Small Farmer Ag Institute continues third class

The 3rd class of the Small Farmer Ag Leadership Institute training took place at North Carolina A&T State University, March 18-20. 

More than 30 participants from 12 states gathered for hands-on learning in and out of the classroom. Classroom session presenters and topics included: Mike Lanier, Agribusiness agent, Orange County Center—How to Direct Market Local Farm Products; Robin Adams, director of agricultural communications, School of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences, NC A&T SU—Make It Plain: Communication for Success; Gary S. Bullen, extension associate, North Carolina State University—Tools, and Methods of Evaluating a New Enterprise; Carmen Humphrey, chef, Marketing Grants and Technical Assistance Branch—An Overview of USDA/Agricultural Marketing Service and Programs that Benefit Small Farmers; and Michelle Eley, Extension, NC A&T SU—Establishing an Effective Marketing Plan. 

The trip culminated in a small farm tour of the Center for Environmental Farming Systems. The small farm tour included visits to the high tunnels/greenhouse, blueberries/raspberries, crop rotation/livestock rotation and post-harvest handling facilities.  Immediately following the training session, positive feedbacks were noted on Facebook sites. 

First, the North Carolina CEFS had this to say: “Thanks to the Small Farm Leadership Institute for visiting CEFS today. Thirty-one folks from MS, LA, KY, SC, OK, TX, AR, CO, NC, FL, GA, MO and Al were repre-sented.” Available online on Facebook at:Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/cefspage?ref=mf 

Second came the headline: Trip to North Carolina Yields Immediate Benefits from Phoenix Gardens in Georgia. “Just got back from my AG Leadership session in North Carolina. Saw a lot of great stuff and got a TON of great information,” posted Brennan Washington on Facebook. 

Washington is continuing his journey as a member of Southern University's Agricultural Leadership Institute.

He continues to express his experience and knowledge gained. “The highlight of our session was a trip to a research farm jointly run by North Carolina A&T, North Carolina State University and local organizations. Among the things I saw was their swine opera-tion and their organic farm plots. Of particular interest to me were their high tunnel operations in which they were growing strawberries and other crops.” 

“We learned about a growing tube that we plan to put into use in our melon growing project this sum-mer. As is always the case, I came home with information that would immediately help me in my quest to sustainably grow food here in Law-renceville, Georgia. Thanks to Southern University and North Carolina A&T,” Brennan concluded. 

Visit the Phoenix Gardens site at: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Lawrenceville-GA/Phoenix-Gardens/193889153474#!/pages/Lawrenceville-GA/Phoenix-Gardens/193889153474 

Dawn Mellion-Patin, PhD, agriculture specialist, is director of the Small Farmer Agricultural Leadership Training Institute. 

Hard Earned Land: The Kimble Family Farm

By LaShounda Anderson, Ph.D.
Alcorn State University

COLFAX--When we say America was built from ancestor’s blood, sweat and tears, this statement cannot be truer than for the Kimble Family of Colfax, Louisiana. Colfax is a small city built by slaves and their descendants. Located in Central Louisiana’s Grant Parish, Colfax became a city in 1869. Before that, it was a 14,000 acre plantation called Calhoun’s landing.

Original land deeds prove that the 74-acre Kimble family farm was a part of the historic 14,000 acre plantation. Grandfather Kimble is believed to have purchased the farm in the 1930s from the Calhoun family.

Granddaughter Diana Kimble (pictured at right) retired from Texas Instruments in Dallas and returned home to Colfax. She had a new life mission: environmentally conserve her grandfather’s land while serving the community of Colfax.

She has established Kimble Organics on a small section of the farm. The organic garden is bordered by a beautiful bayou with large cypress trees that seems to hide it from the rest of the world. The garden is filled with herbs and vegetables including hibiscus, strawberries, blueberries and tomatoes. She is looking forward to preparing a hibiscus tea recipe she received during a visit to the Southern University Agricultural Research and Extension Center in Baton Rouge, where she is currently participating in the Small Farmer Agricultural Leadership Institute.

Kimble composts and recycles materials on-site for use in the organic garden. She is currently composting branch and trunk shredding from trees just cleared off the land. Her unique method of recycling plastic pail tops is to place them at the base of plants to ward off plant diseases and harmful ground insects. She says organic gardening will provide a way to grow safe and affordable food for the Colfax community and for central Louisiana.

