine, which already will be specially priced for the open house.

For information on specific products, call the warehouse at 800-476-8473.

VaFarmBureau.org / JANUARY 2016

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Save the Date!

Virginia Horse Festival set for April 1-3

The eighth annual Governor’s Conference on Agriculture Trade will take place March 7 and 8 at the Hilton Richmond Downtown.

The conference is being organized by Virginia Farm Bureau Federation, the Virginia Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services, the Virginia Port Authority and Virginia Tech’s Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics.

Gov. Terry McAuliffe is scheduled to provide opening remarks. For more information and to register, visit events. signup4.com/GovAgTrade2016.

Turn Your Rough Driveway into a Smooth Ride!

Young Farmers Winter Expo to be held in Danville and Chatham The 2016 Virginia Farm Bureau Federation Young Farmers Winter Expo will be held Feb. 26-28 in Danville and Chatham.

The expo will celebrate all types of agricultural entrepreneurs. Workshops on financial and business planning, marketing support, farm insurance and livestock care and welfare are planned.

For more information visit YoungFarmersExpo.org.

Spring Conference will be held near Richmond The 2016 Virginia Farm Bureau Federation Spring Conference will be held March 11-13 at the Hilton Short Pump near Richmond.

The conference will feature workshops about farm and food safety, GMOs, drones, farm transition planning, farm-toschool marketing, the Virginia Grown program and Virginia’s Agriculture in the Classroom program. Winners of the 2016 VFBF Farm Bureau Ambassador, Farm Woman of the Year and Lady Leader ‘Proudly Promoting Agriculture’ recognitions will be announced.

Previously known as the annual Women’s Conference, the event is open to any Farm Bureau member with an interest in learning more about agriculture. To register, contact your county Farm Bureau office.

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VIRGINIA FARM BUREAU NEWS

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Eighth annual Governor’s Conference on Agriculture Trade will be held in Richmond

The second annual Virginia Horse Festival will take place April 1-3 at The Meadow Event Park in Caroline County. The event will offer a comprehensive look at the equine industry over three days of clinics, demonstrations, exhibits, shopping and more.

During the festival, contestants will compete in the Colt Starting Challenge USA. During this national competition, eight trainers will train and ride a previously unridden horse.

As they work with the horses, they will explain to audiences how they are gentling the colts. During the finale, the trainers and horses will navigate a judged obstacle course.

The Southern States Parade of Breeds, which highlights different breeds of horses, will return this year, as will the 4-H EquiSmartz statewide knowledge-based competition, along with demonstrations by the Central Virginia Agility Club.

An indoor trade show will include vendors who offer a broad spectrum of horse-related supplies and services. Outdoor shopping areas will feature trailer, barn, arena footing and fencing vendors.

For more information visit VirginiaHorseFestival.com.

Across America

Farm Bureau to emphasize ag issues at Jan. 28 Legislative Day Farm Bureau producer members will speak with state legislators on issues of interest to farmers in their communities and statewide during Virginia Farm Bureau Federation’s annual Legislative Day on Jan. 28.

Member-identified critical issues for the 2016 session of the Virginia General Assembly are: • adequate funding for Virginia’s Agriculture Best Management Practices Cost-Share Program; • adequate funding for operational support and technical assistance for soil and water conservation districts; • additional funding to alleviate the backlog of requests from farmers for stream exclusion conservation practices; • maintaining state oversight and regulation of the application of biosolids and industrial residuals as a source of nutrients on farmland; • initiation of an unbiased review of current literature, science and regulation regarding the land application of biosolids and industrial residuals; • supporting legislation to clarify who is eligible to participate in the costshare program for agricultural BMPs, to ensure that farmers remain eligible to serve on local soil and water conservation district boards; • not supporting legislation requiring the mandatory labeling of GMO food products; • including funding for Phase 1 of the renovation and replacement of Virginia Tech's poultry, swine, cattle and equine buildings in the capital

improvement projects being funded in this biennium; and • maintaining funding such that the integrity of the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services’ weights and measures program is not compromised.

On Jan. 27 the VFBF Women’s Committee will host a legislative reception at which Farm Bureau leaders will be able to talk with their representatives in an informal setting.

Sign up for Action Alert system Action Alerts played a huge role in legislative victories such as the 2012 approval of Virginia’s property rights constitutional amendment and the defeat of legislation in 2010 that unfairly blamed farmers for pollution and overestimated their impact on the Chesapeake Bay. Throughout the year Farm Bureau staff send out Action Alerts asking producer members to voice their concerns to their legislators about specific agricultural issues. The more members respond to those alerts, the more effective Farm Bureau is in making sure Virginia farmers are heard.

If you are a producer member with an interest in helping to maintain your ability to farm in Virginia, you can help by responding to Action Alerts. To sign up to receive them, contact Kelly Pruitt at kelly.pruitt@vafb.com or 804-290-1293 with your name, membership number and contact information.

Nearly all Farm Bureauendorsed candidates elected One hundred eleven of 115 candidates endorsed for General Assembly seats by the Virginia Farm Bureau Federation AgPAC were successful in their respective races this past November.

Twenty of the 26 successful candidates endorsed for state Senate seats were incumbents. Newly elected candidates endorsed by VFBF AgPAC were Republicans Bill R. DeSteph, Jr. in the 8th District, Glen Sturtevant in the 10th District, Amanda Chase in the 11th District, Siobhan Dunnavant in the 12th District, David R. Suetterlein in the 19th District and Harry Parrish in the 29th District.

Eighty of the 85 successful candidates endorsed for House of Delegates seats were incumbents. Newly elected candidates endorsed by VFBF AgPAC were Republicans Mark Dudenhefer in the 2nd District, Christopher Collins in the 29th District and Nicholas Freitas in the 30th District and Democrats Lashrecse Aird in the 63rd District and Steve Heretick in the 79th District.

Eighty-six of 88 county Farm Bureaus in Virginia chose to participate in VFBF AgPAC last year. They provided representatives for local evaluation committees who interviewed candidates and provided input to the VFBF AgPAC board of trustees.

“Farm Bureau’s political action committee continues to afford the organization an opportunity to build and maintain relationships with state legislators,” said Andrew Smith, VFBF senior assistant director of governmental relations. “Our producer members take an active interest in who represents them, and the local evaluation committees give careful consideration to candidates in their respective communities."

