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.

• “Steve Troxler outlines recovery plan in State of Agriculture address,” News 14: State Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler outlined his plans to rebound from a disappointing year at his State of Agriculture address Thursday. It was part of the seventh annual Agricultural Development Forum at the N.C. State Fairgrounds. …

• “First lady promotes healthy food in California,” Charlotte Observer: First lady Michelle Obama on Wednesday said the campaign to bring healthy food to all Americans is happening neighborhood by neighborhood. …

• “Chapel Hill Creamery wins grant,” Durham Herald-Sun: The owners of the Chapel Hill Creamery, a dairy farm where the milk of about 30 Jersey cows is used to make up to seven different cheeses sold locally, want to see their farm mature. The farm’s owners said Monday that they got a grant to help them do just that. …

• “Hydroponic lettuce is the crop that doesn’t stop,” News & Observer: Bearing in mind that leafy greens and I become somewhat estranged during the protein-, fat- and carb-laden stretch between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day, I cleverly scheduled a visit to Endless Summer Harvest for the end of December. The Purcellville, Va., farm produces picture-perfect hydroponic lettuces and salad greens year-round and sells them to chefs, specialty grocery stores and farmers market customers, even through winter. …

• “Local farmers use grant money to diversify, expand,” Hendersonville Times-News: In the world of agriculture, sometimes a little can go a long way. That’s what owners of three area farms are hoping for after receiving $6,000 grants through the annual WNC AgOptions program. About two dozen farms and three farms groups in the mountains were awarded a total of $150,000 in grants to expand and diversify their operations and increase profitability. …

• “New Got to Be NC Chef Competition Start[ed] Tuesday,” Locally Grown News: If you’ve ever wanted to be a judge on reality cooking shows such as “Iron Chef,” then you won’t want to miss the first-ever Got to Be NC Competition Dining Series. …

• “Catch summit focuses on online tools,” Jacksonville Daily News: North Carolina Sea Grant and Saltwater Connections are hosting the Local Catch Summit next month in Morehead City. The Feb. 22 meeting is designed to help community-based catch groups develop ways to use online tools to educate the public about the importance of local seafood to the local economy and in their diets. …

February 3rd, 2012 By: Paul Jones | Tags: Ag Development Forum, Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler, Chapel Hill Creamery, Charlotte Observer, Durham Herald-Sun, Got to Be NC Competition Dining Series, healthy food, Hendersonville Times News, hydroponic lettuce, Jacksonville Daily News, Local Catch Summit, Locally Grown News, Michelle Obama, Morehead City, nc seafood, News 14, Raleigh News & Observer, WNC AgOptions | Category: Field Notes | Leave a comment

WRAL reporter Brian Shrader and our own Lisa Prince feature seasonal recipes in their Got to Be Good Cookin’ segment using ingredients grown and available right here in North Carolina.

This recipe may be named after a college team, but it’s good enough to go pro and would make a great addition to your Super Bowl party this weekend. To make a Wolf Pack Special, simply brown a pound of hot sausage and a pound of hamburger in a skillet. After draining the grease, add a pound of cubed Velveeta cheese and stir with the meat until melted. Finally, serve the mixture between sliced dinner rolls.

Lisa says these are perfect for tailgating or trips because the prepared sandwiches can be placed back into the dinner-roll packaging to travel. They’re also easy to reheat once you get to your destination.

How about you? Do you have a go-to tailgating recipe? We’d love to hear from you. Share your recipe in the comments section below.

February 2nd, 2012 By: Paul Jones | Tags: brian shrader, Got to Be Good Cookin', Lisa Prince, Local Dish, pork recipes, tailgating recipes, Wolf Pack Specials, WRAL | Category: Field Notes, In the Kitchen, Local Dish | Leave a comment

A fire management specialist with N.C. Forest Service uses a drip torch during a prescribed burn of Hemlock Bluffs Nature Preserve in Cary Jan. 30.

Monday, the N.C. Forest Service set a portion of the Hemlock Bluffs Nature Preserve in Cary on fire. The prescribed burn was the result of nearly two years of planning by local, county and state officials to rejuvenate the urban forest and prevent any unplanned wildfires from being able to spread to nearby homes.

