Virginia Sustainable Farms and Agribusiness Education
An educational webinar series for farms and agribusinesses
“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 factors to developing and maintaining a sustainable farm or agribusiness.
Join us for a webinar series 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.
*Note that each webinar requires pre-registration - click on the links in the "program schedule" table below to register.
We will 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 we will present 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. Please register for each webinar you would like to attend using the links in the program schedule below.
Dr. John Bovay, Assistant Professor and Program Host
John Bovay is an assistant professor in the Virginia Tech Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics. As extension lead, he coordinates the department’s extension and outreach programs. His research focuses on the economics of food and agricultural policy in the United States, and has written research papers on topics such as the economics of food-safety regulation, food labeling, and food waste, and analysis of voting on regulations affecting farms and food. Bovay received his B.A. from Washington and Lee in 2007 and his Ph.D. from the University of California, Davis, in 2014. He then worked as a researcher at the USDA Economic Research Service and as an assistant professor at the University of Connecticut before returning to Virginia in 2019.
The Virginia Sustainable Farms and Agribusiness Education Initiative consists mainly of webinars on a variety of topics related to the various aspects of sustainable farm and business management. The webinars are organized under the following 5 topic areas or modules:
- Sustainability, Corporate Social Responsibility, and Profit
- Production Risks, Crop Insurance, and New Technologies
- Marketing Risks, Quality Standards, and Local Foods
- Financial Risks and Evaluating Investments
- Legal Risks and Social Responsibility
Webinar schedule:
Module # |
Date |
Time |
Topic |
Presenter |
Registration/video Link |
1 |
Tuesday, January 19 |
4:00pm |
Business goals and sustainability |
John Bovay |
Business goals and sustainability webinar Zoom recording |
1 |
Monday, January 25 |
4:00pm |
Corporate social responsibility (CSR) as a business strategy |
John Bovay |
CSR as a business strategy Zoom recording |
1 |
Monday, February 1 |
4:00pm |
Profit and cost |
John Bovay |
Profit and cost Zoom |
1 |
Thursday, February 4 |
2:00pm | Pricing strategies |
Tim Pierce |
Pricing strategies Zoom recording |
2, 3 |
Tuesday, February 9 |
12:30pm |
Animal welfare standards and marketing |
Leonie Jacobs, John Bovay |
Animal welfare standards and marketing Zoom recording |
2 |
Tuesday, February 16 |
4:00pm |
Crop insurance |
John Bovay |
Crop insurance Zoom recording |
2, 3 |
Monday, February 22 |
4:00pm |
Non-GMO, GMO, and bioengineered food labeling requirements |
John Bovay |
Non-GMO, GMO, and bioengineered food labeling requirements Zoom recording |
2 |
Monday, March 1 |
4:00pm |
Greenhouse horticulture |
Rosa Raudales (University of Connecticut) |
Greenhouse horticulture Zoom recording |
3 |
Thursday, March 4 |
2:00pm | Essentials of marketing farm and food products |
Tim Pierce |
Essentials of marketing farm and food products Zoom recording |
3 |
Wednesday, March 10 |
1:00pm |
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 |
3 |
Monday, March 15 |
4:00pm |
Government and private third-party quality labels |
John Bovay |
Government and private third-party quality labels Zoom recording |
4 |
Tuesday, March 23 |
1:00pm |
Business financing |
Jenny Ifft (Kansas State University) |
Business financing Zoom recording |
4 |
Thursday, March 25 |
4:00pm |
Wind, solar, and geothermal energy production on farms |
Josh Ignosh |
Wind, solar, and geothermal energy production on farms Zoom recording |
5 |
Monday, March 29 |
4:00pm |
Food safety regulations |
John Bovay |
Food safety regulations Zoom recording |
5 |
Monday, April 5 |
4:00pm |
The American Rescue Plan: Farms, Food, and Families | John Bovay |
The American Rescue Plan Zoom recording |
5 |
Monday, April 12 |
4:00pm |
Food waste, food prices, the environment, and hunger |
John Bovay |
Food waste, food prices, the environment and hunger Zoom recording |
| 4 | Thursday, April 15 | 4:00pm | Understanding income statement and balance sheets | Travis Mountain | Understanding income statement and balance sheets Zoom recording |
5 |
Tuesday, April 20 |
2:00pm |
Food insecurity and hunger in Virginia |
Tim Pierce |
Food insecurity and hunger in Virginia recording |
5 |
Thursday, April 29 |
4:00pm |
Sustaining agriculture with farm labor uncertainty | Diane Charlton (Montana State University) |
Sustaining agriculture with farm labor uncertainty Zoom recording |
| 5 | Monday, May 3 | 4:00pm | Conservation incentives for farmers | Maria Bowman (USDA ERS) | Conservation incentives for farmers Zoom recording |
| 4 | Thursday, June 10 | 4:00pm | Retirement planning considerations for farmers | Travis Mountain | Retirement planning considerations for farmers Zoom |
| 3, 4 | Wednesday, August 11 | 3:00pm | Futures markets and price risk management | Heidi Schweizer (North Carolina State University) | Futures and price risk management Zoom registration |
| 2, 3 | Wednesday, August 18 | 3:00pm | Managing Post-Pandemic Risk in the Green Industry | Charlie Hall (Texas A&M University) | Green industry post-pandemic risk Zoom registration |
| 3, 5 | Wednesday, August 25 | 3:00pm | Matching SNAP benefits at farmers' markets: Experience from New England | Sara John (Tufts University) | SNAP benefits at farmers markets Zoom registration |
| 3, 5 | Wednesday, September 1 | 3:00pm | Consumer marketing and food sustainability | Brandon McFadden (University of Delaware) | Consumer marketing and food sustainability Zoom registration |
| 2 | Wednesday, September 8 | 3:00pm | Beef cattle and the economics of genomic enhanced EPDs | Karen DeLong (University of Tennessee) | Beef cattle and EPDs Zoom registration |
The Virginia Sustainable Farms and Agribusiness Education Initiative is supported by USDA/NIFA under Award Number 2018-70027-28585.
