2021 Small Farmers Conference Conference Agenda

Conference Agenda

2021 Small Farmers Conference

27-28 s e p t e m b e r2 0 2 1

2021Small FarmersConference

04 - Agenda

13 - Keynote Speaker

14 - Luncheon Speaker

15 - SFC Planning Committee

16 - Sponsors

Registration will be open each day.

COVID-19 Precautions and Policies will be set in place. We ask that everyone please wear your masks!

Visit our exciting array of vendors and exhibitors.

Small Farm Families in a Time of Dynamic Change

Advancing and Transforming

Small Farmers Conference: Advancing and Transforming | 3

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 27

4 | Small Farmers Conference: Advancing and Transforming

PRESIDING Michael TrusclairUSDA 1890 Program Liaison

Alcorn State University

Agricultural LeadersUSDA Panel & Mississippi Department of Agriculture “American Debt Relief Plan”

• Natural Resource Conservation Service Mr. Kurt Readus State Conservationist

• SDFR Policy Research Center Ms. Eloris D. Speight Executive Director

• Mississippi Department of Agriculture Mrs. Susan Lawrence

Marketing Specialist MDAC

• Risk Management Agency Mr. Roddric Bell Director

• Farm Service Agency Mr. Ross Loftin

Executive Director Lee/Itawamba County FSA

• Rural Development Mr. Douglas Simons

Acting State Director

PRE-CONFERENCE10:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Cherry/Dogwood


• National Center for Appropriate Technology Mr. Rockiell Woods

Legislative Updates Rep. Ricky Thompson16th District, Lee & Monroe County

Mississippi House of Representatives

Closing Remarks Mr. Michael Trusclair USDA 1890 Program Liaison Alcorn State University GRAB & GO BOX LUNCH12:00 – 1:00 p.m.

GENERAL SESSION1:30 – 2:00 p.m.Cherry/Dogwood

PRESIDING: Mr. Kelvin King Agriculture Educator Alcorn State University Extension Program

Welcome Mrs. Nettie Davis City Council Ward 4, City of Tupelo, MS

Invocation Rev. Jeffery Daniel Pastor White Hill Missionary Baptist Church

Tupelo, MS

Greetings &Introductions Dr. Edmund R. Buckner Dean and Director of Land Grant Programs Alcorn State University


Dr. Felecia M. Nave 20th President Alcorn State University

Mr. Ben F. Burkett State Coordinator Mississippi Association of Cooperatives Mrs. Carolyn Jones Executive Director & Community Leader Mississippi Minority Farmers Alliance

Okolona, MS

Introduction of Speaker Mr. Kurt ReadusState Conservationist

USDA Natural Resource Conservation Service

Keynote Speaker Mr. Terry CosbyChief

USDA Natural Resource Conservation ServiceWashington, DC

Special Presentation and Recognition of Courage Mr. John Jones Mississippi Minority Farmers Alliance

Recognition of Veteran Farmers and Ranchers Tremell Sherman Mississippi Association of Cooperatives

BREAK

2:00 – 2:30 p.m.

ANGELA ROCHELLE CLARKE-SHERMANChristian Faith Missionary Baptist Church, Starkville, MS


EDUCATIONAL PRESENTATIONS:

Presentation 1:The PROMISE InitiativeMississippi State University Extension Service PReventing Opioid Misuse In the SouthEast: PROMISE Initiative team is working to address farm stress and promote prevention strategies that individuals especially small farmers can do on their own to prevent opioid misuse.Dr. Mary Robertson & Dr. David Buys, Mississippi State University Extension Service

Presentation 2:New Beginning, Farmers, Ranchers, and Veter-ans Program at Alcorn State UniversityThis session is for farmers, ranchers and veterans who have not operated a farm for more than 10 years. The participants will receive pertinent agribusiness information on how to succeed in starting/ improving their current farm or ranch. Information will be provided on receiving free education, mentoring, and technical assistance for the next three years.Dr. Elizabeth Myles, Associate Director, MS Small Farm & Agribusiness Center

Presentation 3:Organic Vegetables: The CSA Way!Native Son Farm, in Tupelo, Mississippi, is a twenty-acre, multi-location farm run by Will and Amanda Reed. Breaking ground on a 3/4-acre garden in 2010, Will and Amanda began farming with the intention of building a community based around a naturally grown farm. Native Sons Farm is Certified Naturally Grown. This certification

2:45 – 3:15 p.m.

