Virginia Sustainable Farms and Agribusiness Education

An educational on-demand webinar series for farms and agribusinesses

Farmer stands in the middle of a field operating a drone. — September 24, 2019- The Bunn family uses drone technology to monitor crops on their farm in Dublin, Virginia. (Jeff Greenough for Virginia Tech)

“Sustainability” has become a buzzword, overused and often misunderstood. While resource conservation and environmental protection are important components, long-run economic viability and social responsibility are also essential in developing and maintaining a sustainable farm or agribusiness.

Watch our on-demand webinar series below developed by the Virginia Tech Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics as we get to the heart of what sustainability is and what it looks like for your farm and agribusiness.

On-demand webinar overview

We share insights on how to improve your farm’s or agribusiness’ economic, environmental, and social responsibility and to market the sustainable practices you undertake. The content presented draws on current and cutting-edge research findings on sustainable farms and food generated by researchers and industry partners within Virginia’s SmartFarm Innovation Network. The program will support both beginning farmers in search of basic information about business management, and long-time farmers seeking to improve their economic viability, environmental sustainability, or social responsibility.

Meet John Bovay, assistant professor and program host

John Bovay, Assistant Professor

John Bovay is an assistant professor in Food and Agricultural Policy. Much of his work focuses on the economics of regulation, with applications to the topics of food-safety regulation, food labeling (including labeling of genetically engineered food), and food waste. He strives to be actively engaged with agricultural producers, organizations, and commodity groups in Virginia and the Mid-Atlantic to ensure that these groups have access to a timely economic analysis of relevant policies.

View on-demand videos

Topic	Presenter	Video link
Business goals and sustainability	John Bovay	Business goals and sustainability webinar Zoom recording
Corporate social responsibility (CSR) as a business strategy	John Bovay	CSR as a business strategy Zoom recording
Profit and cost	John Bovay	Profit and cost Zoom recording Coming soon
Pricing strategies	Tim Pierce	Pricing strategies Zoom recording
Animal welfare standards and marketing	Leonie Jacobs, John Bovay	Animal welfare standards and marketing Zoom recording
Crop insurance	John Bovay	Crop insurance Zoom recording
Non-GMO, GMO, and bioengineered food labeling requirements	John Bovay	Non-GMO, GMO, and bioengineered food labeling requirements Zoom recording
Greenhouse horticulture	Rosa Raudales (University of Connecticut)	Greenhouse horticulture Zoom recording
Essentials of marketing farm and food products	Tim Pierce	Essentials of marketing farm and food products Zoom recording
Direct marketing to consumers through farmers' markets and other channels	Zoë Plakias (The Ohio State University)	Direct marketing through farmers' markets and other channels Zoom recording
Government and private third-party quality labels	John Bovay	Government and private third-party quality labels Zoom recording
Business financing	Jenny Ifft (Kansas State University)	Business financing Zoom recording
Wind, solar, and geothermal energy production on farms	Josh Ignosh	Wind, solar, and geothermal energy production on farms Zoom recording
Food safety regulations	John Bovay	Food safety regulations Zoom recording
The American Rescue Plan: Farms, Food, and Families	John Bovay	The American Rescue Plan Zoom recording
Food waste, food prices, the environment, and hunger	John Bovay	Food waste, food prices, the environment and hunger Zoom recording
Understanding income statement and balance sheets	Travis Mountain	Understanding income statements and balance sheets Zoom recording
Food insecurity and hunger in Virginia	Tim Pierce	Food insecurity and hunger in Virginia Zoom recording
Sustaining agriculture with farm labor uncertainty	Diane Charlton (Montana State University)	Sustaining agriculture with farm labor uncertainty Zoom recording
Conservation incentives for farmers	Maria Bowman (USDA ERS)	Conservation incentives for farmers Zoom recording
Retirement planning considerations for farmers	Travis Mountain	Retirement planning considerations for farmers Zoom recoding Coming soon
Futures markets and price risk management	Heidi Schweizer (North Carolina State University)	Futures and price risk management Zoom recording
Managing Post-Pandemic Risk in the Green Industry	Charlie Hall (Texas A&M University)	Green industry post-pandemic risk Zoom recording
Matching SNAP benefits at farmers' markets: Experience from New England	Sara John (Tufts University)	SNAP benefits at farmers markets Zoom recording
Consumer marketing and food sustainability	Brandon McFadden (University of Delaware)	Consumer marketing and food sustainability Zoom recording
Cattle Producer Preferences for Bull EPDs and Cattle Genomic Testing	Karen DeLong (University of Tennessee)	Beef cattle and EPDs Zoom recording

The Virginia Sustainable Farms and Agribusiness Education Initiative is supported by USDA/NIFA under Award Number 2018-70027-28585.

Resources

Every faculty member is involved with outreach. For more information about their work, visit their individual pages.