North Carolina is located in a fire-dependent ecosystem, meaning many of our plants and animals need periodic fires to thrive. Historically, these wildfires were caused by lightning strikes or other natural occurrences. Now, prescribed burns are carefully planned out by the N.C. Forest Service. The burns not only reduce competition between native plants, but also release seeds and add vital nutrients to the soil that benefit species.

Employees with the N.C. Forest Service, State Parks and Recreation and the Town of Cary worked together to burn about an acre of the 158-acre park. The burn was the first at the center with more planned in the future.

In the video below, nature program specialist Mark Johns explains the benefits of a prescribed burn and why it is needed at Hemlock Bluffs:

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You also can find more information about other fire control and prevention tactics used by the N.C. Forest Service on our website.

February 1st, 2012 By: Paul Jones | Tags: Cary, Hemlock Bluffs Nature Preserve, Mark Johns, N.C. Forest Service, prescribed burns, Wake County | Category: Field Notes | Leave a comment

Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler sits down each week with Southern Farm Network’s Rhonda Garrison to discuss “Today’s Topic.”

This week, Commissioner Troxler and Rhonda discuss cost-share assistance available to farmers to help them develop and conserve water resources.

The Soil and Water Conservation Commission has allocated $340,000 to the Agricultural Water Resources Assistance Program to support the construction of new farm ponds. These cost-share monies are available statewide through a competitive application process. Farmers should submit applications to their local soil and water conservation district. The deadline is Feb. 10.

The commission also approved an additional $510,000 that was requested by 69 local districts to help farmers convert existing irrigation systems to more water-efficient systems, or to install or expand water supplies. These cost-share funds may be used for conservation irrigation conversions, installing micro-irrigation systems, making agricultural pond repairs or retrofits, removing sediment from agricultural ponds, and putting in wells. Farmers should submit applications to their local district. Contact your district office for more details.

Water availability is one of the biggest challenges facing farmers in North Carolina, Troxler says. Making these funds available will help farmers maintain their crops in an environmentally sound manner.

Click below to listen to Commissioner Troxler and Rhonda discuss this topic.

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Southern Farm Network is a division of Curtis Media Group.

January 31st, 2012 By: Brian Long | Tags: Agricultural Water Resources Assistance Program, Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler, irrigation, N.C. Soil and Water Conservation Commission, ponds, Rhonda Garrison, Southern Farm Network, Today's Topic | Category: Today's Topic on Southern Farm Network | Leave a comment

If you’ve ever wanted to be a judge on reality cooking shows such as “Iron Chef,” then you won’t want to miss the first-ever Got to Be NC Competition Dining Series. Sixty-four North Carolina chefs will compete against each other in weekly competitions, as diners help decide who will be named the grand champion. The contest kicks off with Fire on the Rock in Blowing Rock Tuesday, Jan. 31.

The department was a sponsor of the original Fire on the Rock held in 2005. This year, the department is helping the local event expand to include Fire on the Dock in Wilmington, Fire in the Triangle in Raleigh and Fire in the Triad in Greensboro and Winston-Salem.

“The concept fits in well with our established programs,” NCDA&CS marketing specialist Tim Parrish said. “It’s a great way to showcase fresh local product and the chefs that prepare it.”

Each region will host a single-elimination bracket series featuring 16 area chefs, and each round will be held at a neutral restaurant. Two chefs will compete in each round and prepare a six-course meal using a secret locally grown ingredient revealed to them by the department less than an hour before the competition. Diners, culinary experts and celebrity judges will determine which chef advances to the next round of competition.

Winners from each region not only receive recognition and bragging rights, but they also will receive $2,000 and a custom red chef jacket. The four regional winners will face off in a grand finale in October.

The Got to Be NC Dining Competition is sponsored by the N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Pate-Dawson and Southern Foods. You can purchase your tickets for Fire on the Rock and find more details about the other regional contests at www.competitiondining.com.