3:15 – 3:45 p.m.

3:45 – 4:15 p.m.


ensures that your produce is grown with out the use of synthetic herbicides, pesticides, fertilizers, or genetically modified organisms. Native Sons Farm is committed to growing produce that is safe and healthy for you and your family.Mr. William Reed, Native Sons Farm, Tupelo, MS

Presentation 4:Mississippi Minority Cannabis AssociationThe Mississippi Minority Cannabis Association’s goal is to create equal access for cannabis busi-nesses and promote economic empowerment for communities of color by creating policy con-siderations, social programming, and outreach initiatives to achieve equity for the communities most affected by the war on drugs. Mr. Cedric Anderson, MMCA, Hattiesburg, MS

Announcements and Overview of Day Two Activities

4:15 – 4:45 p.m.

4:45 – 5:00 p.m.

NETWORKING RECEPTION & SOCIAL MIXER6:30 – 8:30 p.m.

BancorpSouth Social Room

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 28


GRAB & GO BREAKFAST

Registration

PRESIDING Mr. John ColemanFarm Manager

Mound Bayou Research Farm & Technology CenterAlcorn State University Extension Program

Opening Remarks & Greetings

EDUCATIONAL PRESENTATIONS

Presentation 1Mississippi Department of Agriculture & Commerce: Good Agriculture Practices/ Good Handling PracticesGood Agricultural Practices (GAP) and Good Handling Practices (GHP) audits are voluntary

GENERAL SESSION8:30 – 11:00 a.m.Cherry/Dogwood

WOMEN IN BUSINESS SESSION9:00 – 11:00 a.m.Magnolia & Oak

AGRICULTURE AND SMALL FARM FAMILIES SESSION8:30 – 11:00 a.m.Cherry/Dogwood

7:30 a.m.

8:30 a.m.


independent audits of produce suppliers throughout the production and supply chain. GAP/GHP audits focus on best agricultural practices to verify that fruits and vegetables are produced, packed, handled, and stored in the safest manner possible to minimize risks of microbial food safety hazards.Ms. Vivian Purvis, Inspector, USDA Fruits and Vegetable, MS Department of Agriculture & Commerce

Presentation 2Federation of Southern Cooperatives/ Land Assistance Fund Regional Community Forestry Initiatives: Managing Our Forests, Developing a System & Creating a LegacyRegional Community Forest Initiative (RCFI) will be used to identify rural and urban limited resource, small, and undeserved forest landowners and forested communities all over the South to provide education, technical assistance and support to them individually and collectively as a Regional Community Forest in order to convert these identified forests into productive lands that provide income, create wealth, capture carbon and have a positive impact on our environment. Mr. Freddie Davis, Director, Rural Training and Research CenterMr. Corey Bacon & Mr. Darren Beacham, Foresters, Rural Training and Research Center

Presentation 3Alcorn State University: Precision AgricultureThis session will introduce beginning farmers and ranchers to the concepts, innovations and


latest technology dealing with agriculture. This particular section will give a brief overview how drones can improve the overall farming experience, which can include gathering and sharing information about your farm, data collection, problem solving, pictures, videos, and real time data streaming using drones. Mr. Azali Muhammad, Agriculture Research/ Drone Director, Alcorn State University

Presentation 4Genuine Mississippi: Agricultural Product Marketing OpportunitiesGenuine MS is a state branding initiative developed by the Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce to identify and brand Mississippi products, as well as to increase public awareness of said products throughout the state and globally. The Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce created Genuine MS to make it easy for you to find products proudly created or produced by Mississippi farmers and entrepreneurs. Genuine MS shows our state pride and keeps our economy strong!Ms. Lane Milton, Mississippi Department of Agriculture & Commerce

BREAK

GENERAL SESSION11:30 a.m.