VaFarmBureau.org / JANUARY 2016

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As a Farm Bureau member, you’re a ‘Friend of the Farm’

Farm Bureau members in Virginia have a new way to show their pride.

“Friend of the Farm” decals are turning up on windows and vehicles statewide

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VIRGINIA FARM BUREAU NEWS

—a reminder of how Virginia Farm Bureau has, for 90 years, upheld a promise to advocate for agriculture and preserve the things that make Virginia special.

A little over a year ago, Virginia Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Co. set out to better share Farm Bureau’s values and purpose with current and potential customers. That work has resulted in a new look for the VFBMIC website, and a pilot advertising campaign was launched last fall, with a television spot and radio and digital ads in the Charlottesville, Harrisonburg, Lynchburg and Roanoke areas.

The ads note that when members and prospective members purchase insurance from Farm Bureau they are supporting agriculture, thereby preserving the Virginia way of life.

Farm Bureau Insurance also has begun publishing a series of informative e-books, including An Insider’s Guide to Auto Insurance in Virginia, An Insider’s Guide to Life Insurance in Virginia and An Insider’s Guide to Virginia Winter Safety.

For more information, contact your Farm Bureau agent or your county Farm Bureau office today.

Viewing Virginia

KATHY DIXON

Shipping container gardens among solutions discussed at urban ag summit

Raymond Denson (right) of the Harding Street Community Agriculture Center in Petersburg showed Urban Agriculture Summit participants the facility’s aquaponic system.

BY KATHY DIXON

Shipping container gardens, aeroponic growing towers and “green roofing” were among innovative solutions discussed at Virginia’s second annual Urban Agriculture Summit.

Held in Richmond and at nearby urban gardens, the summit aimed to expand knowledge of urban agriculture and explore ways to grow fresh produce in food deserts, or areas in which residents have limited access to healthy foods.

“Seventeen percent of all Virginians live in food deserts,” noted Virginia first

lady Dorothy McAuliffe, the summit’s keynote speaker. “Local agricultural economic development opportunities are crucial” to correcting that.

The summit was sponsored by 16 organizations, including the Virginia Farm Bureau Federation, the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Virginia Cooperative Extension, the Virginia Department of Health and the Virginia Foundation for Agriculture Innovation & Rural Sustainability.

Ben Greene, owner of The Farmery in Raleigh, N.C., shared his solution

to food deserts—portable gardens housed in shipping containers. Greene created the CropBox, a portable garden container that allows urban farmers to “grow food in people’s neighborhoods.”

The Farmery is a collection of four CropBoxes, a retail store, a kitchen and a dining/entertainment area. “It’s farmto-fork with science mixed in,” Greene explained.

Inside CropBoxes, hydroponic systems are used to grow vegetables and herbs on each wall, leaving a middle aisle for customers to come in and pick the produce. CropBoxes use 90 percent less water than conventional and greenhouse cultivation and 80 percent less fertilizer. One acre of crops can be grown in 320 square feet.

At the Harding Street Community Agriculture Center in Petersburg, conference attendees learned how aquaponic and hydroponic systems combined with aeroponic growing towers will enable the center to sell produce daily to those currently without access to fresh foods.

“This is to provide a healthy food supply for inner city residents,” said Duron Chavis, the center’s director.

Conference attendees also toured one of Tricycle Gardens’ urban operations and the Jerusalem Connection Community Garden. Tricycle Gardens are community gardens where members rent small plots of land to grow food for themselves and beautify their neighborhoods.

The Jerusalem Connection garden produces fruits and vegetables in two greenhouses and 31 raised-bed gardens and serves as a food distribution hub.

The harvest is donated to local food pantries and community organizations and sold at farm stands in areas identified as food deserts.

Summit participants also heard from Ben Flanner, president of Brooklyn Grange Farm in New York, the largest rooftop soil farm in the United States.

The farm grows more than 50,000 pounds of produce annually.

VaFarmBureau.org / JANUARY 2016

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VIRGINIA’S OLDEST CASH CROP HOLDING ON IN A NEW AGE Fewer Virginians are growing tobacco, but overall acreage has increased since 2005

Fields of flue-cured tobacco can be found in the southern Piedmont and Southwest regions of Virginia.

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VIRGINIA FARM BUREAU NEWS

BY KATHY DIXON

W

hen the 2004 tobacco buyout happened, some expected the worst.

“A lot of people thought tobacco was doomed and that the industry was over, but they are shocked that’s not been the case,” said Bill Scruggs, regional marketing development representative for the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. In fact, some Virginia tobacco operations are flourishing.

Robert Spiers, a flue-cured tobacco grower in Dinwiddie and Sussex counties, has doubled his tobacco acreage. Jim Jennings, a flue-cured grower in Mecklenburg County, has quadrupled his acreage since 2004.

After the buyout, farmers typically did one of three things, Scruggs said. Some started producing other commodities or increased their non-tobacco crops or livestock herds. Others expanded their tobacco acreage as contract volume picked up. And some just retired.

“Many of those who quit growing tobacco were elderly or had no one to transition the farm to,” said Tony Banks, Virginia Farm Bureau Federation assistant director of commodity marketing.

Fewer growers, but more acreage Today, there are fewer Virginia farmers growing tobacco, but the acreage has increased. Some of that increase is driven by exports. Some is due to the fact that, without quota-system restrictions, farmers can grow as much tobacco as they can sell.

“Exports are the upside for American tobacco,” Banks remarked. “In the United States, cigarette use is on the decline, but foreign markets love U.S. tobacco.”

Jennings was growing 25 acres of tobacco in 1976. Last year he planted 230 acres.

“There’s lots more incentive for growth since the buyout,” he said.

Under the quota system, there was an element of stability because growers knew how much tobacco they could plant and how much money they would receive for it. “But quota constricted you to how much you could grow. It’s better now than it was—at least if the prices hold up.”

There’s also more pressure on growers, because they get paid for the quality of tobacco produced. If the leaf is not up to a certain grade, the growers no longer get the difference through price supports. “That ended with the quota system,” Jennings said. “There’s no safety net anymore.”

Still, Spiers said, as long as there is a market for tobacco, “it’s pretty hard to replace.” Farmers can receive $5,000 to $6,000 per acre of tobacco, compared to $450 for an acre of small grains.

Tobacco still important to Virginia economy Despite industry changes, tobacco continues to play a significant role in Virginia’s economy, with farmers growing 50.95 million pounds in 2015.

