Inspired by Annie’s: Farm Stress and Wellness Webinars Summer 2021

The Inspired by Annie's: Farm Stress and Wellness event aims to address stress resiliency of farmers and ranchers in Louisiana. Understanding stress and its nature, factors influencing stress on the farm and the consequences of farm stress is key for a handing stress.

The webinars will cover a variety of topics, from identifying behavioral health, and to how to incorporate stress-reducing techniques into your day, to nutrition and wellness. These efforts are supported by La NRCS.

The webinar schedule is as follows:

• Thursday, May 13 at 1 p.m. CDT
  "Understanding and Improving the Behavioral Health and Resilience of Farmers" by Dr. Michael R. Rosmann
  Registration link: https://bit.ly/3tilbfV
  Nearly everyone engaged in farming has experienced significant distress during recent years from uncertain markets for their farm products, dealing with weather extremes, COVID-19 and more. How people involved in agriculture manage stress is one of the few factors over which they have some control. This webinar aims to help farmers, farm workers and their families recognize often subtle signs of stress and to understand why farmers often avoid seeking assistance even when needed.
  
• Tuesday, May 25 at 1 p.m. CDT
  “Finding Meaning in the Active Lifestyle of Farming: A Practical Approach in Physical Activity among Farmers” by Dr. Maria Kosma
  Registration link: https://bit.ly/3vFE8NB
  In this webinar, the presenter, Dr. Kosma, will challenge the dominant view of physical activity, whereby the emphasis is on achieving certain outcomes (e.g., number of daily steps taken, energy expenditure, amount of weight lifted, and daily exercise minutes). Instead, she will outline a practical approach in physical activity and public health, whereby farmers can rejoice an active and meaningful lifestyle via farming as an end in itself and not as a means to an end.
  
• Tuesday, June 15 at 1 p.m. CDT
  The Mediterranean Diet: Making Small Changes for a Healthier Lifestyle” by Dr. Elizabeth Gollub
  Registration link: https://bit.ly/2RlDGVW
  This presentation will provide an overview of the Mediterranean diet, its influence on markers of health (e.g., blood pressure, blood sugar, body weight), and how to adopt key aspects of the Mediterranean Diet in a way that works for you.

Sessions are open to farmers, family members, extension agents-- and anyone who wants to learn more about to cope the stresses of farming. 

 

Annie's Project is a national program dedicated to providing educational programs designed to strengthen women's role in their farming operations. 

Registration for the webinars is free. Webinars will be held via Teams (no account, or camera needed).

For more information, contact Maria Bampasidou—State Coordinator at 225-578-2367, mbampasidou@agcenter.lsu.edu. Interested in our program? Please visit LSU AgCenter Annie's Project and at the National website www.AnniesProject.org.

Contact for article: Maria Bampasidou—State Coordinator; mbampasidou@agcenter.lsu.edu; 225-578-2367.

Webinar: America's Diverse Family Farms, 2020 Edition

Date: Friday, December 11, 2020

Time: 1:00 PM ET 

Duration: 1 hour

Host(s): Christine Whitt, Economist, Economic Research Service, USDA

Description:

In this webinar, ERS Economist Christine Whitt presents findings from America's Diverse Family Farms, 2020 Edition. This report describes in detail the different types of farms in the United States to better understand conditions across the Nation's diverse farm sector.

View the 2019 Edition of America's Diverse Family Farms here. The 2020 Edition of the report will be published on December 10.

USDA Webinar: Farm Income and Financial Forecasts, September 2020 Update

 Date: Wednesday, September 02, 2020

Time: 1:00 PM EST 

Duration: 1 hour

Host(s): Carrie Litkowski, Economist, Economic Research Service, USDA

Description:

USDA's Economic Research Service (ERS) releases Farm income statement and balance sheet estimates and forecasts three times a year, typically in February, August and November. These core statistical indicators provide guidance to policy makers, lenders, commodity organizations, farmers, and others interested in the financial status of the farm economy. ERS' farm income statistics also inform the computation of agriculture's contribution to the gross domestic product of the U.S. economy.

During this webinar, economist Carrie Litkowski presents the updated farm sector income and wealth forecast for calendar year 2020.

Streaming audio available through your computer.

Webinar: Regulation of Biotechnology in Livestock and Plants in Light of COVID-19

You are invited to a webinar sponsored by the ICABR and UC Berkeley on Regulation of Biotechnology in Livestock and Plants in Light of COVID-19. 

