Floridians Urged to Support New Clean Water Rule Charles Shinn, Director of Government & Community Affairs The newly revised Waters of the U.S. (Clean Water) Rule is something that Florida agriculture needs to support actively with public comment. Be a voice is stopping the regulations. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recently rolled out an updated [...]
Committees Set as Legislature Prepares for Start of 2019 Legislative Session Committee assignments in the Florida House of Representatives were just announced last month, as lawmakers continue to make early preparations for the 2019 legislative session which is scheduled to begin Tuesday, March 5. The House Agriculture and Natural Resources Subcommittee will be led by [...]
2018-19 Florida Agri-Women Officers Announced American Agri-Women Past President Marcie Williams, Croton, Ohio recently installed the 2018-19 Officers of the Florida Agri-Women in Port Charlotte. New officers included President Ruth Jensen, Port Charlotte; Vice President Sonia Tighe, Tampa; Secretary-Treasurer Andrea Stanford, Bradenton; and Immediate Past President Deborah Brady, Dunnellon. Florida Agri-Women, a non-profit affiliate of [...]
Following Elections, Farm Bureau Focuses on 2019 Legislative Session Republicans Win 4 of 5 Statewide Races After the dust settled on multiple recounts in a number of statewide and legislative races, Republicans emerged victorious in four of the five statewide races. The only statewide elected Democrat in Florida will be Commissioner of Agriculture Nikki Fried, [...]
Lame-Duck Congress Must Deliver As we approach a close to 2018, there are multiple priorities that have bottlenecked during this lame-duck session of Congress. A 2018 Farm Bill awaits urgent action before program funding expiration in December. The federal government as a whole has a crucial appropriations deadline of Dec. 7. Our careworn producers in [...]
Florida Company is Semi-Finalist in National Ag Challenge Elite OviGen, Inc., a sheep breeding software solutions company, is one of 10 semi-finalists in the 2019 Farm Bureau Ag Innovation Challenge. The Beverly-Hills based entrepreneur will receive $10,000 to help them take their business to the next level. “Being a top-10 semifinalist is invaluable. It [...]
BERMUDAGRASS STEM MAGGOT An invasive fly, the Bermudagrass stem maggot, scientific name Atherigona reversura, was first discovered in 2010 damaging bermudagrass pasture and hay fields in Georgia. This was the first record of this species in North America. Since then, it has become a serious pest of Bermudagrass forage, hay and turf. It has since [...]
WHIP Deadline Approaching The sign up period for the 2017 Wildfires and Hurricanes Indemnity Program (WHIP) will end on November 16, 2018. It is imperative that producers contact their local FSA office if they incurred damage from Hurricane IRMA in 2017. If your FSA office is having communication issues due to Hurricane Michael, it is [...]
FARM BUREAU COMMITTED TO HELPING OUR PANHANDLE FARMERS For the second consecutive year, Florida agriculture was devastated by a strong hurricane. Last year, it was Hurricane Irma that caused more than $2.5 billion in damage to the agriculture industry alone. A few weeks ago, Hurricane Michael, a Category 4 monster that seemingly came out of [...]
IN MEMORIAM Pete Clemons, the popular owner and operator of the Okeechobee Livestock Market, passed away on Sept. 16 at age 91. Clemons, a 2008 Florida Agricultural Hall of Fame inductee, was formerly a champion rodeo competitor. His career included citrus and beef cattle production. He was also a long-term, well-respected member of the Okeechobee [...]