The desire for future generations to appreciate agriculture, environment and history runs deep in the Kimble family. The family farm is the future site of an African-American history, agriculture and cultural center. The family purchased a building from a local Catholic church for one dollar and plan to convert it into a community center. The center will have workshops on topics such as organic vegetable production and African-American history’s role in establishing worldwide agricultural practices. The center’s classroom will be named for a relative who had a calling to become a nun, but was unable to fulfill her calling because of health issues.

The Kimbles credit the Ag Center’s Cash for Conservation Workshop for sparking their interest in how to make alternative farm income through native grass and wildlife conservation and production. Since attending the workshop, the Kimbles are working to get their farm involved in available USDA-NRCS Conservation Reserve Programs and upcoming SUAREC Native Grass Producers Initiatives. With four generations involved in revitalizing the farm, it will be viewed as a priceless family treasure.

To get more information on USDA Conservation Programs, contact your local USDA-Farm Service Agency Office or USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service Office.

For information on the upcoming Southern University Agricultural Center and Research Center Native Grass Producer Incentives, contact Adell Brown, Ph.D.,  vice chancellor for finance and administration, at 225-771-2242. For information on the Leadership Institute, visit aginstitute.suagcenter.com

New ag leadership institute featured on TWILA, LFB radio network

Agriculture specialist Dawn Mellion Patin, Ph.D., joined the cast of This Week in Louisiana Agriculture television show to discuss the new Louisiana Small Farmer Agricultural Leadership Institute and the application process. The interview segment with reproter A.J. Sabine will also air on the Louisiana Farm Bureau Radio Network's 24 affiliate stations.

Tune in this Thursday (August 20) through next Wednesday on your local station to learn more about the institute's Sept. 1 application deadline.

Nationwide
RFD-TV Thursdays 3:30pm Central Time; and Fridays 1:30am Central Time
DirecTV Channel 345
Dish Network Channel 231
Baton Rouge
COX 4 Saturdays and Sundays at 9 a.m and Mon., Wed., Fri., at 8am
WAFB-TV 9 Sundays at 5am
KPBN-CH. 22 Monday-Thursday at 9:00am
LCN "Louisiana's Superstation" Cox 140 Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30pm Saturdays 8:30am

For other air times and stations, visit http://www.twilatv.org/whentowatch.html or http://www.lfbf.org/radionetwork.html

For more information on the institute, visit www.aginstitute.suagcenter.com or contact Mellion Patin at (225) 771-2242.

Tune In, Farmers!

Tune in this week to the Louisiana Agri-News Network on 107.3fm in Baton Rouge at 5:00 am to hear about the Ag Center's Louisiana Small Farmer Agricultural Leadership Institute. Finally, a comprehensive training for Louisiana small farmers! 

Institute project director and ag specialist Dawn Mellion Patin, Ph.D., was interviewed by journalist Don Molino earlier today. For more information on the institute, visit www.aginstitute.suagcenter.com or contact Patin at (225) 771-2242.

Ag Institute opens for new applicants

Applications are now being accepted for the Small Farmer Agricultural Leadership Institute. The Institute is a two-year course of study specifically designed to guide small, socially disadvantaged, limited resource, or minority farmers through the transformative process of becoming successful agricultural entrepreneurs. 

The deadline to apply is September 1. 

For more information, visit www.aginstitute.suagcenter.com or contact Dawn Mellion Patin,Ph.D., MBA, agricultural speciaist and Institute project director, at (225) 771-2242 ext. 201 or dawn_mellion@suagcenter.com

Ag Leadership Institute graduates second class

U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack presided over the graduation ceremony of 26 minority farmers from the Southern University Ag Center’s Small Farmer Agricultural Leadership Training Institute.

The Institute is a two-year course of study that gives small, socially disadvantaged, limited resource and/or minority farmers the knowledge to become successful agricultural entrepreneurs. "President Obama recognizes that small farm operators are the custodians of about 48 percent of this nation's farm and ranch land," Vilsack said. "It's vital that we support programs such as this that provide the tools needed to promote the sustainability of small family farms."

This is the second class to graduate from the program with the first taking place in 2007.

