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News Release
1-14-10
STATE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE ANNOUNCES
2010 SPECIALTY CROP GRANT RECIPIENTS
The West Virginia Department of Agriculture (WVDA) has selected 12 projects to share in nearly $185,000 of USDA Specialty Crop Block Grant funding in 2010, according to Commissioner of Agriculture Gus R. Douglass.
“These grants are an important means of improving the competiveness of West Virginia’s small family farms,” said Commissioner Douglass. “This infusion of dollars will be used to fund a wide variety of research and marketing improvement projects that will pay dividends in the coming years.”
The projects receiving funding include West Virginia State University (WVSU) research into methods of constructing economical and eco-friendly “high tunnel” structures that West Virginia farmers can use to extend the growing season for fresh produce.
WVSU will also conduct research into the cultivation of fresh blackberries. Although blackberries can be found in the wilderness, cultivated berries are a lucrative crop unfamiliar to most West Virginia farmers.
West Virginia University (WVU) will evaluate 14 varieties of wine grapes to determine their suitability for use by West Virginia wineries. Specialty crop funds also will be used to fund scholarships to WVU’s 2010 Small Farms Conference, which provides a wide variety of educational offerings for participants each year. Check the WVU Extension Service webpage for more details.
Over the past three years, WVDA has distributed approximately $270,000 in funding to 85 projects throughout the state through a competitive grant award program. The Specialty Crops Grant Program is funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and administered by the West Virginia Department of Agriculture.
The grant program encourages cooperative efforts to integrate technology at the farm level, improve marketing and promotion of locally grown specialty crops, and increase production efficiency through research projects. Specialty crops
The West Virginia Department of Agriculture protects plant, animal and human health through a variety of scientific, regulatory and consumer protection programs, as mandated by state law. The Commissioner of Agriculture is one of six statewide elected officials in West Virginia. For more information, visit www.wvagriculture.org.
“The Basis of All Wealth is Agriculture.”
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