El Agricultor Latino
Farmworker to Farm Owner
Center for Latino Farmers - Yakima, WA
NASS/CBO’s Partnerships Mtg to
Increase Ag Count
2014
Inside This Issue
USDA-NASS Conf
1
County Elections
1
Coop Dev
1
USDA-NRCS News 1
FSA Microloans
1
Fin Mfg Series
2
Comp Classes
2
2014 Harvest
2
Record Crops
2
Compensation
2
BFRDP Dir Mtg
2
RMA Director
3
Specialty Crops
3
New Association
3
Workshops
3
2015 Farms Conf
3
Lopez Farms
4
General Voting
4
FSA Loan Rates
4
KDNA Program
4
Vocabulary
4
Vegetable Marketing Coop Development
Luz Bazan Gutierrez was one of over 55 representatives from community based organizations (CBO) that
were invited to attend a NASS partnership meeting on
9/2-4/14 in Kansas City, KS. The
purpose was to
strengthen partnerships with CBO by reaching out &
informing the members about the importance of the
Census of Ag by presenting results.
Joe Reilly, NASS Administrator, said…there is
not a single approach that works with all groups or regions of the country…so work needs to be collaboratively with each organization to develop strategies that
will help promote the census to their constituents.
Hubert Hamer, national statistician, provided the welcome and set the tone for the meeting. NASS staff presented the statistics that had been released in regard of
growth of farm operators, and the how farm operators
for most SDA’s had increased. The relationship of
NASS with NASDA was clarified in that they association receives a cooperative agreement (contract) to administer and hire enumerators to do the AG Census.
Only 7 (14.5%) of the 55 CBO reps present were
Latino/Hispanic, yet the Ag census shows the biggest
growth of farm operators are Hispanic. The financial
support currently provided to CBO’s does not match the
increase in the numbers. Some recommendations made
were: More cooperation between universities, in particular extension serv, in support of CBO’s as partners,
and that NASDA needs to sub contract directly with
CBO’s to allow them to hire enumerators to get the
work done right with appropriate training. No formal
report on the meeting has
been released.
Carolyn Parker, Director Office of Outreach,
spoke about the value of
Radice, NASS Dir of Outreach & Diversity;
CBO’s in their work in Michelle
Luz Bazan Gutierrez, RCDR CEO; Hubert Hamer,
Chair,
NASS Ag Statistics Bd; Heladio Zavala,
the field, & support of MAFO CEO;
Lydia Villanueva, Dir Casa del Llano
their efforts.
County Committee Elections-Producers to vote!
LAA #1
Nach es
Tieton
Selah
Yakima
Moxee
Union G ap
W apato
Harrah
Toppenish
USDA Microloans Increased to $50,000
In USDA’s effort to improve access to farm
loans to help more beginning & family farmers, it is
raising the borrowing limit for the microloan program from $35,000 to $50,000 effective 11/7/14.
The microloan process is less cumbersome in regard to paperwork & processing the loan for approval can take less time.
Lilia McFarland, Coor for Beginning Farmers
& Ranchers in USDA spoke at the BFRDP annual
directors meeting & commented on this important
tool being offered by the new farm bill to increase
of microloan from $35K to $50K. She said that this
is one more avenue to provide more access to capital for new & beginning farmers.
EQUIP Deadline Nears!
In 2014, producers residing within the Local Administrative Area (LAA) #2
(Blue area in map below) will vote on who will be their representative. Only producers registered with FSA and that reside in that area can vote.
Nov 3 - Ballots mailed to producers
Dec 1 - Last day to return
ballots at FSA office
Current members: Elected: Brad BonnyChair, Mark Barrett, Vice Chair, & Steve
Isaac. Appointed Advisors: Carol Hull,
Sergio Marquez. New members take office 1/1/2015.
“We are ready to work as a group to get this
coop going, because we need to sell everything that
we grow,” said one of the farmers in attendance at
the second organizing meeting held in Granger on
10/14. Ten vegetable farmers were surveyed on
what they currently produce, & any additional acreage they have for production & what they want to
grow. They also felt strongly about the need for a
processing facility for properly washing vegetables
prior to selling & the need for a commercial kitchen
for processing unsold produce to add value to the
produce.
The meeting is set for 11/20/14 at Radio KDNA
in Granger. For more info or to be part of the coop
development, call Maria Giedra at 509-453-3157.
Zillah
LAA#2
Granger
Sunnys ide
Grandview
LAA#3
Ma bton
USDA-NRCS announces that the deadline to
sign up for Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) is November 21, 2014. If you are a
farmer and would like technical or financial assistance to improve your irrigation systems, manage
animal waste, improve the health of native plants or
reduce soil loss you may be eligible for the program to pay for half the costs of your conservation
efforts.
