SAES-422 Multistate Research Activity Accomplishments Report
Sections
Status: Approved
Basic Information
- Project No. and Title: OLD_SERA45 : Crop diversification opportunities to enhance the viability of small farms
- Period Covered: 10/01/2017 to 09/30/2018
- Date of Report: 11/30/2018
- Annual Meeting Dates: 10/05/2018 to 10/05/2018
Participants
Cassady, Christy (cgcass0@uky.edu) - University of Kentucky; Dugger, Troy (pdugger2@utk.edu) - Center for Profitable Agriculture, Tennessee; Jacobsen, Krista (krista.jacobsen@uky.edu) – University of Kentucky; Kleinhenz, Matt (kleinhenz.1@osu.edu) – Ohio State University; Nair, Ajay (nairajay@IASTATE.EDU) – Iowa State University; Oliver, Lesley (AA) (lesley.oliver@uky.edu) - University of Kentucky; Velandia, Margarita (Chair) (mvelandia@utk.edu) - University of Tennessee; Wolff, Brett (brett.wolff@uky.edu) - University of Kentucky; Woods, Tim (tim.woods@uky.edu) - University of Kentucky; Wszelaki, Annette (annettew@utk.edu) - University of Tennessee.
See attachment for detailed minutes and individual state reports.
Accomplishments
A website for this project was established in 2016 at http://www.uky.edu/ccd/sera45. The website was updated in October of 2017 to include a list of facilities and contacts at the participating universities, and in October of 2018 to include new participants.
Objective 1: developing research-based production information about crops and systems that have potential to be profitable for small farms
Accomplishments: The third year of an organic transition project was conducted in 2018 by Iowa State University (Ajay Nair) in collaboration with the University of Kentucky (Mark Williams). It investigated the effect of Protek net on winter squash and melon production. Protek nets are three to four times more expensive than typical row covers but have extended shelf life and reduce temperature stress under low tunnels. Based on results so far, Protek net systems are performing well providing insect protection and microclimate modification for enhanced growth, yield and quality in winter squash and muskmelon production systems.
Multiple participants in SERA 45, Krista Jacobsen and Tim Woods (Kentucky) and Annette Wszelaki (Tennessee) are currently involved in a Southern SARE-funded project, Cover Crops Under Cover: Evaluating Costs, Benefits, and Ecosystem Services of Cover Crops in Year-Round High Tunnel Production. A progress report is available at https://projects.sare.org/project-reports/ls16-272/.
In 2018, Extension Vegetable Specialist Rachel Rudolph (Kentucky) participated in radish variety trials along with Wszelaki and other researchers from states in the South that are part of the Southeast Vegetable Extension Workers Conference group. Seed companies donated radish seeds, and the trial involved South Carolina, Louisiana, Alabama and North Carolina in addition to Kentucky and Tennessee. Results varied significantly by state. The trials will include all types of radishes for spring production, and will involve both high tunnel and field production.
Objective 2: coordinating research and extension activities among participants
Accomplishments: The University of Kentucky’s Center for Crop Diversification (CCD) has promoted activities in the participating states through its website and/or monthly newsletter. These include research projects, webinars, conferences, field days and workshops.
SERA 45 participants from Ohio State, Purdue, Kentucky, Kentucky State, Tennessee and West Virginia have reviewed specialty crop and marketing fact sheets for the CCD.
Objective 3: expanding the activities of the Center for Crop Diversification to include price reports (farmers markets, produce auctions, farm to school, retail) from the participating states
Accomplishments: Participants from Indiana and Tennessee continued partnering with the Center for Crop Diversification at the University of Kentucky to provide price reports from farmers markets in their states. Illinois continued to provide price reports from a produce auction. The CCD continues coordinating price reporting from farmers markets and produce auctions around Kentucky, and the CCD website is used to host price reports from Kentucky, Tennessee and Illinois. Purdue developed a price reporting system in Indiana in 2017; the Indiana Farmers Market Price Report is available online at https://www.purdue.edu/hla/sites/hortbusiness/price-reports/. Price reports from Kentucky, Illinois and Tennessee, as well as a link to the Indiana price report, are available on the CCD website at http://www.uky.edu/ccd/pricereports. Tennessee has developed an app to facilitate reporting prices from farmers markets. Testing of the app will continue in 2019.
Woods (KY) has been working with Ariana Torres (IN), Brad Bergefurd (OH), and Kathryn Boys (NC/VA) on auction data analysis.
