Extension Employee News

Agribusiness – Team Highlight

Posted on by Donna Bowen

Helping Farmers Access New Markets to Sell Local Food During COVID-19 Crisis
As market demand shifted away from wholesale restaurant and institution accounts due to the impact of COVID-19 restrictions, some South Carolina farmers had to quickly change the way they have traditionally sold their products in order to sustain their farm businesses. The Clemson Extension Agribusiness Team has helped to facilitate these market transitions by:

  • Creating a curated website of COVID-19 agribusiness resources.
  • Developing a rapid response resource guide to help farmers quickly identify, develop, and deploy web-based strategies to sell their farm products direct to consumers during the COVID-19 crisis and beyond.
  • Facilitating the development of new market infrastructure and platforms, including The Catawba Fresh Market, an online farmers market serving farmers in Chester, Fairfield, Lancaster, Union, and York Counties. Since this market platform allows customers to purchase local products virtually and then pick them up safely from pre-determined sites, sales have increased over 200% since the start of the COVID-19 restrictions. This growth in farmer revenue has helped to offset losses incurred in other traditional markets while providing consumers with a safe outlet to buy local, fresh products.
  • Collaborating with the Livestock and Forage Team on a publication titled COVID-19 Impacts on Cattle Markets.


Helping Farmers and Agribusinesses Affected by COVID-19 Crisis Understand How to Access Federal Loans and Grants Made Available by the CARES Act

COVID-19 outbreaks and social distancing restrictions have put the brakes on the U.S. and South Carolina’s economy and disrupted the food supply chain for various commodities, food, and food/fiber products. The U.S. Congress passed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES) or phase III of the federal stimulus package that provides direct payments to individuals of up to $1,200, extended unemployment benefits, and federal loan guarantees. In addition, the $2.2 trillion CARES Act has several provisions offering support for U.S. farmers and agribusiness delivered through the Small Business Administration (SBA) and USDA. With many questions and much uncertainty about the benefits and new loan/grant programs, the Agribusiness Team responded quickly by:

  • Providing in-service training on the CARES Act and SBA loan programs for producers and agribusinesses affected by COVID-19.
  • Developing Agribusiness Resources for COVID-19 website with links to publications and web resources including national and state disaster and COVID-19 websites, federal loan, and grant opportunities during the crisis, direct marketing for local foods, farmer stress and mental health, labor, and policy and taxes.

Developing Land-Grant Press and Timely Articles in Response to COVID-19 and CARES Act 

Collaborating with Horticulture, Agronomy, and Livestock and Forage Teams on Farmer Response to COVID-19

  • Formed Hort and Agribusiness Team Agent pairings to help farmers looking at new markets
  • Collaborating with LFT on planning and revisions of cow-calf enterprise budget

Impacts

  • Made 9,993 Contacts through Phone Calls, Emails, Newsletters, Online Meetings, and Workshops since Mid-March
  • Included an 8-week in-service training series on FINPACK farm analysis software

 

Submitted by: Dr. Nathan Smith, Agribusiness Program Team Leader & Ben Boyles, Senior Agribusiness Extension Agent

 

Posted in AgriBusiness, Team SpotlightTagged