The date of the webinar is July 24th, 2020 at 8 AM PST. Registration is required and the link is  https://berkeley.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJMtdO6rqjgpGdMDP83B4fHeuNZUIS8Tb2aY 

The program is 

A webinar to be held on Zoom, Friday July 24 nd , 2020 8:00 AM-10:00 AM PST.
Part of the ICABR Annual Program
1. Introduction - Regulation of Biotechnology in light of COVID-19, David Zilberman, UC
Berkeley 10 Mins.
2. The potential of CRISPR in livestock, Alison Van Eenennaam, Professor of UC Davis 20 mins
3. The economic implications of banning CRISPR in livestock, Felipe Silva, Professor of
Clemson University 10 mins
Carl Pray. Time for questions of the first 3 speakers -- 10 minutes (50 minutes)
4. Where we are with Golden Rice, Adrian Dubock, Golden Rice Humanitarian Board Member,
7 mins
5. The lessons from BT eggplant in Bangladesh, Ahsanuzzaman, University of Delaware 7 mins
6. On the approval of GM varieties in India, Ram Kaundinya, Senior Executive in the seed sector
of India 7 mins
7. On the state of GM maize seeds in China, William Deng, Senior Executive in the seed sector
of China 7 mins
8. Where is biotech going in Latin America - Martin Lema, Argentina 7 minutes
9. Carl Pray leads discussion 15 minutes

WEBINAR — E-Commerce During COVID-19: Opportunities for Food Producers to Make Direct Market Sales Online

More than 500 registered for a webinar hosted by the Council on Food, Agricultural and Resource Economics (C-FARE) and the Northeastern Agricultural and Resource Economics Association (NAREA) April 24, the most since the council began producing lunchtime webinars.

E-Commerce During COVID-19: Opportunities for Food Producers to Make Direct Market Sales Online was created and moderated by C-FARE board member, NAREA president and Rutgers University economist Gal Hochman. He was joined by three panelists:

• Jeffrey O’Hara of the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) outlined the resources USDA makes available for producers to develop e-commerce sales, the latest data and research, and examples of ways farmers have migrated online.
• Chyi Lyi “Kathleen” Liang, the W. K. Kellogg Distinguished Professor of Sustainable Agriculture and the director of the Center for Environmental Farming Systems at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, discussed various online platforms, the merits of using digital sales strategies, and sample innovative aggregated venues online.
• Gary Matteson, vice president for Young, Beginning, Small Farmer Programs and Outreach at the Farm Credit Council, emphasized the need for business planning with clear goals for inputs such as time and money, and clear expectations for sales and profitability when approaching new markets.

After the presentation, attendees asked for additional information on a number of organizations, trends and developments. Here are the questions followed by written responses from Jeffrey O’Hara (except where noted) with links:

Can you talk more about the different functions of a food hub? What topics do they typically cover? What kind of size of a metropolitan area is right for a Hub?

The Wallace Center produces a lot of good resources for Food Hub practitioners, and here’s a recent report. The Wallace Center and Michigan State University collaborate on a bi-annual survey of the food hub sector, and here’s the latest.

Haven’t states and localities struggled with building aggregation and distribution infrastructure to improve food system resilience? What can we do?

The Agricultural Marketing Service offers funding for this. View the local food promotion program and regional food system partnership RFA’s on the website.

We have offered door-to-door non-contact delivery of fruits and vegetables for three weeks. We are trying to get add-on products/ Do you have any suggestions on how we can “hook” non-fruits and vegetable producers to join our service? Also, what platform seems to be most effective in attracting customers? We have been successful using word of mouth.

Read the new report by the National Young Farmers Coalition. It discusses the pros and cons of various platforms.

Has the AMS considered stats for nuts (nut orchardists), grains and beans?

I used “fruit” as shorthand for fruit/nuts/berries. That is how USDA defines commodities in its surveys. Direct sales of grain farmers is modest, so I did not include that in my presentation. However, in the coming months we will be posting case studies on www.localfoodeconomics.com of how businesses are adapting to COVID-19 shutdowns. This will likely include commodities such as small-scale meat, grains, seafood and other such direct-to-consumer sellers.

What other creative collaborations have you seen [like] wineries partnering with farmer's markets or farmers?

I wonder if there are opportunities for farmers to partner with restaurants. Many local restaurants are now carrying groceries and other staples. Some would likely be willing to partner with farmers as a venue for farm products.

I [Kathleen Liang] will be presenting at two webinars April 27 and April 30 about innovative partnerships and collaborations. They’re hosted by the North Carolina Cooperative Extension's Local Food Program Team about innovative partnerships and collaborations, and to register, visit this sign-up.

• The first webinar from 7-8:30 p.m April 27 will highlight collaborative efforts of farmers that are not tied to a food hub.  Panelists will include representatives of Vacationer Supported Agriculture, Piedmont Progressive Farmers Group, and Carolina Common Enterprise.
• The second webinar from 7-8:30 p.m. April 30 will discuss food hub efforts to link consumers with local food. Panelists will include representatives of High County Food Hub, TRACTOR, Feast Down East, and Sandhills Farm to Table.

AAEA Interactive Webinar Coming Soon

AAEA acknowledges that these are very uncertain times for everyone, but particularly for those members entering the job market. The AAEA Mentoring Committee plans to organize an interactive webinar to discuss the situation our junior colleagues graduating this year, ending post-doctoral or visiting positions and planning to be on the job market may be facing. We would like to express our solidarity and offer to help answer questions, challenges and concerns they may have. The webinar will also facilitate a conversation between those on the job market and potential employers. We aim to bring potential employers in academic and non-academic institutions to provide their perspectives for the hiring opportunities in the Fall.
We expect to send a save the date announcement for this webinar next week.

