Arkansas Farm Bureau Podcast

This week, we wrap up Farm to School Month in Arkansas with a discussion about outstanding school gardens and we hear from Daniel Keisler about his custom beef and pork business, Circle K Angus. We also talk to 82-year-old farmer Ellis Bell of Forrest City, who founded a local non-profit for promoting science-based agriculture education, and catch up with Rick Bransford of Lonoke County about this year’s cotton crop.

This week, we visit the state livestock show in Little Rock and we learn about the production and use of mass timber in Arkansas. We also talk to about the farming life with Steve Morgan of Johnson County and growing organic with Shawn Peebles of Augusta.

This week, we visit with Lee County’s Nathan Reed, who gives us an update on this year’s cotton crop. We also learn about the critical issues on the ballot this Nov. 3 and why they matter for rural Arkansas and we check in with Terry and Robin Fisher, who were 2020 finalists for the U.S. Poultry & Egg Association Regional Family Farm Environmental Excellence Award.

This week, we hear from the leader of the firefighting team from the Arkansas Department of Agriculture’s Forestry Division that recently returned from helping to fight destructive West Coast blazes. We also learn about the Arkansas Food Conservancy’s work in Northwest Arkansas, get an update on this year’s peanut crop and hear from a farmer working to bring in his harvest before more rain arrives this weekend.

This week, we hear from Brittany Carwell of B&D Genetics in Cross County about the business’s major new move into the European market. We also get an update on the 2020 pecan crop from Chas Davis of Davis Pecan in Little River County and we spend a morning Hicks Family Farms near Cabot, as they work to follow COVID-19 safety guidelines in preparing their annual pumpkin patch and corn maze for visitors.

This week, we hear from a cattle producer and mother about youth livestock events during this unusual year, and Arkansas Farm Bureau Director of Policy Development and Legislative Research Jessica Clowser Burkham fills us in on CFAP 2, the recently announced second round of Coronavirus aid for U.S. farmers. We also have a special interview with Jason Brewer of Ritter Farms.

This week, we hear how some counties are holding limited or scaled-back livestock shows despite COVID-related fair and rodeo cancellations. We also learn about the Northwest Arkansas Land Trust and what it can do for farmers and we get important mental health tips for National Suicide Prevention Month.

This week, we talk National Honey Month with Jeremy Bemis of Bemis Honey Bee Farm. We get the latest on cotton from agronomist Bill Robertson and we hear about the challenges facing agritourism businesses in Arkansas during the COVID-19 pandemic.

This week, we talk to Sen. John Boozman after one of his recent farm visits this week, and we hear from Cooperative Extension Service expert Julia Fryer on produce safety issues after Hurricane Laura. We also catch up with the Benton County Farm Bureau Women’s Leadership Committee's Brenda Patton about the challenges her group has faced during COVID-19.

This week, weather takes center stage. We hear from a National Weather Service Senior Forecaster John Lewis, Ag Extension Rice Agronomist Jarrod Hardke and Sevier County livestock and poultry grower Bruce Jackson about how excessive winds and rainfall from Hurricane Laura could impact Arkansas agriculture. We also get some tips and information for Arkansas small meat and poultry processors interested in the state’s new $5 million grant program for expanding processing capacity.

This week, we learn about a potential $5 million grant to help Arkansas meat processors expand. We also talk Catfish Month in Arkansas with Chad Causey of Catfish Farmers of America, and we discuss the recent outbreak of VSV that’s hitting horses in the state.

This week, we learn about a new partnership involving the University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service and UAMS to help with COVID-19 testing in rural areas and we hear about more funding for rural broadband in the state. We also talk to Sara Gardner, who was recently named to the National 4-H Council’s Young Alumni Advisory Committee.

This week, we talk to the new, interim director of the Rice Research and Extension Center in Stuttgart, and we learn about new funding for research on improving management of crop burns. We also hear from University of Arkansas Professor Steven Ricke, who was recently honored for his work on poultry broilers and food safety and we get details on the Double Your Dollar farmers market program in Northwest Arkansas.

This week, we get an update on cotton from Extension Cotton Agronomist Bill Robertson; we learn about the latest research on blackberries, peaches and grapes; and we talk to Scott Bray from the State Plant Board about the mysterious seed packages some people have been receiving in the mail. We also hear from Dr. Nathan Slaton of the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station about the cancellation of the popular Arkansas Rice Expo event in Stuttgart.

This week, we learn about a major donation by the Anheuser-Busch Foundation to support the Arkansas Discovery Farms Project and we get the latest on the federal Paycheck Protection Program. We also talk to Altus Mayor Veronica Post about the cancellation of three agriculture-related festivals her community due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

This week, we talk about a new multi-million dollar infrastructure project at the Little Rock Port, learn the importance of written legal documents when leasing farmland, and hear the latest on LeadAR, the two-year leadership development program of the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture Cooperative Extension Service.

This week, we learn what the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak will mean for the 2020 Arkansas State Fair and we talk to a University of Arkansas professor about a recent grant to support technology research that could help the poultry industry. We also learn all about the Arkansas Youth Expo.

This week, we talk about the impact of the pandemic on Arkansas’s 4-H programs, and we get to know Dr. Bob Scott, the new director of the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture Cooperative Extension Service. We also hear from the man whose shoes he will have to fill, Dr. Rick Cartwright, who retired at the end of June. We also talk to horticulture research professor Elena Garcia about her recent retirement.

This week, we talk about Discovery Farms in Arkansas and dive into the issues facing the dairy industry. We also talk about China’s troubling reaction to COVID-19 infections at a Springdale poultry plant and learn about a deadly new virus strain in wild rabbits.

This week, we have an in-depth conversation with Arkansas Farm Bureau experts about efforts to establish a state meat inspection program in Arkansas and we chat with Cooperative Extension Service entomologists about summer insect pests Arkansas farmers will be facing.