Each week we round up the latest N.C. agricultural headlines from news outlets across the state and country, as well as excerpts from the stories. Click on the links to go straight to the full story.
- “New State Veterinarian Named for North Carolina,” Southern Farm Network: Dr. Douglas Meckes of Apex, NC, has been named the new state veterinarian replacing Dr. David Marshall who retired in August. Dr. Meckes comes to NCDA from the US Department of Homeland Security. Dr. Meckes received his undergraduate degree and Doctor of Veterinary Medicine from Auburn University. He spent 30 years in private practice in Apex on both large and small animals before making a move to Washington, D.C., to serve as a congressional fellow for Sen. Chuck Hagel. Meckes will oversee the 130-employee Veterinary Division, which includes four sections: Animal Health Programs, Poultry Health Programs, Animal Welfare and the Diagnostic Laboratory System. Meckes’ first day on the job was Monday. …
- “Money from dirt: NC soil lab uses fee to help spread the load,” News & Observer: The state Department of Agriculture established a new fee last year aimed as much at altering behavior as at raising money for the state. It appears to have worked. Since the 1940s, North Carolina farmers and gardeners have been sending soil samples to a state lab in Raleigh for testing to determine if and where to add lime and fertilizer. Until last fall, the tests were free year-around. …
- “NC State Plant Science Research Complex working toward a 2020 opening,” Southeast Farm Press: If all goes as planned, by the year 2020 students at North Carolina State University will be working alongside leading researchers in the plant sciences in a first-of-its-kind facility on NC State’s Centennial Campus in Raleigh. The North Carolina Plant Sciences Initiative is a brand new way of approaching the plant sciences because it will be interdisciplinary, where researchers across disciplines, from soil scientists to plant breeders to engineers to biochemists to economists, will work together in a collaborative way. …
- “Protecting farmland topic of workshop,” Burlington Times-News: Protecting local agricultural lands is the subject of a workshop Wednesday in Greensboro. The workshop is among six the N.C. Agricultural Development and Farmland Preservation Trust Fund is holding across the state in cooperation with the state office of the USDA Natural Resource Conservation Service. The workshops are highly recommended for all past, present or potential recipients of federal and/or state grants associated with farmland preservation. County governments and nonprofits pursuing farmland preservation projects have until Dec. 19 to apply for the grants. …
- “Ag Summary: Peak Season for Soil Samples Closing In,” Southern Farm Network: Now that November is here, we are in the short rows of free soil sampling through the North Carolina Department of Agriculture’s Agronomics Lab. Peak season for soil testing begins on November 26th, and runs through March 31st, 2015. During this period samples are $4 each. To avoid the fee, soil samples have to be on the loading dock by 6:00 pm on Tuesday, November 25th. To obtain a soil sampling kit, visit your local extension office, or contact your area agronomist. Soil sampling through NCDA’s agronomics lab is available for all North Carolina landowners and homeowners. …
- “Bertie County company takes peanuts worldwide,” The Washington Times: A dented and charred popcorn popper sitting on the crowded top shelf of the main office of Powell & Stokes farm supply is something of a shrine. The late Jack Powell Sr. began about 40 years ago soaking large peanuts in boiling water, then frying them in oil in the popper. The peanuts blistered into a tasty, crunchy snack. He offered samples to farmers coming to the shop.”People said they were so good, ‘Why don’t you sell them?’ ” said Jack Sr.’s grandson, Jonathan Powell III. So they did. …
- “Locals show livestock during sale,” Jacksonville Daily News: A Carteret County teen and an Onslow County teen showed champion livestock during this year’s state fair. The junior livestock grand and reserve grand champion steers, barrows, lambs, goats and turkeys were recently auctioned in the Sale of Champions during the N.C. State Fair. The reserve grand champion barrow was shown by Travis Cox, 8, of Richlands. Hog Slat Inc. and Neese’s Country Sausage purchased the barrow for $8,000. The reserve grand champion steer was shown by Madison Boyd, 13, of Pinetown (Beaufort). Harris Teeter purchased the steer for $17,200. …
- “The Veggie Wagon Expands Culinary Offerings,” Wilmington Business Journal: What began as little more than a roadside stand with fresh produce brought in from a handful of farms in Columbus County has grown into a full-scale farm-to-table enterprise. Max and April Sussman set out five years ago to help bring local produce to residents and visitors on Pleasure Island. Today, as owners of Veggie Wagon, they’re not only providing locally grown produce in their store as well as through their weekly delivery service, but they’ve created a whole line of products around what’s available here in eastern North Carolina. “There was really a lack of access here on the island to produce grown within our region,” Max Sussman said. …
- “For these N.C. farm owners, making cheese is just kid stuff,” Washington Post: The burgeoning local food movement usually seeks to bring the farm to the table. But the Goat Lady Dairy brings the table to the farm. Several times a month, for most of the year, the North Carolina dairy opens its barn doors to about 50 people who register in advance for a $60-per-person “dining adventure”: a five-course, locally inspired meal showcasing the dairy’s multiple varieties of goat cheese. We signed up partly for the food and partly for the goats, and neither disappointed. …