Monthly Archives: August 2015

Virginia Market Maker, Part III: Virginia Market Maker Offers Added Value to Registered Farms and Agribusinesses!

Posted on August 28, 2015 by Gordon Groover

Dr. Kimberly L. Morgan (klmorgan@vt.edu), Assistant Professor, Agricultural and Applied Economics, Virginia Tech

MarketMaker, a web-based portal that serves as a virtual marketplace for producers, distributors, and sellers, and buyers of agricultural products, seeks to provide farm-to-fork access to participants in the food supply chain.

Currently, alternative online lists and portals are offered that contribute to connecting people and businesses involved in the production, distribution, storage and sales of local food, and resources produced by Virginia farms and agribusinesses. This purpose of this article is to highlight the unique characteristics of MarketMaker that offer added value to registered businesses and consumers who seek to use the portal as a marketing strategy to improve overall profitability of their operation. Continue reading →

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AAEC Welcomes Travis Mountain as a new Extension Specialist

Posted on August 27, 2015 by Gordon Groover

Travis Mountain started work as an Extension Specialist and Assistant Professor of Financial and Economic Well-being in the AAEC Department in August 2015. He comes to Virginia Tech after completing his Ph.D. in Family Resource Management from The Ohio State University. He completed a M.S. in Consumer Behavior and Family Economics in 2008 and a B.S. degree in Consumer Science with a concentration in Personal Finance in 2004, both degrees from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Continue reading →

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AAEC Welcomes Olga Isengildina-Massa

Posted on August 27, 2015 by Gordon Groover

Olga Isengildina started work in the AAEC Department in August 2015 as an Associate Professor of Agricultural and Applied Economics. She comes to Virginia Tech from the University of Texas at Arlington. Prior to her position in Texas she held both an Assistant and Associate Professor positions at Clemson University (2006 to 2013). She completed her Ph.D. in Agricultural Economics in 2000 with a minor in Finance and received a M.S. in Agricultural Economics in 1996, both from Mississippi State University. She completed a B.A. in English Philology from Tashkent State University in 1993. Since completing her Ph.D., she has conducted research and taught courses in Texas, South Carolina, Illinois, Mississippi, and Georgia. Continue reading →

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Selling Directly to Buyers: How to Price Your Products

Posted on August 24, 2015 by Gordon Groover

Dr. Theresa Nartea (tnartea@vsu.edu), Assistant Professor-Marketing & Agribusiness, Virginia State

Dr. Kimberly L. Morgan (klmorgan@vt.edu), Assistant Professor, Agricultural and Applied Economics, Virginia Tech

Did you know farmers who sell unprocessed foods to retail outlets typically receive just 11.6 cents of each dollar that the buyer pays for the item? The remaining amount is allocated to industry groups such as food processors, packaging and transportation, retail trade, food services, energy, finance and insurance and legal services (Fig. 1). These industry groups are important participants in the food supply chain, and allow individual farmers and consumers to focus efficient use of their time and resources on their careers. Continue reading →

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Two Virginia regions selected for Stronger Economies Together initiative

Posted on August 18, 2015 by Gordon Groover

Martha Walker (walker53@vt.edu), Community Viability Specialist, Agricultural Law, Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics, Virginia Tech.set

U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development and Virginia Cooperative Extension have announced that two Virginia regions were selected for the 2015-16 Stronger Economies Together (SET) initiative. The Eastern Shore, consisting of Accomack and Northampton counties and Tangier Island, and the Mount Rogers Planning District, made up of Bland, Carroll, Grayson, Smyth, Washington, and Wythe counties and the cities of Bristol and Galax, will benefit from a focused initiative to explore regional economic advantages and to formulate economic blueprints for the regions. Continue reading →

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Dairy-Margin Protection Program (MPP)

Posted on August 10, 2015 by Gordon Groover

Jeremy Daubert jdaubert@vt.edu, Rockingham County Dairy Extension Agent

It is time again to consider signing up for the Dairy-Margin Protection Program (MPP). This year’s election period runs through September 30th for the 2016 production year. Every farm that enrolled for 2015 will need to re-enroll before the deadline. You may enroll at a different coverage level than you did the previous year or at the same level. The chart below shows the premiums at each coverage level. The premium is per cwt (100 lbs of milk shipped) and is in addition to the $100 fee. Continue reading →

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Virginia Tech Income Tax School

Posted on August 7, 2015 by Gordon Groover

By L. Leon Geyer (geyer@vt.edu), Professor, Agricultural Law, Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics, Virginia Tech

 This year we offer three seminars: 1) Introductory Tax Preparation 2) General Income Tax and 3) CPA Ethics.

1. Introductory Tax Preparation Seminar

Two 1-day seminars offered as live instruction. These seminars are designed for those who wish to prepare tax returns and will focus on IRS form 1040. It is designed for those who are new to taxes, or those who simply seek a refresher course. Those interested can attend in Roanoke on Jan. 4th or Richmond on Jan. 5th. Please refer to www.tax.vt.edu for more information. Continue reading →

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Rose Jeter Accepts a New Challenge

Posted on August 7, 2015 by Gordon Groover

Gordon E. Groover, Extension Economist, Farm Management, Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics, Virginia Tech

In August 2015, Rose Jeter will take a new position as Agriculture Marketing Coordinator with Riverside Research. Riverside Research is a non-profit company that owns the National Food MarketMaker portal https://foodmarketmaker.com/ which Virginia just recently joined as the 21st member state. In her new position she will be responsible for providing leadership in developing marketing, education, and research related programs and project that increases value to its members. Since Virginia is one of those members we will continue to benefit from her excellent work and leadership, we’ll just have to share her skills with 20 other states. Continue reading →

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Virginia Market Maker and VT Kohl Centre students win 2015 Farm Credit National Market Maker Innovation Award

Posted on August 7, 2015 by Gordon Groover

Dr. Kim Morgan, Assistant Professor and Kohl Junior Faculty Fellow

Virginia Market Maker, a web-based portal that serves as a virtual marketplace for producers, distributors, and sellers, and buyers of agricultural products, seeks to provide farm-to-fork access to participants in the food supply chain. Continue reading →

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Virginia Market Maker, Part II: Featured Virginia Agribusiness on Virginia Market Maker!

Posted on August 7, 2015 by Gordon Groover

Dr. Kim Morgan, Assistant Professor and Kohl Junior Faculty Fellow

Market Maker, a web-based portal that serves as a virtual marketplace for producers, distributors, and sellers, and buyers of agricultural products, seeks to provide farm-to-fork access to participants in the food supply chain.va-MarketMakerLogo-rgb Continue reading →

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