Strengthening Agriculture Production, Management, and Marketing SkillsPlan of Work

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Oldham County CES

Title:
Strengthening Agriculture Production, Management, and Marketing Skills
MAP:
Strengthening Agriculture Production and Economy
Agents Involved:
Traci Missun, Kelly Woods
MAJOR PROGRAM 1:
Beef
MAJOR PROGRAM 2:
Local Food Systems
MAJOR PROGRAM 3:
Farm Management
MAJOR PROGRAM 4:
Ag Marketing
Situation:
Farms make up one-half of Oldham County. Farms here include a wide variety of enterprises, including grain crops, livestock, horses, hay and pasture, nurseries, greenhouses, poultry, fish and shellfish. With growth of Farmers Markets and Community Supported Agriculture locations, there has also been growth in vegetable, sheep and poultry production over the last 10 years, according to the 2012 Ag Census.

The Oldham County Extension Council and Ag Advisory Councils reviewed county needs and identified Agriculture Production, Business Management and Marketing as top priorities in educational programming. These skills are necessary for producers to be financially viable individually, and also to support the county's economy as a whole. Production programs also meet the needs of many residents who desire to produce their own food.
Long-Term Outcomes:
Participants will experience long-term viability in farming.

Participants will reduce expenses and/or increase profits of farm operations.

Youth will pursue a career in a horse related program or study.
Intermediate Outcomes:
Participants will implement recommended production practices to successfully produce food and agriculture products.

Participants will write farm business plans, keep and analyze records, and use these to make sound business decisions.

Participants will use information about local market opportunities to sell products.

Youth apply a practice or technique discovered during their horse educational sessions.
Initial Outcomes:
Participants will indicate understanding of research-based production practices.

Participants will recognize the importance of farm business plans and record-keeping.

Participants will have increased awareness of new marketing opportunities.

Youth will build equine knowledge and complete six hours of horse educational sessions.
Evaluation:

Long-term Outcome: Participants will experience long-term viability in farming. Participants will reduce expenses and/or increase profits of farm operations.

Indicator: Number of producers indicating reduced expenses and/or increase in profits.

Method: Producer Survey

Timeline: May 2018


Long-term Outcome: Youth will pursue a career in a horse related program or study.

Indicator: Number of youth who set a goal and accomplished it.

Method: Youth survey

Timeline: August 2017


Intermediate Outcome: Participants will implement recommended production practices to successfully produce food and agriculture products. Participants will write farm business plans, keep and analyze records, and use these to make sound business decisions. Participants will use information about local market opportunities to sell products.

Indicator: Number of producers who create farm business plans, implement record keeping, identify new markets, and implement changes in production practices.

Method: Producer Survey

Timeline: May 2018


Intermediate Outcome: Youth demonstrate a skill or technique discovered during a horse educational session.

Indicator: Youth demonstrate a riding skills or technique mastered.

Method: Youth survey

Timeline: August 2017


Initial Outcome: Participants will indicate understanding of research-based production practices. Participants will recognize the importance of farm business plans and record-keeping.Participants will have increased awareness of new marketing opportunities.

Indicator: Producers indicate new knowledge in farm business and production practices.

Method: Completion of educational classes; producer survey

Timeline: 2017 - 2018; surveys May 2018


Initial Outcome: Youth build equine knowledge and complete six hours of horse educational sessions.

Indicator: Youth complete six hours.

Method: Horse Education Hours Logged

Timeline: All year





Learning Opportunities:

Audience: 4-H Members age 9 to 18

Project or Activity: Horse educational session

Content or Curriculum: Content identified by 4-H Club

Inputs: CES Staff, Participant fees

Date: Completed April 2018


Audience: Beef Producers

Project or Activity: Master Cattleman

Content or Curriculum: UK Extension Beef Production Curriculum

Inputs: UK Extension Specialists, Local Agriculture Agents

Date: May - September 2017


Audience: Farmers

Project or Activity: Recordkeeping Class

Content or Curriculum: Extension materials; KY Farm Business Analysis program materials