That’s down from the 57.65 million pounds grown in 2014, but the amount has KATHY DIXON

VaFarmBureau.org / JANUARY 2016

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KATHY DIXON

On Golden Leaf Farms in Pittsylvania County, a worker monitored cured tobacco going into a machine for baling (above), while another selected the best green leaves for curing.

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VIRGINIA FARM BUREAU NEWS

KATHY DIXON

increased since the buyout.

Tobacco is grown in 34 counties in the southern Piedmont and Southwest regions of the state. Pittsylvania County grows the most, with 13.74 million pounds. Mecklenburg County is the second-largest tobacco county, with 9.26 million pounds. Halifax County is third, followed by Brunswick and Lunenburg counties.

Virginia is the third-largest tobacco producing state behind North Carolina and Kentucky.

[ TOBACCO ]

TOBACCO BUYOUT Anti-tobacco sentiment was rampant in the 1990s. In November 1998, the Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement between the four largest U.S. tobacco companies and the attorneys general of 46 states was signed.

That may have partially led to the buyout, but experts say it had more to do with the glut of tobacco being grown and the fact that U.S. tobacco wasn’t competitive on the world market.

“It was basically a train wreck,” said Bill Scruggs, regional marketing development representative for the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.

The buyout was the solution.

In 2004, the U.S. government passed the Fair and Equitable Tobacco Reform Act, which ended the federal tobacco marketing quota program and the tobacco support price program. As a result, the U.S. Department of Agriculture offered to enter into contracts with eligible tobacco quota holders and growers to provide compensation for the lost value of the quotas and related price supports. Quota holders—those who owned the land on which the tobacco under quota was grown—were eligible for payments of $7 per pound of quota in 10 equal payments from 2005 through 2014. Growers who didn’t own land but were growing tobacco under the quota program were eligible for payments of $3 per pound of quota in 10 equal payments from 2005 through 2014.

“Some of our growers wanted the buyout, and some didn’t,” said Tony Banks, Virginia Farm Bureau Federation assistant director of commodity marketing. “Some farmers who got money from the buyout invested in other industries, and some even bought more farmland.”

Mecklenburg County tobacco grower Jim Jennings said he did three things with his payments: bought more land, put money in savings and paid for his children’s college educations.

“When the buyout happened, there were concerns, but it turned out a lot better than anybody would’ve predicted,” he said.

ECONOMIC IMPACT OF VIRGINIA TOBACCO IS FAR-REACHING One pound of tobacco = 23 packs of cigarettes • Farmers’ average price for tobacco before expenses: $2.08 per pound • Federal government receives $23.23 per pound in taxes • State government receives $31.28 per pound in taxes Virginia produced around 58 million pounds of tobacco in 2014. When that tobacco reached its finished product, it provided: • approximately $1.3 billion for the federal government • approximately $1.8 billion for state government

VaFarmBureau.org / JANUARY 2016

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[ TOBACCO ]

U.S. TOBACCO INDUSTRY STARTED IN VIRGINIA Tobacco was the first successful crop the Jamestown colonists could grow to sell or trade in England.

In 1614, John Rolfe sent a small shipment of Virginia tobacco to England. The milder taste was more to the liking of the English than tobacco grown elsewhere. By 1619 more than 20,000 pounds of the Virginia-grown leaf had been shipped there.

Tobacco became a highly-bartered item domestically in addition to being sold in England as a cash crop. Colonists began to use every piece of land to plant what was known as the “golden leaf.”

After the War of 1812, demand for Virginia tobacco increased significantly. Danville and Richmond became the two major tobacco manufacturing towns in the United States, with surrounding farmland evolving into major tobacco-producing areas.

The Civil War shifted the major tobacco producing regions. In 1860, Virginia farmers produced 123 million pounds of tobacco. By 1870, five years after the war ended, Virginia tobacco production was only 37 million pounds.

TOBACCO TYPES VARY

BY PRODUCTION, USE Burley This is a light, air-cured tobacco used primarily for cigarette production. Most Virginia burley tobacco is grown in the southwestern part of the state.

About four weeks after the buds are removed, the burley stalk is cut at ground level. The cut stalk is speared onto wooden sticks. After the speared burley is allowed to wilt 3 to 4 days in the field, the sticks are hung in barns and allowed to air cure for eight or more weeks. Cured leaves are stripped from the stalk, and the leaves are baled by grade and taken to a receiving station or auction.

Flue-cured

2008 45.97 million pounds

Dark-fire-cured

2009 46.53 million pounds

This is cured using an open fire and smoke. It is used mainly for snuff, with limited amounts going into pipe tobacco blends, chewing tobacco and some cigarettes.

Grown in Virginia’s south-central Piedmont, it is very aromatic and most similar to the tobacco raised by the Virginia colonists.

KATHY DIXON

2007 46.14 million pounds

This tobacco is heat-cured and is used primarily for cigarette production. It has a light, aromatic “sweet tea” flavor and is known around the world as “Virginia” tobacco. It is grown primarily in Georgia, Florida, North and South Carolina and Virginia. Leaves are harvested by the leaf position on the stalk from the bottom up. It grows best in sandy to sandy-loam Piedmont and Coastal Plain soils.

TOBACCO PRODUCTION EBBS AND FLOWS 2004 (Buyout year)

67.28 million pounds

2005 40.35 million pounds 2006 47.32 million pounds

2010 44.3 million pounds 2011 48.12 million pounds 2012 53.6 million pounds 2013 52.61 million pounds 2014 57.65 million pounds 2015 50.95 million pounds (November 2015, USDA)

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VIRGINIA FARM BUREAU NEWS

KATHY DIXON

Virginia tobacco growers harvested nearly 51 million pounds in 2015.

VaFarmBureau.org / JANUARY 2016

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2015 Photo Contest Winners

O

nce again, participants in the Virginia Farm Bureau Federation photo contest showed farms are limitless sources of compelling photo subjects.

County Farm Bureaus in Virginia had the option of sponsoring photo contests last year and submitting their firstplace entries for judging on the state level.

These are the first-place winners.

