Apr
UMass Mini-Twilight Meetings for Vegetable Farmers
April 29th – 3:00 pm
This week’s topic: COVID-19 business relief programs and assistance
Learn about the Paycheck Protection Program, the Economic Injury Disaster Loan Advance Payment Program, and the Farmers to Families Food Box Program. Information will be presented by the following people but there will be ample time for Q&A and discussion, so bring your questions.
Panelists:
- Tom Smiarowski, UMass Risk Management
- Ashley Randle, Deputy Commissioner, MDAR
- Michael Botelho, Produce Safety, Market Access and Certification Program Director, MDAR
- Ed Davidian, State Executive Director, USDA Farm Service Agency
- Brad Mitchell, Deputy Executive Director, Massachusetts Farm Bureau Federation
How to join: Click here to register and receive the sign-in information.
This is a call-in meeting for commercial vegetable growers that will be held every Wednesday at 3pm. Each week, we will have a topic lined up for demonstration and discussion, with a presentation of new information on crop, pest, and farm management topics, followed by plenty of time for Q&A about the topic at hand and farmer-to-farmer discussion of the issues of the week. Farmers can join by phone or by computer—those who join by computer will be able to see some shared photos and presentations. This is a new program that we hope will allow us to connect with growers while we are not able to physically visit farms for routine scouting and assistance. It is intended for commercial farmers and will cover topics relevant to small- and large-scale farm businesses and conventional and organic production systems.