Charleston W.Va. — The Winter Blues Farmers’ Market will be returning to the Charleston Coliseum and Convention Center Saturday, Feb. 22 from 1-5 p.m. The market will feature local food products and is sponsored by the West Virginia Department of Agriculture (WVDA) and the WVU Extension Small Farm Center and is held in conjunction with the West Virginia Small Farm …
Commissioner of Agriculture Pushes Expansion of Veterans to Agriculture Program
Charleston W.Va. — Commissioner of Agriculture Kent Leonhardt is asking the West Virginia Legislature to pass a bill to rename and expand the West Virginia Department of Agriculture’s (WVDA) Veterans and Warriors to Agriculture Program. House Bill 4693 would rename the program to the “Veterans and Heroes to Agriculture Program,” as well as authorize the scope of the program to …
CWD Research Funding Long Overdue
In December, I had the opportunity to speak to the U.S. Senate Committee on the Environment and Public Works on an important issue facing our country, Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD). This disease is discussed scarcely and understood even less, so you may have not heard of it. CWD is a contagious neurological disease that affects cervids, elk, deer and moose. …
WVDA Confirms Theileria in West Virginia
Charleston W.Va. — The West Virginia Department of Agriculture (WVDA) has confirmed the presence of Theileria orientalis Ikeda genotype in three West Virginia counties. The WVDA is working with the Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine’s diagnostic laboratory at Virginia Tech to determine the extent of the disease across the region and understand its impact on the livestock industry. Additional surveillance …
V.E.T.S. Series to Launch at Small Farm Conference
Charleston W.Va. — The West Virginia Department of Agriculture (WVDA) has launched a new training series for 2020. The Veteran Education Training Series (V.E.T.S) will host its first session “Boots to Business” at the West Virginia Small Farm Conference on Thursday, February 20. More classes will be hosted around the state covering topics such as beekeeping, mushroom production and high …
WV Commissioner of Agriculture Praises Passage of USMCA
Charleston W.Va. — West Virginia Commissioner of Agriculture Kent Leonhardt released the following statement after the final passage of the United States-Mexico-Canada (USMCA) Trade Agreement: “Farmers around the country can rejoice now that Congress has ratified the USMCA Trade Agreement. West Virginia will greatly benefit from this arrangement as we export $1.7 billion worth of products to Mexico and Canada …