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June 18, 2020 By: Staff Report Tallahassee, Fla. — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the appointment of Chris Pettit, Director of the Office of Agricultural Water Policy at the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS), to the EPA’s Farm, Ranch, and Rural Communities Committee (FRRCC). “Thank you to Administrator…
Read More FDACS Water Policy Director Appointed to U.S. EPA Committee
June 15, 2020 By: Staff Report Setting prescribed fires in controlled settings can reduce the risk of wildfires burning out of control, as many Floridians witnessed during the state’s wildfire emergency in 2017. That’s why the Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) will be conducting…
Read More District Aims to Reduce Risk of Wildfires by Scheduling Prescribed Fires for Hillsborough County
June 11, 2020 By: Staff Report and Press Release Tallahassee, Fla. — Today, Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried held a press conference to announce the June 15 reopening of the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services’ Tallahassee regional licensing office. In addition to the reopening, the FDACS Division of Licensing online…
Read More Commissioner Nikki Fried Announces Reopening of Tallahassee Regional Office, Return of Online Concealed Weapons Licensing
June 4, 2020 By: Jim Frankowiak The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA) is hosting a series of webinars to help Ag producers and stakeholder groups learn about the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP). The series begins June 5 at 3 p.m.…
Read More USDA Hosting CFAP Webinars for Ag Producers and Stakeholder Groups
June 4, 2020 By: Staff Report The Southwest Florida Water Management District (District) is encouraging residents who irrigate their lawns to take advantage of the upcoming summer rainy season and “watch the weather, wait to water.” During the summer months of June, July, August and…
Read More Watch the Weather, Wait to Water
May 29, 2020 By: Jim Frankowiak The Florida Cabinet has approved funding that will help protect nearly 32,000 acres of Florida lands, including portions of Polk County’s Green Swamp, through the Florida Forever Program. Areas from the Panhandle’s Emerald Coast, North Florida’s springs country, to…
Read More Polk County’s Green Swamp Among 32,000 Acres Approved For Florida Forever Funds
May 29, 2020 By: Jim Frankowiak The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is providing up to $16 billion in direct payments to provide relief to Americans farmers and ranchers impacted by COVID-19. As part of a $19 billion Coronavirus Farm Assistance Program (CFAP), the…
Read More USDA Offers $16 Billion in Direct Assistance to Producers Impacted by COVID-19; Specialty Crops Included
May 21, 2020 By: Jim Frankowiak The Florida Fruit & Vegetable Association (FFVA) has added five new members to its board of directors and all are alumni of the FFVA Emerging Leader Development Program. The five are Josh Griffin, Food Safety Manager with Grimes Produce…
Read More FFVA Adds 5 New Board Members from the Emerging Leader Development Program
May 21, 2020 By: Jim Frankowiak The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), as part of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Farm Assistance Program, is providing up to $2.1 billion in direct payments to specialty crop producers. These payments will be based on losses where prices and market…
Read More USDA Offers Direct Assistance to Specialty Crop Growers Impacted by COVID-19
May 15, 2020 By: FWC While fishing continues to be a popular activity both in Florida and nationally, growth in the sport has not kept up with populationincreases. The USFWS reported there were 29,409,950 licensed anglers in the U.S. in 2016, with 1,513,696 being Florida…
Read More Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission- R3 Action Plan