Feeding Hay on a Snowy Day

by Justin Matney, Tazewell County

Haley and Hot Ham

Pa’s Legacy - Generation 4

by Joy Rosson, Louisa County

by Henry Wood Jr., Buckingham County

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VIRGINIA FARM BUREAU NEWS

Ms. Ruth’s Farmstead

by Ann Harrell, Craig County

Best of Friends

by Justin Matney, Tazewell County

Corn Harvest

by Hope Anderson, Craig County

Mac the Cattle Dog

by Ellen Rosson, Louisa County

VaFarmBureau.org / JANUARY 2016

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VFBF 2015 ANNUAL CONVENTION

‘ Tremendous opportunity

I

t’s a great time to be a part of agriculture, according to American Farm Bureau Federation Vice President Barry Bushue, and U.S. farmers have access to numerous new technology and trade opportunities.

Bushue, who also is Oregon Farm Bureau Federation’s vice president, spoke Dec. 3 at the Virginia Farm Bureau Federation’s 2015 Annual Convention in Norfolk.

“Despite an overall aging population, young farmers are starting up new enterprises or joining their families’ farms,” Bushue said. “There is tremendous opportunity ahead.”

Bushue noted that agriculture is the foundation of many rural communities and gives those communities a sense of stability. But he also cautioned that the industry still faces many challenges.

With federal agencies like the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency overreaching their boundaries, he said, farmers “need to stay on course. But it’s the passion and resilience for agriculture that made our future so bright.”

And through Farm Bureau, he said, the nation’s farmers and ranchers are able to engage with Congress and regulatory agencies and courts to help protect

their businesses.

It was through a Farm Bureau campaign launched earlier this year that producers began working to share factual, science-based information about genetically modified organisms.

The campaign was driven, in part by recent GMO product bans and attempts in some states to mandate labeling of foods that contain GMO ingredients.

“These products are tested for safety by federal agencies,” Bushue reminded members. “The bottom line is that this is a national issue, and we need a national solution.”

He said the most potentially damaging issue American farmers currently face—and the biggest overreach by a federal agency—is the EPA’s “Waters of the United States” rule.

“Virginia Farm Bureau has been an aggressive and reasoned voice against the rule,” Bushue said, calling it “the biggest land grab in the history of the agency.”

Enforcement of the rule was halted in October by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit. Bushue said that helps the farmers’ cause, but he said it won’t help forever. “Cases will go through the courts for years, but it can be stopped now” if the Senate passes S. 1140, the Federal Water Quality Protection Act. That act would nullify the “Waters” rule. The House of Representatives passed a similar bill in May. AFBF Vice President Barry Bushue said it is farmers’ “passion and resilience” that ensure the industry’s bright future.

18 VIRGINIA FARM BUREAU NEWS

Bushue said farmers should be “proud of where we are and be unapologetic for what we have accomplished. …

By nature we are particularly passionate people for our farms. The biggest reason for Farm Bureau’s success is … all of you.”

2015 Annual Convention

Dec. 1-3 at Norfolk Waterside Marriott THEME: “For the Love of Agriculture” PARTICIPANTS: About 700 farmers and other agriculture professionals, including nearly 300 delegates representing 88 county Farm Bureaus PURPOSE: To shape VFBF policy for the coming year, present awards, share relevant industry information and mark the beginning of the organization’s 90th anniversary PHILANTHROPY: Live and silent auctions sponsored by the Young Farmers Committee raised nearly $7,400 for Agriculture in the Classroom and to fund scholarships for Virginia Tech’s Agricultural Technology Program.

DETAILS: Coverage of speakers’ remarks and award winners’ achievements is available under “Convention Headlines” at VaFarmBureau.org/NewsVideo/ ConventionNewsroom.aspx.

ahead’

Delegates from Fluvanna County Farm Bureau (top left) were among about 300 who set 2016 VFBF policies. Bedford County producers Sam and Ashley Gardner (top center) received the Young Farmers Achievement Award. Discussion Meet winner Chris Van Vlack (top right) was congratulated by Young Farmers Committee Chairman Grant Coffee. During the opening general session (above), delegates listened to remarks from VFBF President Wayne F. Pryor.

VaFarmBureau.org / JANUARY 2016

19

VFBF 2015 ANNUAL CONVENTION McAuliffe remains intent on making Virginia the East Coast capital for ag, forestry exports

Producers and others honored with awards

Gov. Terry McAuliffe said the commonwealth’s farmers and foresters will help him “take Georgia down,” establishing Virginia McAULIFFE as the East Coast capital for agricultural and forestry exports.

“We just moved into second (place),” McAuliffe told several hundred farmers attending the VFBF Annual Convention on Dec. 3. “But I want us to be No. 1.”

He thanked the farmers for the work they have done.

“When you’re successful, Virginia’s successful.”

Agriculture and forestry have a combined $70 billion impact on the state’s economy, and McAuliffe vowed to continue promoting Virginia agricultural and forestry products around the globe, remarking that he is “probably the most-travelled governor in the U.S.” The governor recently held 136 meetings during a 9-day trip to India and the Middle East. That trip netted a deal to export Virginia apples to India, and McAuliffe also negotiated the lifting of a ban on poultry exports from Virginia to Oman.

“There is a huge opportunity going forward to sell Virginia products in these countries,” he said.

2015 ELECTIONS:

Rockbridge farmer elected to District 5 seat Beef cattle and small grain producer Russell L. Williams II of Buena Vista was elected Dec. 3 to a three-year term on the VFBF board of directors.

Williams will represent Farm Bureau WILLIAMS producer members in Amherst, Augusta, Bath, Highland, Nelson, Rockbridge and Rockingham counties. He succeeds Stephen L. Saufley of Rockingham County.

RE-ELECTED DIRECTORS Richard L. Sutherland, Grayson County

District 8

Leigh H. Pemberton, Hanover County

District 11

J.M. “Jerry” Jenkins Jr., Lunenburg County

District 14 David L. Hickman, Accomack County

VIRGINIA FARM BUREAU NEWS

YOUNG FARMERS ACHIEVEMENT AWARD Sam and Ashley Gardner, Bedford County YOUNG FARMERS DISCUSSION MEET WINNER Chris Van Vlack, Loudoun County WARREN BEACH AWARD FOR SUPPORT OF YOUNG FARMERS Mark Dawson, VFBF senior district field services director, Carroll County COUNTY FARM BUREAU BEST IN STATE AWARDS Hanover County Farm Bureau, for membership acquisition Nottoway County Farm Bureau, for member involvement and retention Powhatan County Farm Bureau, for agriculture promotion or education Tazewell County Farm Bureau, for governmental relations NEW: COUNTY FARM BUREAU NEW HORIZON AWARDS FOR NEW AND INNOVATIVE PROGRAMS Russell County Farm Bureau, for involvement with the Southwest Virginia Ag Expo Stafford County Farm Bureau, for “Farm Country, Stay Alert” road safety campaign ISHEE-QUANN AWARD FOR MEDIA EXCELLENCE The Tidewater News, Franklin