Inputs: Agriculture Agent, KY Farm Business Analysis program representative

Date: Fall 2017


Audience: Farmers

Project or Activity: Writing a Farm Business Plan class

Content or Curriculum: KY Center for Agricultural & Rural Development materials

Inputs: Agriculture Agent, KCARD representative

Date: Completed in Fall 2016


Audience: Farmers

Project or Activity: Marketing/Local Market Opportunities classes and notification to producers

Content or Curriculum: UK/KSU Extension materials; Louisville Farm to Table resources

Inputs: Agriculture Agent, UK/KSU Specialists, Louisville Farm to Table Director

Date: Ongoing; 2017-2018


Audience: Farmers/Residents

Project or Activity: Vegetable Gardening Workshop

Content or Curriculum: UK Extension materials

Inputs: Agriculture Agent, Horticulture Assistant, possibly Extension Specialists

Date: January 2018


Audience: Farmers/Residents/Potential Buyers

Project or Activity: Create web listing of Oldham County Farms offering products for sale (voluntary participation)

Content or Curriculum: Gather information from Oldham County farmers

Inputs: Agriculture Agent, Horticulture Assistant, Staff Assistant, Ag Council

Date: 2017 - 2018


Audience: Cattle Producers

Project or Activity: Beef Quality Assurance Certification/Cattle Handling and Care Certification

Content or curriculum: UK Extension materials and videos

Inputs: Agriculture Agent

Date: Multiple sessions, November - December 2017


Audience: Small Poultry Flock Producers

Project or Activity: Chickens 101

Content or curriculum: UK Extension materials

Inputs: Agriculture Agent, Local Producer

Date: March 2018


Audience: Farmers

Project or Activity: Private Pesticide Applicator Training/Certification

Content or curriculum: UK Extension materials

Inputs: Agriculture Agent

Date: Multiple sessions, December 2017 - January 2018


Audience: Farmers

Project or Activity: Good Agricultural Practices for Vegetable/Fruit Production

Content or curriculum: UK Extension materials

Inputs: Agriculture Agent, Horticulture Assistant

Date: February 2017



Success Stories

Beef Producers Learn Practices to Strengthen Production Efficiency

Author: Traci Johnson

Major Program: Beef

Educational programs that strengthen agriculture production skills are a continued priority identified by the Oldham County Extension and Agriculture Councils.  In Oldham County, pasture makes up one-third of available farmland and provides grazing for livestock.  Livestock are important to Oldham County’s economy, with cattle alone representing over 2.4 million dollars in sales in 2012, according to the last Census of Agriculture.  Cattle numbers have remained steady since

Full Story

Raising Poultry for Family and Markets

Author: Traci Johnson

Major Program: Poultry

Educational programs that strengthen agriculture production skills are a continued priority identified by the Oldham County Extension Council and Agriculture Council.  In Oldham County, sourcing and purchasing local foods is a continuing trend.  This has also spurred a growing number of people to seek information about raising their own food, and keeping poultry flocks is a very popular enterprise.  Oldham County poultry and egg sales have continued to increase over the last two d

Full Story

Poultry Education

Author: Kelly Woods

Major Program: Agriculture 4-H Core Curriculum

In Oldham County, sourcing and purchasing local foods is a continuing trend.  This has also spurred a growing number of people to seek information about raising their own food, and keeping poultry flocks is a very popular.  Keeping these flocks has grown into a family affair, with both youth and adults involved in the care. The Oldham County Agriculture and 4-H Agents and the Shelby County Horticulture Assistant planned a two-part ‘Chickens 101’ program to meet the gro

Full Story

Gardeners and Livestock Producers Learn to Manage Nuisance Wildlife

Author: Traci Johnson

Major Program: Wildlife Habitat and Damage Management Education

Educational programs that strengthen agriculture production skills are a continued priority identified by the Oldham County Extension and Agriculture Councils. A hindrance to producing food in Oldham County is damage caused by nuisance wildlife. This damage ranges from deer feeding on gardens and crops to black vultures feeding on newborn livestock.Challenges include heavy deer population – with neighborhoods being close together in some parts of the county, hunting is not always

Full Story
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