Sweetgum/Poplar/Elm/Mimosa


PRESIDING Mr. Kurt SpraginPresident

Lee County Cattleman’s Association

Blessing of the Food Mr. Tremell ShermanAgriculture Specialist

Mississippi Association of Cooperatives

Introduction of Speaker Ms. Emary SmithAgriculture Educator

Alcorn State University Extension Program

Luncheon Speaker Mr. Brandon PresleyNorthern District Commissioner

Mississippi Public Service Commission

Small Farmer of Year Award Presentation

Closing Remarks Mr. Gerald JonesSmall Farmers Conference Co-Chair

Alcorn State University Extension Program

Mr. Ben F. BurkettState Coordinator

Mississippi Association of Cooperatives Dr. Franklin Chukwuma

Associate Director for ExtensionAlcorn State University Extension


KEYNOTE SPEAKER

NRCS Chief Terry Cosby began his career with the agency in 1979 as a student trainee in Iowa. Terry’s roots on the land run deep. Raised on a cotton farm with his eight siblings in Tallahatchie County, Mississippi, his love for the land began at an early age. The farm, now in his family for three generations, was purchased by his great-grandfather in the late 1800s.

Over Terry’s 42 years with the agency, he has served in numerous capacities. Prior to serving as NRCS Chief, he was the Ohio State Conservationist for 16 years. He has served in numerous leadership capacities over the years including leadership positions at NRCS National Headquarters in Washington, D.C., in Iowa as an Area Resource Conservationist, in Missouri as an Assistant State Conservationist for Field Operations and Idaho as a Deputy State Conservationist.

One of Terry’s proudest achievements is the instrumental role he played in establishing the Ohio Interagency Forestry Team and in the formation of its governance model and business plan. Under his leadership, Ohio was the fi rst state to use Environmental Quality Incentive Program funds for forestry practices. Today, he leads the NRCS Hiring Strategy initiative which will shape, guide and solidify NRCS as the premiere technical service agency for USDA conservation.

Terry and his wife Brenda are the proud parents of four wonderful children (one of whom was lovingly “adopted”). Today he continues to hunt and fi sh as much as possible and greatly enjoys spending time with his seven young grandchildren.

Mr. Terry Cosby


LUNCHEON SPEAKER

Commissioner Brandon Presley was elected Public Service Commissioner for the Northern District of Mississippi in 2007, re-elected in 2011, 2015 and most recently in 2019 without opposition. Elected to the Public Service Commission at age 30, he was the youngest Commissioner ever elected in Mississippi. Prior to his election to the Public Service Commission, he served as Mayor of Nettleton from 2001 to 2007, having been elected at the age of 23, making him one of the youngest mayors in Mississippi history.

Commissioner Presley was elected in November 2019 to serve as the President of the National

Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC), which is composed of regulatory commissioners from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. He has also served as President of the Southeastern Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners, which is composed of Public Service Commissioners from the eleven (11) Southern States and Puerto Rico. He is a member of the board of directors of NARUC and serves on multiple NARUC boards and committees. He is co-vice chair of the NARUC Committee on Gas, a member of the Committee on Telecommunications and the International Relations Committee. He is a former member of the board of directors of the National Regulatory Research Institute (NNRI).

Commissioner Presley currently serves on the advisory committee for the New Mexico’s State University Center for Public Utilities and is serving his second term on the Electric Power Research Institute’s (EPRI) Advisory Council. He is also a member of the Financial Research Institute Advisory Board. He is a graduate of Harvard University’s Kennedy School program for State and Local Government Executives.

Commissioner Presley, 43, is a lifelong resident of Nettleton, where he is a member of the Enon Primitive Baptist Church. He is past-President and current member of the Nettleton Lions Club and is a member of the Nettleton Civitan Club.

Mr. Brandon Presley


2021 SMALL FARMERS CONFERENCE PLANNING COMMITTEE:

Joe Barnes

Calvin Broomfi eld

Maya Crooks

Raphael Dent

Savannah Hales

Gerald Jones

Caprice Mack

Dmitry Mylinikov

Ashton Norwood

Tremell Sherman

Gloria Sturdevant

Leslie Walker

Darnella Winston

EX-OFFICIO MEMBERS:

Ben F. Burkett

Dr. Edmund Buckner

Dr. Franklin Chukwuma


SMALL FARMERS CONFERENCE 2022Hattiesburg, MS

Documents

2021 Small Farmers Conference Conference Agenda