January 30th, 2012 By: Paul Jones | Tags: cooking contest, Fire in the Triad, Fire on the Dock, Fire on the Rock, Got to Be NC Competition Dining Series, local food, Tim Parrish | Category: Field Notes | Comments Off

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.

• “Sierra Nevada brewery will bring tourism, big economic bump to Western North Carolina,” Asheville Citizen-Times: Look for an economic boost and increase in tourism in Western North Carolina from Sierra Nevada’s new East Coast expansion brewery in Henderson County, local officials and economic developers said Wednesday. …

• “Dispute over drug in feed limiting US meat exports,” MSNBC: A drug used to keep pigs lean and boost their growth is jeopardizing the nation’s exports of what once was known as “the other white meat.”  The drug, ractopamine hydrochloride, is fed to pigs and other animals right up until slaughter and minute traces have been found in meat. …

• “Community lobbies to save FSA office,” Warren Record: A proposal to consider closing the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Farm Service Agency office here drew an overflow crowd to a meeting at the Armory Civic Center on Tuesday afternoon. It was hosted by the North Carolina Farm Service Agency (FSA) in order to receive public comments on a merger with the FSA office in neighboring Vance County. …

• “Three charged in poaching of rare Venus Flytrap plants,” WRAL: The Venus Flytrap, a rare carnivorous plant that only grows in southeastern North Carolina and northeastern South Carolina, had three Brunswick County people facing charges Tuesday. …

• “Forest Service to conduct prescribed burn on Bearpen Mountain,” Hendersonville Times-News: The USDA Forest Service will conduct a 1,200-acre prescribed burn in the Bearpen Mountain area of the Pisgah Ranger District, Pisgah National Forest, in February or March 2012. The Forest Service will implement the burn to reduce woody debris in the forest, which will help prevent catastrophic wildfires. …

• “Durham scientists study plants for biofuel production,” News & Observer: These days, downtown Durham is better known for its burgeoning cuisine scene and modernized, reclaimed spaces than its long history with cash crops. The storied days of tobacco curing in the city’s brick factories have been replaced with technology research that could, scientists say, bolster the biofuel industry while creating stronger crops. …

• “Local agriculture in the balance: A tale of two counties,” Charlotte Observer: Working on a study of local food for UNC Charlotte’s Urban Institute, journalist and graduate researcher Josh McCann has plowed up some troubling facts about our region’s ability to feed itself. …

January 27th, 2012 By: Paul Jones | Tags: Asheville Citizen Times, biofuel, Charlotte Observer, farmland preservation, FSA, Hendersonville Times News, MSNBC, Raleigh News & Observer, Sierra Nevada, USDA Forest Service, Venus flytrap, warren record, WRAL | Category: News, News Roundup | Leave a comment

WRAL reporter Brian Shrader and our own Lisa Prince feature seasonal recipes in their Got to Be Good Cookin’ segment using ingredients grown and available right here in North Carolina.

This week, Brian and Lisa prepare another award-winning N.C. pork recipe. Domino Ireland won first place for this bacon roll-up recipe in the House-Autry Mills cooking contest at the 2011 N.C. State Fair. To make this tasty appetizer, start by combining cream cheese, shredded chicken, bacon and spices together. Then, spoon the cream cheese mixture into 6-inch warmed tortilla shells. Roll each shell and freeze for at least an hour. Once the wraps have set, dip one side in a buttermilk and egg mixture and coat that side with House-Autry Mills Hot Breader. Next, dip the battered side into bacon crumbles and deep fry until golden brown.

If you’re having a Super Bowl party next weekend, Lisa says you can prepare and freeze these roll ups ahead of time. Once your guest arrive, you can deep fry them as needed.

Do you have an appetizer recipe that is a big hit at your house? Let us know. Share your recipe in the comments section below.

January 26th, 2012 By: Paul Jones | Tags: breaded cream cheese bacon roll-ups, Briand Shrader, Got to Be Good Cookin', House Autry, Lisa Prince, Local Dish, N.C. State Fair, recipes, Specialty Cooking Contests, WRAL | Category: Field Notes, In the Kitchen, Local Dish | Leave a comment

NCDA&CS marketing specialist Heather Barnes won the Young Farmers & Ranchers Discussion Meet at the American Farm Bureau Federation's 93rd annual meeting in Honolulu.