Throughout the course, participants studied a broad range of agriculturally-important topics, including the effects of global agriculture on the U.S. economy; leadership and analytical skills; business management and marketing, communications; and public policy.

The program is unique in that it is the only one in the country specifically targeting minority, socially disadvantaged and limited resource agricultural producers. Participants were from Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Kentucky, Texas, Missouri, Tennessee, South Carolina, Florida, Georgia, Maryland and North Carolina.

The most dynamic aspect of the Institute is the relationships that have been built. “Each session I sit back and watch the participants interact, assist and motivate each other as if they have known one another forever. The camaraderie is phenomenal," said Dawn Mellion-Patin, Ph.D., institute director and Ag Center agriculture specialist.

The Southern University Ag Center has collaborated with the Southern University Law Center, Alcorn State University Small Farm Development Center, Prairie View A&M University Cooperative Extension Program, and North Carolina A&T State University Cooperative Extension Program to bring the Institute to the farmers in various locations.

The ceremony was held at the USDA headquarters, in the Jamie L. Whitten Building on March 27. USDA's Cooperative State Research, Education and Extension Service administers and funds the program through the Outreach and Assistance for Socially Disadvantaged Farmers and Ranchers Program, which teaches participants the enhanced decision-making skills and leadership development to become successful agribusiness managers and community leaders. Patin is currently pursuing multiple funding sources to sustain this unique institute. For more information on the Institute, visit www.aginstitute.suagcenter.com.

By Bridget Udoh, Ph.D.
Communications Specialist

Ag Institute graduates 26 with Agriculture Secretary Vilsack

WASHINGTON DC--US Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack congratulated the 26 graduates of Southern University Ag Center's Small Farm Agricultural Leadership Institute. The Institute's program director and Ag Center agricultural specialist Dawn Mellion-Patin,Ph.D., MBA, said this unique program helps farmers become proactive leaders and producers. Patin is developing a curriculum for the third Institute class. AJ Sabine covers the ceremony in Washington DC for This Week in Louisiana Agriculture. The show is broadcasted nationally by the Louisiana Farm Bureau.






For more information on the Institute, visit www.aginstitute.suagcenter.com or contact Patin at (225) 771-2242.

USDA Awards $300,000 for Training and Assistance to Socially Disadvantaged Farmers and Ranchers

Agriculture Deputy Secretary Kathleen Merrigan announced Dec. 9 that USDA is awarding more than $14 million in grants to organizations throughout the country that will provide training and assistance to socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers.

The Southern University Agricultural Research and Extension Center will receive $300,000 in funding to support the Small Farmer Agricultural Leadership Institute.

The Institute is a two year, course of study specifically designed to guide small, socially disadvantaged, limited resource farmers or minority farmers through the transformative process of becoming successful agricultural entrepreneurs, said Dawn Mellion Patin, PhD, MBA, institute director and agricultural specialist. The institute currently has 34 participants and has graduated 58 farmers from 14 states.

According to USDA, the Outreach and Assistance for Socially Disadvantaged Farmers and Ranchers (OASDFR) grant program enables socially disadvantaged producers to successfully acquire, own, operate, and retain farms and ranches, and to assure equitable participation in the full range of USDA programs. A socially disadvantaged farmer or rancher is one of a group whose members have been subjected to racial or ethnic prejudice without regard to their individual qualities.



Generally, socially disadvantaged producers who participate in OASDFR-funded projects develop profitable new farming or ranching practices, receive loans more rapidly, increase their farm or ranch income, continue farming or ranching longer and are less likely to go out of business.

This has been the case for the Southern University Ag Center's Institute graduates, said Patin. Graduates have been appointed to the advisory boards of Southern Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education and Southern Region Risk Management Education programs, as well as, to state and local advisory boards and taskforces in 8 states. “They have been invited to serve as panelists and keynote speakers at conferences all across the country. They are serving as model farmers in several states and their farms are used demonstration sites. Three graduates have been selected as Small Farmers of the Year for their states.”

Graduates have also started farmers markets and Community Supported Agriculture initiatives and are featured in educational videos.

“Most importantly, (the graduates are) taking back to their communities what they have learned and sharing with others.” For more information visit,http://aginstitute.suagcenter.com or contact Patin at (225) 771-2242 ext. 201.