EXTENSION REPORT

Agricultural Risk Management for Today’s Farmers

Differences of opinion about day-to-day operations often surface among members of farm families. Information and education about how to work through those differences and plan for long-term economic and emotional health will be available to the citizens of Mobile and Baldwin Counties during a two day training workshop September 21-23, 2006. The setting for the workshop will be the Jon Archer Agricultural Center, 1070 Schillinger Road, North in Mobile. The workshops will also celebrate women engaged in production agriculture. Chances are women wear a lot of hats on the farm. Maybe they are the business manager, combine driver, head cook and bottle washer, or mom. Or maybe they are all of these things. The workshops are open not only to women in agriculture but to the whole family, extension agents, farmers and landowners.

The Small Farms Research Center at Alabama A&M University in partnership with the Alabama Cooperative Extension System, Mobile County Urban Center will be presenting the Agricultural risk management workshops. Some of the topics to be covered are, women in agriculture, retirement investment, estate planning in agriculture, value added agriculture, alternative enterprises, direct marketing, financial planning and record keeping, organic production and sustainable agriculture.

Risk management in agriculture is more than crop insurance it involves choosing alternatives to reduce the effects of the various types of tradeoffs between expected

returns, entrepreneurial freedom and other variables. To make better decisions in risky situations in just one reason why farmers and other interested citizens should attend this free two day workshop. To register or if you would like more information, contact Ms. E’licia L. Chaverest at 256-372-4970, or visit the Small Farms Research Center at Alabama A&M University at  . Meals will be provided but everyone must register to attend this very important and timely workshop.

            Resources for this article are available on the web at www.agriculture.com/ag and .

Phone: 937-7176 or 943-5611, 928-0860, ext. 2222

Issued in furtherance of Cooperative Extension work in agriculture and home economics, Acts of May 8 and June 30, 1914, and other related acts, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The Alabama Cooperative Extension System (Alabama A&M University and Auburn University) offers educational programs, materials, and equal opportunity employment to all people without regard to race, color, national origin, religion, sex, age, veteran status, or disability.