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HomeNewsArchivesV.I. Department of Agriculture Continues ‘No Pound Left Behind Campaign’

V.I. Department of Agriculture Continues ‘No Pound Left Behind Campaign’

The Department of Agriculture will continue its No Pound Left Behind Campaign.The purpose of the campaign is to help farmers improve their record keeping practices and to generate territory-wide agri-business production and sales data. The two new record-keeping training seminars are scheduled for the following dates:
· St. Croix: Tuesday, Nov. 23, UVI Research and Extension Center from 6-8 p.m.
· St. Thomas: Monday, Nov 29, UVI Small Business Development Center, from 6-8 p.m.
Farmers will be taught how to use Agriculture’s Harvest Report and Income Schedule to record production and sales value data from their agri-business operations. The V.I. Sustainable Farming Act (Act No. 6836) requires that all licensed farmers (crop, livestock, poultry, apiculture, nursery plants, etc.) submit their commodity production records and number of employees to the office of the Commissioner of Agriculture by June 30 of each year.
The information collectedwill be used to:
· Analyze trends in agricultural development.
· Keep restaurants and supermarkets up to date with the type and quantity of crop and meat products produced in the U.S.V.I.
· Quantify the agri-business industry’s contributions to U.S.V.I. gross domestic product figures.
· Assist in data-driven strategic planning, budgeting, and the development of relevant policy and programs for the expansion of the agricultural industry.
· Report the value of our local specialty crop industry to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which may result in increased grant funding from the Specialty Crop Block Grant.
Updated Harvest Report and Income Schedule forms will be available as of 8 a.m. on Thursday, Nov.18, at the VIDOA’s offices on each island and online at www.vifresh.com under the forms and documents link. Data collection forms may also be faxed to clients upon request. Completed forms may be hand delivered or faxed to any VIDOA office. Forms may also be e-mailed to audrey.browne@doa.vi.gov.
For additional information regarding the campaign, contact Daniel Stanley, VIDOA marketing director, at 778-0997/8 ext. 256.

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