Opinion: In Agriculture, Progress Never Sleeps

From Washington, to Tallahassee, to Tampa, and points in between, the past month-plus was a busy one for FFVA staff and volunteer leaders. Several growers and employer representatives from Florida attended the National Council of Agricultural Employers’ (NCAE) annual meeting in Washington, D.C., in late February. A critical part of the week was the opportunity to visit congressional offices. FFVA Director of Labor Relations Mike Carlton was part of the group, along with five grower representatives. They visited the offices of U.S. Reps. Tom Rooney, Dennis Ross, Sandy Adams, and Ted Deutch, as well as Sen. Marco Rubio, to discuss agricultural immigration issues and the problems associated with the H-2A program.

The goal of the meetings was to ensure that members of our congressional delegation remain fully aware of the devastating effect any E-Verify legislation would have on the industry and the economy of Florida. The group also made clear that any potential E-Verify legislation must be accompanied by reform of the guestworker program system if agriculture is to remain viable.

Hall Of Fame Recognition

Former FFVA board member and blueberry industry pioneer Gerald Mixon was inducted into the Florida Agricultural Hall of Fame during a banquet at the Florida State Fair in February. Mixon’s determination for growing blueberries helped him transform a small seven-acre patch of blueberries into a vertically-integrated, international conglomerate. He is credited with helping to increase Florida’s blueberry sales from approximately $2 million to more than $70 million from 1990 to 2009. An electrical engineer by trade, he founded SunnyRidge Farm Inc. in Winter Haven in 1992. The company, which was run by Mixon’s sons Keith, Jerry, and Greg after he retired, last year was sold to Dole Inc. To see a video biography of Mixon and the other three 2012 inductees, visit www.floridaaghalloffame.org.

Follow The Leaders

FFVA’s Executive Committee and its Emerging Leader Development Program (ELDP) class spent two days in Tallahassee meeting with lawmakers and state officials about issues of concern to producers. Herschel Vinyard, secretary of the Department of Environmental Protection, met with the group to talk about his agency’s priorities, which include improving water quality and streamlining permitting processes. The legislative meetings had a much different tone than last year, when the grower community was pushing back hard on several proposed immigration bills. This year, executive committee and ELDP members thanked lawmakers for their continued work helping Florida agriculture and urged their support of several ag-related bills making their way through the Legislature. Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam and Assistant Commissioner Mike Joyner met with the group at dinner, where Putnam discussed the Department of Agriculture’s school nutrition program.

Covering The Waterfront

Several members of the Southwest Florida Water Management District (SWFWMD) governing board and staff got a firsthand look at district funding at work in February during a tour that FFVA helped to organize. The tour showcased several initiatives, including the FARMS and MiniFARMS programs, the Mobile Irrigation Lab, the Agricultural Ground and Surface Water Management program, and the Automatic Meter Reading Pilot Project. MiniFARMS and FARMS programs provide cost-share dollars to growers for water conservation and water quality improvement projects.

“The tour accomplished its goal of showing the district how cost-share funding is being used to reduce impacts to natural resources and improve efficiencies for growers,” said Kerry Kates, FFVA’s director of water and natural resources. “It was important to communicate to the new board and staff members just how effective, successful, and vital these cost-share programs are and to tangibly demonstrate their positive impacts to both agriculture and the environment.”