Attention Media Outlets:

Please note that this release supercedes any previous release you may have received 
about the Deep South Fruit and Vegetable Growers Conference.  A previous release 
included incorrect dates for the conference.  

The conference will be held Dec. 4-6 in Biloxi, Miss.

Thank you for your assistance.
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Exciting Conference Opportunity for State's Fruit and Vegetable Growers

If growers are looking for the latest information in pesticide safety, new techniques for 
growing big blueberries, or more information on the latest research in pecan production, they 
should attend the Deep South Fruit and Vegetable Growers Conference.  That’s the advice of Dr. 
Joe Kemble, a horticulturist with the Alabama 
Cooperative Extension System.
	In fact, Kemble, who is the educational advisor to the Alabama Fruit and 
Vegetable Growers Association encourages anyone growing a fruit or vegetable in the state to 
attend.
	“I wholeheartedly recommend it,” he says.  “This conference is for everyone. Here is so 
much information out there that all growers can benefit from.”
The former Alabama Fruit and Vegetable Growers Conference has joined with 
Louisiana, Mississippi and Arkansas to become the much larger, much improved 
Deep South conference.  It will be held December 4-6 in Biloxi, Miss.  Pre-registration fees are 
$40 per person.
This year’s conference will feature the “Taste of the States” exhibit, allowing participants 
to taste foods produced in each of the four states represented.
“Louisiana is really excited about bringing in some Cajun and Creole dishes,” 
Kemble says.  “Each state will be bringing things in for people to try.  December is sort of an in-
between time for Alabama, but we’ll probably have apples, Asian pears, mandarin oranges, 
persimmons, pecans and boiled peanuts.”
	Kemble says the four states merged their conferences to make the most of their 
resources.  
“The resources to put on conferences were dwindling in each state,” he says.  “By 
combining resources, we can put on a much better program for the growers in each state.”  
Last year, Alabama’s conference only had about 150 participants.  Kemble says he 
understands that growers are busy; many even work second jobs to make ends meet.  Still, he 
stresses, the conference is worth attending.
“It’s hard for any one person to stay up-to-date on all the changes that are occurring in 
agriculture,” Kemble says.  “There is everything from farm bills to work protection standards to 
migrant labor issues to pesticide updates to current research that is going on; there is no way one 
person could ever keep up with all that stuff.  At the conference, all that information is put 
together for you, and the growers can get a synopsis of the information they need.  And there are 
people at the meetings who have the information, too.  So if the grower needs more information, 
he can find that person after a meeting and gain more insight into a particular issue.”
Though fruits and vegetables are not Alabama’s most lucrative crops, they are 
well represented in Alabama agriculture.  Some of the more important crops grown in Alabama 
include sweet potatoes, sweet corn, collards, Southern peas, watermelons, tomatoes, peaches 
and apples, Kemble says.  Herbs and specialty crops are also grown. 
	“Watermelons, tomatoes and cantaloupes are becoming very important crops in 
Alabama,” Kemble says.  “We have a lot more people actually shipping them outside the state 
now.  Pumpkins are also becoming an important crop.”
	In 1999, fruit and vegetable producers turned a profit of more than $64 million. Kemble 
says he expects their revenue to be even more now.
“It’s an important industry, and growers really need to stay on top of things to stay 
competitive,” he says.  “As a grower, you can’t just do your own thing and ignore whatever is 
around you. If someone wants to remain competitive, especially outside the state of Alabama, 
they need all the information they can get.”
The Deep South conference allows growers to use the combined resources of several 
different states for extra insight and information, Kemble says.
“We all rely on each other,” he says.  “In Alabama, we rely on people from states like 
Georgia and Mississippi and Florida to get more information.  It’s multiple states doing multiple 
projects and helping each other out.  So it benefits everyone.”