District 2

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DISTINGUISHED SERVICE AWARDS Todd Haymore, Virginia secretary of agriculture and forestry Del. Edward T. Scott, R-Culpeper Donald Bishop, Cumberland County, past president and longtime member of Cumberland County Farm Bureau H. Carl Tinder Sr., Albemarle County, former District 8 director, VFBF board

JOURNALISM AWARDS Daily News-Record in Harrisonburg and Kevin Green of The Northern Virginia Daily, daily newspaper; The Tidewater News, non-daily newspaper; WHSV TV 3 in Harrisonburg, television; Cathy Dyson of The Free Lance-Star in Fredericksburg, Members’ Choice Award

County ag development boards can address local issues

Commercial market for drones in agriculture is robust, farmers told The market for commercial drone use in American agriculture has been recognized by aviation and agriculture experts. But some specifics remain up in the air.

Farmers at the VFBF Annual Convention in Norfolk posed numerous questions. Among them were “Who owns the data that (drones) collect on private land?”, “Will there be regulatory training for operators, like there is for pilots?” and “If you find a drone in your soybean field, is it yours?”

Darryl Jenkins, chairman of the American Aviation Institute, delivered the convention’s keynote address on “The Future of Drones and Your Farm.” Jenkins is founder of the George Washington University Aviation

JENKINS

Institute and a past professor at GWU and Embry Riddle Aeronautical University. He also is a consultant to airlines and aviation companies, an airline analyst and author of the Handbook of Airline Economics.

The market for unmanned aerosystems in agriculture is “a decent market” to say the least, he noted. In agriculture, “you’re going to see drones, and you’re going to see them soon and they’re going to become ubiquitous.” Proposed Federal Aviation Administration rules, he noted, will establish regulations sufficient for commercial drone use on smaller and medium-size farms.

The devices can be used to survey evapotranspiration, surface and rootzone soil moisture and crop health features like chlorophyll levels and canopy volumes, Jenkins said. “We can measure all sorts of things in your field,” generating data that he said will be “the next big Green Revolution.”

Questions remain, he noted, on who will own that data. But precision agriculture operators can use it to create prescriptive maps of fields and then tailor how, when and where they irrigate or apply products like fertilizer.

Drone owners most likely will be required to register themselves as such with the FAA, and commercial operators most likely will be required to hold a license and maintain certification and a flight logbook, Jenkins said.

Bringing together people from different agricultural backgrounds gives agriculture a voice and strength within a county.

That was the takeaway message from a Dec. 1 workshop at the VFBF Annual Convention on how to start and maintain local ag development boards.

“It’s about bringing diverse people together to form a forum where members can discuss agricultural issues and provide a unified agricultural group,” said Jim Matson, founder of Matson Consulting.

“Good agricultural development boards are a multi-year project.”

His company, along with the Virginia Foundation for Agriculture Innovation and Rural Sustainability and The Center for Rural Virginia, have developed a guide to assist volunteers interested in creating an ag development board in their communities.

Matson said members need to spend five to 10 years building up their boards, and he added that it’s important to have long-term, consistent funding. “A baseline is important,” he said. “A lack of consistent and meaningful funding can cripple the effectiveness of an agricultural development board.”

Localities can structure their boards in a way that makes sense for their levels of activity, funding, focus and goals, Matson said. Bringing together established farmers and newcomers is key to successful agricultural development.

The Agricultural Development Board Guide: Creating Effective Local Support for Agriculture is available online at cfrv.org.

Winter workshops to be held Volunteers who are interested in creating local agricultural development boards can attend day-long workshops being planned for this month and February in Gloucester and Pittsylvania counties and the city of Staunton. Workshop information is being shared at cfrv.org as it becomes available.

VaFarmBureau.org / JANUARY 2016

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AgrAbility Virginia helps farmers continue to do their jobs

I

ARTICLE AND PHOTOS BY SARA OWENS

n 1999, Dinwiddie County farmer Alvin Blaha suffered a carotid aneurysm that made it difficult for him to walk, let alone farm.

Four years later, at the 2003 American Farm Bureau Federation Annual Convention, Blaha learned about a program called AgrAbility that helps farmers with disabilities continue to work.

“I talked to the person who presented information about AgrAbility,” Blaha said. “She told me they were just starting a program in Virginia, so I started looking into it right away.”

Blaha was the second person in Virginia to receive help from AgrAbility Virginia, one of 24 state-level affiliates of the National AgrAbility Project. The national program is funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Originally authorized by the 1990 Farm Bill, AgrAbility has been providing funding to state programs through

a competitive grant process since that time. AgrAbility Virginia is a program of Easter Seals UCP North Carolina/ Virginia and provides services free of charge through a contract with Virginia Cooperative Extension.

“AgrAbility Virginia helps farmers with disabilities to keep farming safely and productively,” said Joe Young, the agency’s service coordinator.

A life’s work restored— and a life saved Due to his health issues, Blaha was unable to pull himself up on his farm equipment. AgrAbility Virginia helped find resources to retrofit angled steps on his combine so he could get on and off safely.

“I was using a ladder to angle against equipment and walk up, but then I had nowhere to put the ladder and had trouble getting down from the equipment,” he said. The manufacturer did not make

AgrAbility Virginia helped find resources to add angled steps to equipment of Dinwiddie County producer Alvin Blaha.

22 VIRGINIA FARM BUREAU NEWS

any other steps that would resolve the problem.

Without the angled steps, “I wouldn’t be able to farm,” Blaha said. “I’m up and down on my equipment all the time, and I just couldn’t do it. AgrAbility helped me so I could continue to farm.”

In addition to the steps on his combine, AgrAbility Virginia added steps to all of Blaha’s tractors so he could use them more easily.

In 2015, AgrAbility Virginia reached out to the Department for Aging and Rehabilitative Services for their help in installing a lift on Blaha’s cotton picker.

The lift was designed and installed by Dave Law, a DARS rehabilitative engineer.

“DARS has been very helpful in providing funding for several AgrAbility Virginia projects,” Young said. “This lift makes it a lot safer and easier for Alvin to be able to continue doing work on his farm. This has made a major difference in his ability to do his work.”