As you might expect, the department is full of employees who have a strong passion for agriculture. NCDA&CS marketing specialist Heather Barnes’ passion paid off recently as she took first place in the Young Farmers & Ranchers Discussion Meet held in Honolulu earlier this year. Barnes will receive a 2012 Chevrolet Silverado and free registration to the 2012 Young Farmers & Ranchers Leadership Conference in Grand Rapids, Mich., for her first-place finish.

The Young Farmers and Ranchers program provides men and women, ages 18-35, with opportunities for leadership development and exposure to current issues in agriculture. The program is sponsored locally by North Carolina Farm Bureau and nationally by the American Farm Bureau Federation.

While participating with the Young Farmers and Ranchers program is a personal pursuit for Barnes and her husband, she said her work with the department helped her in the discussion meet, which is designed to simulate a committee meeting on various agricultural topics. Her work with the N.C. Farm to School program was particularly useful during  a discussion about agriculture’s role in addressing health and obesity issues.

“I could really talk about the efforts going on to fight childhood obesity in the schools,” Barnes said. “Because I worked with child nutrition directors, I knew a lot about the challenges they face.”

She also used her knowledge working with organic farmers across the state, as well as lessons learned on her husband’s farm in Wilson County. Her personal connection with agriculture set her a part from the other 39 competitors from across the country.

Barnes is not the only NCDA&CS employee to excel in the Young Farmers and Ranchers program. Last year, Mountain Research Station superintendent Kaleb Rathbone won first place at the statewide discussion meet. Rathbone was ineligible to participate in the discussion meet again this year, but he did receive the Excellence in Agriculture Award for his work at the research station.

Barnes has agreed to help coach Mt. Olive College’s collegiate discussion team. Moreover, she will continuing showing her passion for agriculture through her work with the department.

January 25th, 2012 By: Paul Jones | Tags: American Farm Bureau, Discussion Meet, farm to school, Heather Barnes, NCDA&CS Marketing Division, North Carolina Farm Bureau, young farmers and ranchers | Category: Field Notes | Leave a comment

Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler sits down each week with Southern Farm Network’s Rhonda Garrison to discuss “Today’s Topic.”

This week, Commissioner Troxler and Rhonda discuss USDA’s 2011 crop summary for North Carolina, which was a mix of good and bad news.

Yields for corn, cotton and tobacco all took a beating because of weather and natural disasters in the eastern part of the state. On the other hand, peanuts and sweet potatoes had an excellent year, and the soybean crop was average.

Statewide, production of corn was down 10 percent, to 68.5 million bushels. The yield was 84 bushels an acre, a seven-bushel drop from 2010.

The cotton yield was 630 pounds an acre, a 25 percent drop from 2010. Overall, production was up 10 percent, but that’s because farmers harvested 800,000 acres in 2011, compared with 545,000 acres in 2010.

Flue-cured tobacco averaged 1,550 pounds per acre, which was 550 pounds less than in 2010.

Now for the good news. The yield for sweet potatoes in 2011 matched a record of 200 hundredweight per acre, which was set in 2009. And total production of 9.72 million hundredweight set a new record. Farmers harvested 64,000 acres, up 10,000 acres from 2010.

The average yield for peanuts increased 900 pounds last year, to 3,600 pounds per acre. That’s a strong yield, and it helped boost overall production by 26 percent, even though farmers harvested 25,000 fewer acres than in 2010.

Soybeans had an average year, yielding 30 bushels an acre. Still, that was an increase over 2010.

Click below to listen to Commissioner Troxler and Rhonda discuss this topic.

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Southern Farm Network is a division of Curtis Media Group.

January 24th, 2012 By: Brian Long | Tags: 2011 crop summary, Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler, corn, cotton, Hurricane Irene, peanuts, Rhonda Garrison, Southern Farm Network, soybeans, tobacco, USDA | Category: Today's Topic on Southern Farm Network | Leave a comment