Online Teaching Resources and Best Practices Webinar

In professionally challenging times, the AAEA is working to facilitate peer support for members who are transitioning to online teaching during the COVID-19 pandemic. On Friday, April 10 we are hosting an on-line teaching resources and best practices webinar on Zoom at this link: https://uwyo.zoom.us/j/687663320 The webinar is at 4 p.m. (Eastern Daylight Time), 3 p.m. (Central Daylight Time), 2 p.m. (Mountain Daylight Time), and 1 p.m. (Pacific Daylight Time). The webinar agenda includes an overview of the new AAEA Online Learning and Teaching Resources webpage; guest speaker webinar by Emilio Morales, PhD, University of New England, NSW, Australia; and panel discussion. The panelists include Simon Ringsmuth of Oklahoma State University’s Institute for Teaching and Learning Excellence, as well as the Teaching, Learning, and Communications Section leadership. The webinar is being organized by the AAEA Online Learning and Teaching Resources Task Force. Please be sure to join us! Please bring your questions for panelists when you do.

Evaluating Consumer Food Waste Reduction Interventions: Authors Share Their Recent Research Findings

Wednesday, April 1, 2020
2:30pm-5:30pm

Please register at go.osu.edu/reducefoodwaste (free event)

• Option 1: Attend via ZOOM: https://osu.zoom.us/j/236910029
• Option 2: Attend in person: Room 140, Pfahl Hall at the Blackwell Inn, 280 W Woodruff Ave, Columbus, OH 43210

The Webinar will be presented by local, national, and international researchers, followed by small group breakout sessions for the in person audience.

At 5:30pm, attendees will be invited to walk to Chemical & Biological Engineering and Chemistry (CBEC) Building, Room 130, 134-140 W Woodruff Ave, Columbus, OH 43210 for “Mitigating Food Waste: An Expert Panel Discussion.”
 
This panel will feature local and national leaders working to reduce food waste.

Registration is free due to generous funding by the Pollock Fund.

AGENDA

2:30	Welcome, Brian Roe, Ohio State
2:35	“Reduce Food Waste, Save Money”: Testing a Novel Intervention to Reduce Household Food Waste, Presenter: Paul van der Werf, AET Group Inc. & Western U. Organizer Synopsis: A rigorous evaluation of an intervention to reduce household food waste in London, Ontario.
2:50	Food Waste Reduction: A Test of Three Consumer Awareness Interventions Presenter: Virginia Maclaren, Dept. Geography & Planning, U. Toronto Organizer Synopsis: A rigorous evaluation of several household food waste reduction interventions, including an education intervention leveraging gamification.
3:05	Estimating Consumer-Level Food Loss Ratios Using Purchase and Consumption Data Presenter: Mary Muth, Director, Food, Nutrition, & Obesity Policy Research, RTI Int., Organizer Synopsis: Explores methods to construct the best food waste estimates out of existing USDA data sets that were not designed to measure food waste.
3:20	Healthy Planet, Healthy Youth: A Food Systems Education and Promotion Intervention to Improve Adolescent Diet Quality and Reduce Food Waste Presenter: Melissa Pflugh Prescott, Dept. of Food Science & Human Nutrition, U. Illinois Organizer Synopsis: A rigorous evaluation of a well-constructed, multi-phase, school-based intervention that targets both food waste and improved nutrition.
3:35	Impact of Plate Shape and Size on Individual Food Waste in a University Dining Hall setting.  Presenter: Brenna Ellison, Dept. of Agr. & Consumer Economics, U. Illinois Organizer Synopsis: An assessment of whether switching to oval plates can provide another nudge to reduce plate waste in food service settings.
3:50	The Effect of Sell-by Dates on Purchase Volume and Food Waste, Presenter: Yang Yu, Dept. of Agricultural Economics & Rural Sociology, Penn State Organizer Synopsis: The authors’ analysis leverages a date-labeling policy change in New York City to reveal the power of the package date on the amount of milk that is wasted by households.
4:05	The Likely Effects of Standardized Date Labeling Presenter: Brian Roe, Dept. of Agr., Env. & Development Economics, Ohio State U. Organizer Synopsis: An assessment of how changing date label phrases affected intended discard of a range of foods during in-lab and online product evaluations.
4:20	In-Person attendees: Transition to Discussion Groups
5:30	In- Person attendees: Walk to Chemical & Biological Engineering and Chemistry (CBEC) Building, Room 130, 134-140 W Woodruff Ave, Columbus, OH 43210
6:00	Mitigating Food Waste: An Expert Panel Discussion, featuring •             Kari Armbruster, Project Manager, Kroger Zero Hunger | Zero Waste •             Christy Cook, VP Customer Success, Leanpath •             Dave Daniel, Director of Food Resource Development, Mid-Ohio Food Bank •             TJ Kirby, President, OSU Food Recovery Network •             Lucy Schroder, Food Waste Point, Solid Waste Authority of Central Ohio •             Dr. Brian Roe, Leader, Ohio State Food Waste Collaborative