For more information of the programs , you can
contact your local NRCS office or the Center at
509-453-3157.
10 Farmers Complete FSA Borrower Training
The Center hosted a 20-hr Farm Financial Management
Series for new & beginning farmers/ranchers that included importance of credit reports, financial statements: profit & loss, balance
sheets, equity assessments. Each was also helped with setting up
manual filing system, learning how to prepare actual and projections on spreadsheets, as well as assisting those that wanted to set
up computerized accounting systems.
All class series were taught in Spanish with English translations available in a take home manual. Hector Franco, MBA, provided the training and was assisted by Maria Giedra, Center staff
and Crispin Garza an FSA employee. Ten farmers received a Certificate of Completion for the training which is sanctioned training
for FSA loan approvals for new and beginning farmers and ranchers.
Those receiving certificates were Ruben Diaz, Santos &
Zenaida Guadarrama, Jose Mendoza, Custodio Olivera, Maria
Ramirez, Avelino Santos, Abel Sedano and Luis/Maria Silva.
Beginning Farmers/Ranchers
Directors’ Mtg Baltimore
The annual meeting for about 45 project directors
themed “Sailing Ahead” was hosted by Univ of Maryland Ext on
9/23 thru 9/25/14 in Baltimore, Md. CEO Luz Bazan Gutierrez
was on a panel reporting on the success of the grant for assisting
Latino/Hispanic immigrant beginning farmers/ranchers in WA
State. Jill Auburn & Denis Ebodaghe, National Program Leaders
for the USDA/NIFA did the welcome & provided program
agenda.
The highlight of the trip were the farm tours to Gorman
Farm an organic farm that grows fruits & vegetables for a CSA
program & farm stand, Big City Farms who use vacant lots &
blighted urban land to produce organic vegetables & Calvert family owned certified organic farms.
Ms. Auburn reported that
over 200 proposals were received
for 2015 RFP, yet less money was
available than previous years. Review panels had scored all & those
selected would receive notifications
soon. She also reported that the
2016 RFP was being formalized.
Several of the CBO’s present questioned the disparity in funding for
CBO’s in that many felt was directly related to the make up of
panels. Ms. Gutierrez said, “This
has been the constant bone of contention for decades. the review
Jill Auburn, USDA Nat Prog Leader; Luz Bazan
Gutierrez, RCDR CEO; Denis Ebodaghe, USDA Nat
process.”
Prog Leader; Ed Gomez, Professor NMSU
Needed!!! Technology Savvy Farmers
Two 20-hour series “Computer-Tools
for Success" will be hosted by the Center,
one in Yakima on November 3, 4,5, 6,
2014 Yakima, and second one in Wenatchee on November 17, 18, 19, 20. The
series will be conducted in the evenings to
accommodate the end of harvest.
The training will enhance basic computers skills, us of internet
for information/research, web browsing, to access USDA programs. Pre-registration is required & is limited to 15 persons.
Please call 509-453-3157 to sign up.
Lots of Apples - Record Harvest
Apple growers forecasted a record crop and they were not disappointed! The commission aims to export 60 million boxes of
apples, a 50% jump from its previous high of 40 million in 2012.
The state sends apples to more than 60 countries.
They are ready to compete with full crops from Michigan &
New York, & the import bans in China & Russia have left fewer
overseas markets. “We’ve got a lot of apples…we are looking for
new home,” said Steve Smith, general manager of Yakima Fresh,
a fruit marketing firm.
The WA Apple Commission contracted marketing representatives from Middle East & countries like Columbia & England &
brought them to the Yakima Valley to receive a six day crash
course tour of the state’s orchards & packing houses so they can
witness the changes that are taking place in the industry. (Yakima
Herald 10/14/14)
Harvest plentiful for 2014
A Yakima-based tree fruit growing and packing company
turned to the federal H-2A program because it had so much trouble finding workers. “It still wasn’t enough.” The state’s labor
shortage is well-documented and seems to be getting worse, according to industry experts. The topic frequently comes up during
conventions and association meetings, while homemade signs that
reads “necesitamos trabajadores” (we need workers) dot the
Yakima Valley’s county roads during harvest. The high yield of
apples created a lot of work and a high demand for workers, and provided for better
wages throughout the state. “Ahora si nos
necesitan y estan pagando bien,”said a
farmworker. (Now (farmers) need us, & we
are getting paid good wages).