Objective 4: conducting research in the participating states on consumer preferences and marketing channels that are most effective and profitable for small farms
Accomplishments: Tennessee has a new project underway with Kentucky – Extending Roots of Fresh Stop Markets across the Southeast Region, which has been funded by Southern SARE, USDA-NIFA. The project will look at the economics of Fresh Stop Markets, which have had success in Kentucky, and the goal is to expand that success throughout the Southeast. From a social justice perspective, Fresh Stop Markets allow higher income families to subsidize lower income families buying fresh food. Work still needs to be done to make the program successful from an economic perspective.
Woods (Kentucky) is working with other researchers in Kentucky and Ohio to determine consumer preferences for local foods in various restaurant formats.
Plans for the coming year: The group plans to collaborate on an economic analysis across crops for high, midsize and low tunnels. This will include conducting research on sequential plantings in tunnels. The group also plans to conduct research on high tunnel economics. A high tunnel producer survey will be distributed regionally. Participants in Indiana, Kentucky and Iowa are interested in collaborating on biodegradable mulch. The group plans to submit a proposal for a multistate research project; possibilities include an SCRI proposal. There are plans to collaborate on an extension publication and a research publication on farmers market and produce auction prices. Participants also plan to collaborate to find a way to make price reports translate more readily into research publications. Tennessee’s Center for Profitable Agriculture (CPA) and the CCD plan to collaborate to develop a publication on how to translate prices into business decisions. As part of a Kentucky Specialty Crop Block Grant, the CCD will develop a system using Qualtrics to streamline the price reporting process in 2019.
Brett Wolff (Kentucky) will travel to participating states to shoot photos and video to share the activities of the SERA 45 participants with farmers and extension personnel in the participating states. Participants are encouraged to use Facebook live to share events held in their states.
Impacts
- Activities under Objective 1, such as the coordinated radish trial conducted this year, are resulting in the development of recommendations for management practices that will lead to profitable production of high quality produce in an environmentally sound manner. This project is expected to result in increasing incomes among small farmers in the region, enabling consumers seeking to increase their purchases of local foods to do so. A longer-term result would be an increase in the region’s capacity for producing and marketing produce, thereby reducing reliance on a few areas of concentrated production.
- Objective 2 activities allow for exchange of ideas and information among researchers and extension personnel in the participating states, and will result in publication of journal articles and regional fact sheets based on production and marketing research. Collaboration among participants in developing webinars and videos will help farmers throughout the region diversify their operations.
- Price information gathered from farmers markets, produce auctions, farm to school programs, and food retailers under Objective 3 will help farmers in the region determine how to price their products. Expanded price reporting resulting from this project will help fulfill the need for direct market prices for the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP).
- Objective 4’s research on consumer preferences and marketing channels will help farmers in the region determine the most appropriate channels for selling their products.
Publications
Journal Articles:
Holcomb, R.B., C.L. Neill, J. Lelekacs, M. Velandia, T.A. Woods, H.L. Goodwin, and R.L. Rainey. 2018. A Local Food System Glossary: A Rose by Any Other Name. Choices 33(3):1-8.
Rossi, J., J.E. Allen, T.A. Woods, and A.F. Davis. 2017. CSA Shareholder Food Lifestyle Behaviors: A Comparison Across Different Consumer Groups. Journal of Agriculture and Human Values 34(4):855-869. doi:10.1007/s10460-017-9779-7, http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10460-017-9779-7
Academic Presentations:
Bergefurd, Brad, Tim Woods, Martin Bechu, Alex Butler, and Brett Wolff. “Local Versus Regional Engagement in Ohio Valley Produce Auctions: A Price Analysis.” Paper presented at the Food Distribution Research Society Annual Conference, Honolulu, HI, October 20-24, 2017.
Extension Publications:
Midwest Fruit Pest Management Guide 2018 https://ag.purdue.edu/hla/Hort/Documents/ID-465.pdf
Midwest Vegetable Production Guide for Commercial Growers 2018 (ID-56). https://ag.purdue.edu/btny/midwest-vegetable-guide/Pages/default.aspx
Midwest Vegetable Trial Report for 2017. Published January 2018.https://ag.purdue.edu/hla/fruitveg/Pages/mvtr2017.aspx
Southeastern U.S. 2018 Vegetable Crop Handbook
https://extension.tennessee.edu/Giles/Documents/2017 Southeastern Vegetable Crop Handbook.pdf