Agriculture Steering Committee members see need for 'Farming 101' courses

The pool of skilled farm labor has dwindled to the point that high schools and community colleges need to include introductory courses to farming, according to members of the NCACC Agriculture Steering Committee, which met Jan. 23 in Raleigh.

"It's come to the point where we need to have classes to teach students how to run a farm," said Dan Hunsucker, a Catawba County commissioner. "They don't know one end of the cow from the other. I'd love to hire them, but I don't have the time to teach them, or the money to fix the things they break."

Dr. Ed Jones of N.C. Cooperative Extension said he would take the suggestion back to his group for discussion of possible initiatives.

The discussion came following a presentation by North Carolina Rural Economic Development Center representatives, who reviewed "hot" issues that the Center's Agricultural Advancement Consortium is working on.

Drought and water allocation continue to be hot topics for North Carolina's agriculture industry – particularly in the mountains and Piedmont regions of the state, where as of Feb. 3, 10 counties suffered from Severe Drought, and 18 were dealing with Moderate Drought conditions, according to the N.C. Drought Management Advisory Council.

Billy Guillet, director of the Agricultural Advancement Consortium, reported that the Rural Center worked to help secure $6 million in grant funding from the N.C. Tobacco Trust Fund Commission for a cost-share program for farmers recovering from the drought. Farmers submitted $30 million in requests for pasture renovation, drilling/redrilling of wells, pond construction and renovation, conversion of closed lagoons to freshwater ponds, and/or upgrading existing irrigation systems.

While grants cover 75 percent of the cost of certain projects, the irrigation systems cost-share is 60-40. Hunsucker noted that coming up with the other 40 percent isn't possible for a large number of farmers.

"Just surviving was the critical piece coming out of the drought," said Billy Ray Hall, Rural Center president.

Grant funding is being administered through the state's 96 local soil and water conservation districts.

The Consortium also recently completed a study and made recommendations on developing the state's equine industry. The study involved between 60 and 70 equine industry leaders.

Nationally, the equine industry accounts for more than $100 billion annually, and North Carolina ranks eighth among states in number of horses.

"People come in and spend a ton of money on those shows, and it's a good way to bring dollars into those communities," said Guillet.

The study seeks to identify how to best protect the state's existing equine assets and where investments can be made to stimulate growth. The Rural Center is to present a report on the study to the General Assembly early during this session.

Committee members also heard from Paula Gupton Page, legislative director for the N.C. Farm Bureau, on federal immigration policy and the H2A Program.