USDA Discrimination Claims Resolution Process
A tad bit of news. One local claimant shared a letter he received
on 9/25/14 about his claim that said: 1) All claims, including this
one had been adjudicated 2) Claim administrators & USDA are
currently in the process of reviewing all the adjudicated claims for
quality control & auditing purposes 3) Work will take additional
time for quality control & auditing purposes 4) Within 2 months
from now tier (1) claimants will be notified 5) Successful claims
will be paid within 45 days 6) Checks will be mailed 45 days after
the decision letter goes out 7) Few tier (2) claims filed 8) Tier (2)
& tier 1(b) will get decision letter about a month before tier 1(a)
Please call 1-888-508-4429 if you submitted a claim & make sure
that you give them your name, address and phone number once
again to make sure they have the correct information. If you filed
a claim and received any updated correspondence, please contact
the Center.
WSDA Received $4.2 Million Specialty Crops
Thiel Appointed RMA Regional Director
The WA State Dept of Ag (WSDA) was approved by
USDA for a $4.2 million in specialty crops grant funding for projects that will support the fruit, vegetable and
horticulture growers. The awards for individual projects
range from $20,000 to $250,000 and will go to commodity commissions, agricultural associations, and nonprofit organizations.
WA State is the third largest producer of specialty
crops in the U.S. behind California & Florida.
Specialty crops are defined as fruits, vegetables, tree
nuts, dried fruits, horticulture, and nursery crops, including floriculture.
Ben Thiel has been appointed as the new RMA director of
RMA Spokane Regional office. Mr. Thiel will oversee all aspects of the federal crop insurance program for Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, and
WA, and work closely with growers,
grower groups, other USDA agencies,
community based organizations, and
approved insurance providers.
The Center looks forward to working closely in partnership with the new
director in providing tech assistance for
accessing crop insurance for Latino Ben Thiel, RMA Director of Spokane
Regional Office (Courtesy of RMA)
farmers/ranchers in WA State.
USDA Programs Have $$$$ for Farmers!
DeVaney Heads New Tree Fruit Industry Group
November 12, 2014 10:00 a.m. to 12 noon
- FSA Microloan Program Increased to $50,000
- RD Energy Efficiency Program (REAP) Grants
options for saving energy for farm/business
Register by calling 509-453-3157
Jon DeVaney was named president of a newly formed
Yakima Valley Growers Asso that brings together the functions of WA St Hort Asso, Wenatchee Valley Traffic Asso, WA
Growers Clearing House Asso & Yakima Valley GrowersShippers Asso. He said the merger was driven by the desire to
create less duplication of effort & better utilize industry resources.
Mr. DeVaney said, “It’s very exciting & a huge honor. This
merger is something that the industry has talked about for a long
time. There are a lot of people who have been skeptical over a
lot of years about the ability to do this, so there’ll be a lot of
attention on how well we perform over the next few months.”
For more information, call 509-452-8555.
SAVE THE DATE!
Small Farms Conference
Friday - February 6, 2015
7:30 am - 4:00pm
Yakima Convention Center
To be a sponsor, get a booth, or be a presenter call
the Center at 509-453-3157
Center for Latino Farmers
P.O. Box 9492
Yakima, WA 98909
509-453-3157
www.centerforlatinofarmers.com
BE PROUD! Exercise your American Citizen Privilege and Voice your
opinion with your "VOTE” November 4, 2014. You cannot complain if
you do not cast your vote!
Mil Gracias Lopez Farms ! ! !
The Center works with great
farmers that appreciate the work
that is done on their behalf. Victoria & Jorge Lopez were called
early one morning about providing a freshly picked box of
honey crisp apples for some legislators in Olympia. By noon he
had the box ready for us to pick
up. They are a model family
owned farm operated in the Tieton area. The Lopez have 53 acres of a variety of applies including Honey Crisp, Red Delicious, Golden,
Gala, and Braeburn, Gracias!
FSA Loan Rates-Effective as of October 1, 2014
Program
Interest Rates
Farm Operating-Direct
2.125%
Farm Ownership-Direct
3.625%
Farm Ownership-Direct, Joint Financing
2.50%
Farm Ownership-Down Payment
1.50%
Emergency Loan-Amount of Actual Loss
3.125%
Conservation Loan
3.625%
Monthly Radio Program
Month
Oct
Nov
Dec
Day
Thurs 16
Thurs 20
Thurs 18
Time
4 - 5 p.m.
Word of the Day
Socially Disadvantaged Farmer/Rancher: A group whose members
have been subject to racial ethnic prejudice because of their identity
as members of a group, without regard to their individual qualities.
These groups consist of American Indians, or Alaskan Natives,
Asians, Blacks or African American, Native Hawaiians or other Pacific Islanders, Hispanics & or Veterans.
“This project was supported by the Beginning Farmer & Rancher Dev Program of the National Institute of Food & Agriculture, USDA, Grant # 2012-49400-19670. To find more
resources and programs for beginning farmers and ranchers please visit www.Start2Farm.gov, a component of the Beginning Farmer & Rancher Development Program