The lift runs off the combine’s battery and features a safety catch to prevent it from free-falling should a cable break.

The lift also helped save Blaha’s life.

On Oct. 10, 2015, the cotton picker caught fire. “Without the lift, I don’t know how I would have escaped the equipment quickly during the fire,” he said.

Making equipment more accessible

At an event on Blaha’s farm last year, AgrAbility service coordinator Joe Young (left) and Blaha demonstrated a lift installed to help Blaha reach the cab of his cotton picker.

For nearly 40 years, Dave Law has been inventing anything imaginable for job accommodation—on the farm and off. DARS helps create and install equipment to help people in a variety of jobs.

“No one really knows where to go to get something like this built,” he said.

Law, who works with the Wilson Workforce and Rehabilitation Center, operates a mobile engineering lab that allows him to travel to farms and other workplaces to help install equipment.

In the past year, he has built three lifts for farm equipment alone.

“The mobile unit is what makes these installations possible,” he said. “It’s

The lift helped Blaha get his work done last fall and also helped him escape to safety when the equipment caught fire.

been night and day when it comes to making these projects possible. The lift I built (for Blaha) has helped a man stay on his farm and continue doing what he loves to do. You can’t put a price on that.”

Want to know more?

Every year more than 3,000 Virginians working in agriculture experience injuries or illnesses that limit their ability to perform essential farm tasks, according to AgrAbility Virginia.

Individuals in Virginia who are engaged in farming or a farm-related occupation and need assistance can contact AgrAbility Virginia at 800-365-1656 or visit agrability.ext.vt.edu.

VaFarmBureau.org / JANUARY 2016

23

For Your Benefit

NEW MEMBER BENEFIT! Farm Bureau, Caterpillar Inc. announce partnership A new agreement between Farm Bureau and Caterpillar Inc. entitles members to savings of up to $2,000 on qualifying new Cat machines from participating dealers:

• compact track loaders – $500-$1,000 • multi terrain loaders – $500-$1,000 • skid steer loaders – $500-$1,000 • telehandlers – $500-$1,000

• small wheel loaders – $2,000 • compact wheel loaders – $1,000 • small dozers – $1,000 • backhoe loaders – $500-$1,000

• mini hydraulic excavators – $250-$500 Visit FBAdvantage.com/Deals/Cat to obtain a membership verification certificate to present to your dealer at the time

of purchase or lease quote. Your discount can be combined with any current retail discounts, promotions, rebates or offers available through Caterpillar or Cat dealers, with the exception of other membership purchase incentives. Discounts cannot be applied to past purchases.

Find a Cat dealer near you at cat.com.

Save $500 on purchase or lease of selected GM vehicles Farm Bureau members in Virginia can receive a $500 incentive toward the purchase or lease of qualifying Chevrolet, GMC or Buick vehicles at participating dealerships.

The Farm Bureau GM $500 Vehicle Discount Program is available for members who are at least 18 and have been Farm Bureau members for at least 30 days. The offer can be combined with most other incentives.

To use this member benefit, visit FBAdvantage.com/ Deals/GM, enter your membership number and ZIP code, and print out a Farm Bureau Membership Verification Certificate to take to your GM dealership. Members without Internet access can get assistance in acquiring a certificate from their county Farm Bureau offices.

The $500 incentive must be processed at the time of delivery; GM will not accept certificates on vehicles that already have been delivered.

Health insurance open enrollment ends Jan. 31 Open enrollment for health insurance purchased through the federal marketplace began Nov. 1, 2015, and will end Jan. 31.

If you don’t enroll in a 2016 health insurance plan by the end of the month, you can’t enroll in a plan for this year unless you qualify for a special enrollment period.

Licensed and trained staff at your county Farm Bureau can help you review your health insurance options and make a decision that’s best for you or your family.

Important January dates for 2016 enrollment: • Jan. 1, 2016 – first date 2016 coverage can start • Jan. 31, 2016 – open enrollment ends

24

VIRGINIA FARM BUREAU NEWS

Members eligible for discounts on Polaris vehicles Farm Bureau members in Virginia are eligible for a manufacturer’s incentive discount of $200 to $300 on specific utility and sport vehicles and all-terrain vehicles from participating Polaris dealers.

Members should negotiate their best deals with their preferred Polaris dealers and then present a membership verification certificate prior to delivery to apply the manufacturer’s incentive discount to the final sale price.

Visit FBAdvantage.com/Deals/Polaris, and enter your membership number and ZIP code to create and print a Farm Bureau membership verification certificate to take to your participating Polaris dealership.

For Your Benefit

Are your farm buildings covered against winter storm damage?

With winter upon us, it’s important to make sure you have the coverage you need to protect your personal property from the weight of ice and snow or everyday occurrences.

Accumulated snow can be heavy and can cause extensive damage to homes, farm buildings and property.

“Damage to your home, outbuildings and property can occur at any time, so it’s important to be aware of what’s covered in your policy—and what’s not,” said Sam Rooks, vice president of underwriting and policy services for Virginia Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Co.

Virginia Farm Bureau offers more than 50 endorsements that can be added to home and farmowner policies; they include replacement cost, business income and coverage against damage from earthquakes, floods and weight of ice, sleet and snow.

Policyholders need to make sure they have the coverage they need before a loss occurs,” Rooks said. “Review your policy with your insurance agent to find out what types of coverage are available to you.”

Extra expense coverage is valuable farmowner insurance option While farmers understand the importance of insuring their operations against fire, wind damage, theft and vandalism, many fail to properly protect themselves from the increased expenses that occur after a loss and are necessary to continue normal operations.

Virginia Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Co. offers extra expense coverage for an additional premium under the farmowner program to address that exposure.

“When a farm is hit by a loss, it definitely has an impact on daily operations,” said Scott DeNoon, VFBMIC farm product and underwriting manager.

For example, if a milking parlor were destroyed by fire, extra expense coverage would provide payment to move the cattle to another milking facility while the damaged structure is being rebuilt, DeNoon said. Likewise, if during har-

vest season a farmer were to lose a combine to fire, collision or another covered peril, extra expense coverage would provide payment to rent a replacement machine.

“This is a valuable coverage option that is often overlooked,” DeNoon said.

Your Farm Bureau insurance agent can answer your questions about extra expense coverage and other farmowner coverage enhancements.

