3 Examples of How Cooperative Extension is Shaping the Future of Agriculture
On-farm biodiesel production, drone education, and new farmer training are just a few examples of cooperative extension’s important work.
Last time you went to the grocery store, did they have what you were looking for?
I’ll bet they did. Especially if you’re in the U.S.
We are so fortunate to have an incredible agricultural system that provides us with a safe, consistent, abundant, and relatively inexpensive food supply.
What’s staggering is how far this industry has come in the last 100 years or so. This unprecedented progress is in no small part due to the cooperative extension.
Cooperative Extension was established in 1914 as a result of the Smith-Lever Act, which connected the U.S. Department of Agriculture with the land grant universities in order to inform people about current developments in agriculture, home economics, economic development, and many other related subjects. It helped farmers learn new agricultural techniques by the introduction of home instruction. (wikipedia)
This established an unbiased source of information to research new ideas and educate farmers and consumers about how they could improve their livelihoods. For farmers, this sort of served as domestic agricultural development.
Put yourself in the shoes of a farmer in 1914, trying to grow enough food for their family. Then they get an extension agent in their home county sharing ideas from other areas of the country and doing local research on how new ideas might be used in that area.
Game changer.
But even in this connected world we live in today, cooperative extension is as relevant as ever. I recently interviewed Dr. Jason de Koff, Associate Professor at Tennessee State University on the podcast about the work the cooperative extension does. Catch the full episode here:
Here are three examples of the work the cooperative extension is doing today:
- Make Your Own Biodiesel. Jason shared about a program he has worked on that allowed the extension to create a mobile demonstration to show farmers how they can make biodiesel on their farm using oilseeds that they produce. The extension team created the mobile unit, organized demonstration days, and answered questions about how farmers can produce their own fuel with the crops they are already growing.
- Drones! Through this extension project, farmers can fly before they buy! Extension agents and specialists share information on the different options and how they can be used in real farm applications. Then farmers get to fly the drones in order to make an educated decision on what makes sense for their farm. Also, they will be informed about legal issues with flying drones for agricultural purposes. Bonus: the extension will also be offering a youth component that will include drone kits that kids get to assemble themselves. They will also get to use flight simulator software. Ultimately, they’ll walk away with learning important STEM concepts such as electrical engineering, flight, robotics, etc.
- First Time Farmer Program. The average age of the farmer is in the high 50s, and the USDA has provided funds to cooperative extension to try to recruit and train new farmers to enter the industry. This new program at Tennessee State University, called New Farmer Academy, does just that. Participants will learn both hands-on skills such as irrigation, equipment calibration, and pruning, as well as business skills such as marketing, financing, and business management. After the program they are given a research plot to get started farming. They can operate that plot for up to a year to make sure they are ready before investing in the equipment and land to farm on their own. Such a cool program!
“We provide a lot information so that he stakeholder can make an educated decision about what they want to do.” — Dr. Jason de Koff.
These are just three of the MANY examples of the work cooperative extension does for agriculture and consumers.
I highly encourage you to learn more about extension in your area. Chances are there are some programs that would be of great benefit to you, especially if you work in production agriculture.
Also, listen to my full interview with Dr. Jason de Koff here:
