Calling All GenNext Growers!
January 10, 2014 
When the GenNext Growers Initiative was launched in May, the editors of American/Western Fruit Grower, American Vegetable Grower, and Florida Grower sought to profile, educate, and motivate the next wave of men and women making an impact in the fruit, vegetable, and citrus industries.
Starting this year, we’re stepping up the GenNext Growers Initiative, signaling a focus on bringing content that applies not just to the next generation, but to everyone involved in the business of farming, with topics such as advocacy and public speaking, human resources, and succession planning. Everyone has a stake in the future of the produce industry!
The GenNext Growers Initiative is as much about discussing what goes on in the field as it is about what happens out of the field. Produce consumers desire a greater connection to farms and farmers. With this comes a need to be the face of your farm or orchard. In the launch of GenNext Growers, we polled the next generation of specialty crop growers on the topics that are of interest.
Among those topics of interest are:
- Public speaking
- Lessening the gap between farm and fork
- Educating the produce consumer
- Business and human resource management
- Understanding government regulations
Our plan is to make the GenNext Growers Initiative a national resource to recognize and foster the best practices of up-and-coming fruit, vegetable, and citrus growers. We will be a national, galvanizing voice for the regional young grower programs underway, with the end-goal of helping to make certain the long-term viability of the produce industry as the next generation takes over the reins.
Are you a GenNext Grower? Were you born after 1970? Are you preparing to assume, or already have assumed, leadership in a farming enterprise? Do you have a passion to produce high-quality fruits, vegetables, and citrus? Do you seek to be an advocate in your industry and beyond? Become a part of our growing community of the next generation of specialty crop growers. Drop me a line at [email protected] or click here to join the GenNext Growers Initiative.
What’s in it for you?
As a GenNext Grower you will get information you need to make your generation of farm leadership the best yet, targeted at you from this emerging community leading up to an in-person event or events.
In the next few months, we will be debuting the founding members of the Advisory Council of the GenNext Growers Initiative. This Advisory Council will help shape the professional development of the GenNext Grower community through focused content and educational opportunities. The Advisory Council will also share success stories and best practices so that all involved in the produce communities can benefit from the initiative.
Stay tuned for more in 2014.
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