VaFarmBureau.org / JANUARY 2016

25

Milk donations, STEM lab featured on Real Virginia Featured this month on Real Virginia, Virginia Farm Bureau’s weekly television program: • Food banks need milk donations.

• High school STEM lab focuses on agriculture.

• Drones could be valuable tools for Virginia’s farmers.

Real Virginia airs nationwide at 3:30 p.m. on the first Saturday of each month on RFD-TV on Dish Network and DirecTV. It airs weekly on WVPT Harrisonburg, WBRA Roanoke, WCVE Richmond, WHRO Norfolk, WVVA Bluefield and WTKR Norfolk, as well as on cable systems across the state. It’s available online at VaFarmBureau.org.

Watch this!

To view Real Virginia, visit VaFarmBureau.org.

Bundle Up & Save a Bundle

Farmer’s Tax Guide available online IRS Publication 225, the Farmer’s Tax Guide, is available online at irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p225.pdf.

The guide explains how federal tax laws apply to farming and is intended for use in preparing 2015 federal income tax returns. The IRS also maintains a page on its website, irs.gov/uac/About-Publication-225, for information about recent developments affecting information in Publication 225. It includes links to related tax forms.

For producers thinking about the current tax year, the guide includes new information on the following:

Warm Up to Members-only Savings with

Member Deals Plus Save at places like:

• maximum net self-employment earnings subject to the social security part of the self-employment tax for 2016; and • employee and employer tax rates for social security and the maximum amount of wages subject to social security tax.

Questions?

Visit VaFarmBureau.org, and click on the Member Deals Plus icon.

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VIRGINIA FARM BUREAU NEWS

11184 VAFB Ad-January 2016-Half page.indd 1

10/15/15 5:50 PM

Tractor fundraiser will help cultivate ag literacy When farmers across Virginia start up their tractors this spring, they won’t just be working their farms—they’ll be helping children across Virginia learn about agriculture.

Thanks to a creative fundraising campaign started by farmers in Mecklenburg county, Tractors for Agriculture in the Classroom will be entering its fourth year. To date, it has raised $7,000 for AITC. Participating farmers are pledging to donate money for every hour they spend on a designated tractor or other piece of farm equipment between March 1 and Nov. 30. County Farm Bureaus and tractor equipment dealers may choose to match all or a portion of funds donated by farmers. James River Equipment has pledged to match up to $12,000 of donations by their customers for 2016.

Tractors for Agriculture in the Classroom was the idea of Jim Jennings, immediate past president of Mecklenburg County Farm Bureau. At a Virginia Farm Bureau Federation conference for county presidents, he said, “I heard about projects other counties were doing to support Agriculture in the Classroom, and I wanted to do something that was fun and interesting.

“Our board has had a good time tracking our hours and finding a way to translate our work on the farm to a direct benefit to Agriculture in the Classroom.”

For details and to register, visit AgInTheClass.org.

Agriculture in the Classroom is a program of the Virginia Farm Bureau that works to connect children to agriculture.

Through resources provided to classroom teachers as well as programs supported by volunteers, AITC helps children to understand the origins of their food and fiber products.

Pious named AITC executive director

PIOUS

Kelly Pious has been named executive director of the Virginia Foundation for Agriculture in the Classroom.

The Craig County native brings more than a decade of experience in marketing and nonprofit work and previously served as the AITC foundation’s director of development from 2006 to 2010.

Pious holds an MBA from Virginia Commonwealth University and bachelor’s degrees in marketing and English from Virginia Tech.

AITC awards 25 mini-grants for school projects Virginia Agriculture in the Classroom awarded more than $12,500 in grant funding to 25 schools and other education programs through its mini-grant program last fall.

Grants generally were for $500, to fund programs that teach students about agriculture in a school or special event setting.

Projects supported by the fall round of grants are expected to reach an estimated 8,000 youth.

The grant program is ongoing, and details and an application are available at AgInTheClass.org.

RECIPIENT SCHOOLS • Appomattox County High School • Buckingham County Primary School • Campbell County Public Schools • Charlottesville – Buford Middle School and Burnley-Moran, Greenbrier, Jackson-Via, Johnson and Venable elementary schools • Chesterfield County – Swift Creek Elementary School and Huguenot United Methodist Church Preschool • Clarke County – Boyde and D.G. Cooley elementary schools • Hampton – John Tyler Elementary School • Henrico County – Crestview Elementary School and The Steward School • Lee County – Flatwoods Elementary School • Loudoun County –Lucketts Community Center and Mill Run Elementary School • Lynchburg – Paul Munro Elementary School • Portsmouth – Victory Elementary School • Prince George County – David A. Harrison Elementary School • Pulaski County – Southwest Virginia Governor's School for Science, Mathematics and Technology • Richmond – All Saints Catholic School • Shenandoah County – Virginia Cooperative Extension/Central High School • Washington County – Damascus Middle School

VaFarmBureau.org / JANUARY 2016

27

Heart of the Home

Serve up some comforting soup on blustery winter days January is Virginia’s coldest month, but it’s also National Soup Month and a fitting time to make some healthy, hearty, hot soups.

From chowders to stews, soups can be creamy or brothbased. They are great meal options for meat lovers and vegetarians alike, because there are so many types and variations.

Bacon Potato Chowder Chowders often contain seafood, but this one is a hearty potato version with bacon. It’s from Mildred Owens of Bland County, from Cooking Virginia Style with Farm Bureau Women.

INGREDIENTS

8 slices bacon, cut into ½" pieces 1 cup chopped onion 2 cups chopped potatoes 1 cup water 1 teaspoon salt 1/8 teaspoon pepper 1 can cream of chicken soup 1 cup sour cream 1½ cups milk DIRECTIONS

In a saucepan, cook bacon pieces until done. Add onions, potatoes, water, salt and pepper. Simmer until the potatoes are tender. Reduce heat to low. Add soup, sour cream and milk. Cook until heated through, and season to taste.

What better time than January to observe National Soup Month?

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VIRGINIA FARM BUREAU NEWS

Heart of the Home

Slow Cooker Chicken Tortilla Soup Busy cooks, here’s one more for the slow cooker, from Sarah Large in Buckingham County, as published in Cooking Virginia Style with Farm Bureau Women.

INGREDIENTS

6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs 1 medium onion, chopped 3 corn tortillas cut into 1" pieces

Correction An apple pie recipe in the September/October issue of Virginia Farm Bureau News included two accidentally transposed ingredient measurements, and readers alerted us to the unappetizing results.

