The livestock industry is one of the most important agricultural activities in the Southeast. Over the years, educational efforts have focused on improved management practices to optimize forage and animal production to reduce production costs due to the fluctuations of input prices. In recent years, there has been increasing interest in sustainable production intensification on forage-livestock ecosystems aiming to reduce the environmental footprint of operations. Despite the popularity that terms such as ‘climate-smart practices’ have gained, research-based educational resources for Extension education, agricultural professionals and producers are still needed. In 2022, the United States Department of Agriculture announced the “Partnerships for climate-smart commodities” which funded over 140 projects and invested $3.1 billion. In collaboration with South Carolina State University, Clemson University was awarded $70 million for a project that addresses four agricultural commodities: forages for beef cattle, peanuts, forest and leafy greens. Over 150 livestock producers are enrolled statewide, and greenhouse gas measurements from soil and animals and soil sampling will be conducted. This pilot project provides an annual stipend for producers to implement selected improved management practices (incorporation of clovers, poultry litter and improved grazing management). In the first year, the project offered 15 official program training and outreach events, reaching over 600 forage and livestock producers through in-person events. Feedback provided by producers has allowed educators to adjust educational strategies and create additional resources to facilitate the understanding of concepts and facilitate and expand the adoption of improved management practices.
Material and Methods: In the first year of implementation of the project, a total of 15 official educational forage and livestock-based events were planned and delivered. These educational programming activities addressed specific content required and provided guidelines for implementation and management of practices by enrolled producers. The events were also open to the community and local producers could attend them to learn more about the content being delivered as well. Over 600 forage and livestock producers attended the in-person events which consisted of field days, workshops and trainings to producers and educators. As part of the activities promoted and delivered an in-service training was held for the Clemson University Cooperative Extension System Livestock and Forages team in March 2024. During this training, Extension agents learned more about the establishment, management, and nutrition of several forage systems and specific questions related to the climate-smart project were also addressed. Dr. Silva developed and delivered a demonstration guide for the Extension agents with detailed explanations about different demonstration activities they can integrate in their programs and explained the activities during the in-service training as well.
Results and discussion: Surveys were developed and applied to participants post-training. Over 70% of participants answered they would adopt management practices discussed during events in the next 12 months. Among the topics addressed, participants wanted further information and training on soil health, incorporation of legumes, and weed control on forage systems as the top three priority topics. This is aligned with the increasing interest in sustainable production intensification and incorporation of improved management practices by producers. Over the past years, consumer perceptions on how food is produced, and the industry’s carbon footprint has been growing, which has also enhanced the need to better understand sustainability and resilience strategies and technologies in order to be adopted into operations. All participants appreciated the combination of classroom concepts and content with outside, practical, and hands-on activities. This approach is essential to exemplify and consolidate main concepts and help participants to visualize some points by seeing plants, working with measuring tools, or seeing the impact of a certain management practice implemented in a system and being able to compare if with a “business as usual” area/field. The training events were held statewide and achieved a diverse group of participants with varying levels of experience in the forage and livestock industry. This was crucial to enhance the exchange of knowledge and practical experiences among participants, and promote networking and fellowship among them.
Written by
Liliane Silva, Forages Specialist
Partially extracted from the Conference Paper below:
- Silva, L., Miller, M.,Malcomson, H., vanVlake, R., Garcia,C., Vieira, L., Noble, R., Flynn, K, Kurz, C., Agudelo, P. Development of climate-smart educational efforts for forage and livestock producers in South Carolina. 2025 American Forage and Grassland Council Conference. Kissimmee, Florida.
