Enhancing Agriculture Management and MarketingPlan of Work

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Grayson County CES

Title:
Enhancing Agriculture Management and Marketing
MAP:
Growing Grayson County through Rural, Youth, and Community Development
Agents Involved:
Whitney Carman
MAJOR PROGRAM 1:
Forages
MAJOR PROGRAM 2:
Beef
MAJOR PROGRAM 3:
Grains
MAJOR PROGRAM 4:
Farm Management, Economics and Policy
Situation:

Agriculture in Grayson County is an integral part of the economic system. In 2017 the total value of crop and livestock cash receipts for Grayson County was 59.5 million dollars. Balancing input costs, value of crops and livestock, and marketing techniques are always changing, making it harder for farmers and agriculturalists to be profitable. Another issue is the increase in average farmer age, thus the importance of estate transitional planning. Therefore, it is important to educate farmers on the latest information available from the University of Kentucky College of Agriculture food and Environment, and industry partners so they can make educated decisions to help increase the vitality and profitability of their enterprises.

Long-Term Outcomes:

Farmers and Producers will adopt integrated systems of animal and plant production which sustain and/or enhance the economic vitality of their agricultural enterprise. Production methods utilized will increase the amount of commodities produced and enhance their economic value. It is anticipated that there will continue to be an increase in inexperienced farmers and new farmers in 2020 and beyond.

Intermediate Outcomes:

Producers will utilize new management and marketing skills learned from the Cooperative Extension Service programs that can increase the chance of agricultural enterprise profitability. More farmers will make decisions to work on estate plans, succession plans, and avenues to diversify if the need arises.

Initial Outcomes:

Producers will learn new marketing techniques for livestock, grain and forage production. Producers will understand ways of controlling their input costs more effectively. Producers will learn new educational tools that they can use to increase efficiency and effectiveness on their agricultural enterprise.

Evaluation:

Initial Outcome: Increases awareness of new production methods and techniques

Indicator: education of production methods and techniques

Method: written and online program evaluation 

Timeline: Spring 2021, Fall 2021


Intermediate Outcome: Improvement in management and production methods

Indicator: Adoption of practices learned in Extension Programs

Method: Survey of Extension Programs, on-site visits, new producers showing increased profits and value, producers showing change in methods learned from programs involved in.

Timeline: Fall 2021

 

Long-term Outcome: Increased Economic Vitality of Agriculture Enterprises

Indicator: Economic conditions of farmers become more viable

Method: mailed survey, online survey, and e-mail survey, on-site visits, client adoption of practices 

Timeline: Fall 2022


Learning Opportunities:

Audience: farmers

Project or Activity: Livestock Marketing

Content or Curriculum: CPH-45 program, Yellow-Tag program, Retained Ownership Program, KY Proud, KY Beef IRM, Beef PVAP program

Inputs: UK Specialists, UK Beef Publications, county agents, beef farmers, Cooperative Extension Services, local livestock markets, Kentucky Department of Agriculture

Date: Spring-Winter 2021

 

Audience: farmers

Project or Activity: Beef and Forage Production Education

Content or Curriculum: Publications and videos on forages and beef production, project demonstrations on crabgrass and summer annuals

Inputs: UK publications, UK videos, Specialists, social media outlets

Date: Winter 200-2021

 

Audience: beef farmers

Project or Activity: Beef and Forage Field Days

Content or Curriculum: Demonstration plot, UK publications and presentations on beef marketing and forage use

Inputs: UK specialists, Local Farmer, Kentucky Beef Network, Agents, Publications, Beef IRM Committee, local farm stores, industry representatives 

Date: Summer 2021, Fall 2021, summer 2022

 

Audience: commodity farmers

Project or Activity: Variety Plots and demonstrations for crops, forages, and vegetables

Content or Curriculum: County variety plots for Corn, soybeans, summer and winter forages, and vegetables

Inputs: UK Specialists, Local seed reps, Local farmers, UK publications

Date: Summer 2020, 2021, 2022

 

Audience: Early career farmers

Project or Activity: Farm Financial Management 

Content or Curriculum: UK curriculum for Managing for Today and Tomorrow

Inputs: UK, Kentucky Department of Agriculture, Kentucky Ag Development Fund, Agents, local businesses

Date: Summer 2021

 

Audience: Women in Agriculture and Agribusiness

Project or Activity: Farm Management Basics for Women

Content or Curriculum: financial management and general agribusiness education

Inputs: UK, Kentucky Department of Agriculture, Kentucky Ag Development Fund, Agents, local businesses, Annie's Project curriculum, Kentucky Women in Agriculture programming

Date: Fall- Winter 2021

 

Audience: Grain Producers

Project or Activity: Grain Marketing Education

Content or Curriculum: Information on grain marketing

Inputs: UK publications, UK specialists, local marketing groups, producers

Date: Summer 2021

 

Audience: Young Farmers

Project or Activity: Young Farmer Leadership Program

Content or Curriculum: FarmStart curriculum, UK specialists, local agribusinesses, local farmers, UK Extension agents, commodity organizations

Date: Meet Quarterly: Fall 2020, Winter 2020, Spring 2021, Summer 2021

 

Audience: Facebook and Social Media Users/General Public

Project or Activity: Social media posts regarding agriculture marketing and management techniques

Content or Curriculum: various research-based resources

Inputs: UK Specialist, paid Extension Staff, social media outlets

Date: Monthly 2020, 2021




Success Stories

Educating Hay Producers in the Lincoln Trail Area

Author: Whitney Carman

Major Program: Forages

Forages play an integral part of the rural agriculture economy in Grayson County. Hay production specifically makes up for 35,300 acres of production, ranking 24th in the state. On average, Grayson County produces 100,000 tons of hay each year. Hay production is important for the area due to the amount of livestock, large and small, that utilize it. Therefore, forage quality is a very important factor that the Agriculture agents in the area get questions about.Working closely with Breckinridge c

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Dirt 2 Dollars Podcast Expanding Clientele Reach

Author: Whitney Carman

Major Program: Farm Management, Economics and Policy

Cooperative Extension Agents are continuously looking for ideas to help reach new audiences to educate and communicate. Agriculture and Natural Resources Agents Matt Adams (Hardin), Whitney Carman (Grayson) and Daniel Carpenter (LaRue) specifically were looking for ways to reach the young farmer population, a group that can be difficult to reach in the current educational methods. One way that the agents looked into is podcasting. Podcasting uses the internet to make recordings of broadcasts ava

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Grayson County Fencing School Provdies Learning Opportunity to Livestock Farmers

Author: Whitney Carman

Major Program: Farm Management, Economics and Policy

Fencing projects are an investment that many farmers do not take lightly. Understanding basic principles of fencing can help a producer understand how fence their own property, or to understand the cost associated with hiring someone to do it for their farm.Due to the success of the Lincoln Trail Fencing School Grayson County hosted in 2019, there was still a large interest in a 2020 program, however due to COVID-19, there was no ability to host one safely. By 2021, restrictions eased, and the n

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