Because apple pie is good at any time of the year, here is the corrected recipe, as published in Country Treasures from Virginia Farm Bureau Kitchens.

1½ cups frozen whole kernel corn, thawed

Apple Pie

15-ounce can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed

INGREDIENTS

4.5-ounce can chopped green chiles

3 tablespoons flour

¾ cup salsa verde (green salsa)

2 eggs

2 14-ounce cans chicken broth

½ cup margarine, melted

1 teaspoon dried oregano

½ teaspoon ground nutmeg

1 teaspoon ground cumin

½ teaspoon cinnamon

½ teaspoon ground cayenne pepper

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 tomatoes, seeded and chopped

3 cups chopped raw apples

chopped fresh cilantro for garnish

10" unbaked pie shell

DIRECTIONS

DIRECTIONS

In a 3- to 4-quart slow cooker, mix chicken with the next 10 ingredients. Cover and cook on low for 5 to 7 hours or until the juice from the largest piece of chicken runs clear. Stir to break up the thighs. Mix in tomatoes before serving. Garnish with cilantro.

Mix sugar and flour together; add eggs, and beat well. Add melted margarine, nutmeg, cinnamon and vanilla; mix well. Stir in chopped apples; pour mixture into pie shell.

Bake at 350° for about 30 minutes or until apples are done. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.

1½ cups sugar

VaFarmBureau.org / JANUARY 2016

29

2016 magazine classified ad schedule and policies Members of Virginia Farm Bureau will receive one free 15-word classified ad per membership per year in Virginia Farm Bureau News, which is mailed to producer members, or in Cultivate, which is mailed to associate members.

Ads of 16 to 30 words must be accompanied by payment of $20.

Any additional ads placed by members in the same calendar year must be accompanied by payment of $10 for 15 words or fewer, or $20 for 16 to 30 words. Ads submitted without payment will be returned. We do not invoice for classified ads or provide proofs or tearsheets.

Ads with more than 30 words and ads from nonmembers will not be accepted.

Use the form on Page 31 or the online form at VaFarmBureau.org/marketplace to place your ad. No ads or cancellations will be taken by phone. Ads will be accepted only from members whose membership is current.

Magazine classified ads can be placed in the following five categories only: • Crops; • Farm equipment; • Hay/Straw; • Livestock; and • Livestock equipment.

Classified ads will be published in the following issues: • April Virginia Farm Bureau News (mailed to producer members only); • May Cultivate (mailed to associate members only); • August Cultivate (mailed to associate members only); and • September Virginia Farm Bureau News (mailed to producer members only).

Finding your member number When placing your ad, be sure to include your Farm Bureau member number, which can be found on your membership card and above your name on the mailing label of your copy of Virginia Farm Bureau News. All member numbers will be verified.

Statement of Ownership

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VIRGINIA FARM BUREAU NEWS

Marketplace

How to place your classified ad STEP 1

Use the form below to provide contact information and the text for your ad.

• Ads will be accepted from Farm Bureau members only.

• Classified ads are not transferable.

• Please type or print.

• Classified ads will not be accepted or cancelled over the phone.

STEP 2

Indicate the issues in which you want your ad to run.

STEP 3

Select the category in which you want your ad to run (Pick one only).

STEP 4

Your first ad of 15 words or less is free with your membership.

Pricing for additional ads: 1–15 words $10/ad 16–30 words $20/ad Additional ads must be accompanied by a check (no cash) for each issue in which the ad is to appear.

• Make check payable to: Virginia Farm Bureau.

• Ads longer than 30 words will not be accepted.

Important: We are not responsible

• We do not invoice for classified ads or provide proofs or tearsheets.

• Ads submitted without payment will be returned.

for typographical errors or errors due to illegible handwriting (No refunds available). Classified ads carried in Cultivate and Virginia Farm Bureau News do not constitute an endorsement by Virginia Farm Bureau Federation and its affiliated companies and organizations.

We reserve the right to edit or reject ads, including ads that represent a business in competition with the Virginia Farm Bureau Federation, Virginia Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Company or any of our affiliated or affinity partners. We reserve the right to edit or reject any advertisement that makes reference to any particular political party or group, religious belief or denomination, race, creed, color or national origin.

STEP 5

Mail your ad (and payment) to: Virginia Farm Bureau News/Cultivate Classifieds P.O. Box 27552 Richmond, VA 23261-7552 Or place it via the Virginia Farm Bureau website at VaFarmBureau.org/.

Deadlines Ads and cancellations must be received (not mailed) by the following deadlines: ISSUE DEADLINE Mailed to producer members April March 4 September August 5

Moving? If your address or phone

number has changed—or is about to—don’t forget to contact your county Farm Bureau office to ensure that your membership and subscription information stays current!

Mailed to associate members May April 5 August July 5

One free 15-word ad per membership per year; dues must be paid before placing ad.

NAME:___________________________________________________________________________________________ MEMBER NO.:______________________________________________________________________________________ COUNTY:_________________________________________________________________________________________ ADDRESS:________________________________________________________________________________________ CITY: __________________________________________

STATE:________________________

ZIP:______________

DAYTIME PHONE NUMBER: __________________________________ E-MAIL ADDRESS: ________________________ Ads will not be accepted without the information above

ADVERTISEMENT (one word per space; please type or print):

Category in which ad should run (select only one): q Crops q Farm Equipment q Hay/Straw q Livestock q Livestock Equipment No other categories available

1.________________________ 2.______________________ 3._________________________ 4.________________________ 5. _____________________________ 6._______________________ 7.______________________ 8._________________________ 9.________________________ 10.______________________________ ( ) 11._______________________ 12._____________________ 13.________________________ 14._______________________ 15. _____________________________ phone number

ISSUE IN WHICH AD SHOULD RUN:* q April (mailed to producer members) qM ay (mailed to associate members) q August (mailed to associate members) q S eptember (mailed to producer members)

q This is my one free 15-word ad for 2016 q Payment enclosed: $ _____________ q Please place my ad in The Delmarva Farmer for 4 weeks at no additional cost to me.

Your ad will automatically be included in the online VFB Marketplace for free (Ads expire with membership).

Ad placement available for these issues only

*

VaFarmBureau.org / JANUARY 2016

31

Financing Country Living Since 1916 The Experts in Rural Finance Homes • Land • Construction • Livestock Barns • Outbuildings • Equipment

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