AGRICULTURE COMMISSIONER BRONSON TO KICK OFF AG LITERACY DAY

In an effort to increase agricultural literacy statewide, Florida Agriculture and Consumer Services Commissioner Charles Bronson will host a press conference Monday March 12 at 9:30 a.m. at Roberts Elementary School located at 5777 Centerville Road in Tallahassee to kick off the fourth Florida Agriculture Literacy Day.
After the press conference, Commissioner Bronson will read this year’s Agriculture Literacy Day children’s book “Oh Say Can You Seed?” to two kindergarten classes at Roberts Elementary School.

He joins more than 1,400 farmers, ranchers, members of local FFA chapters, agriculture industry volunteers and educators who are reading in more than 2,900 elementary classrooms around the state in honor of Florida Agriculture Literacy Day scheduled for Thursday March 15 this year. National Agriculture Week is March 18-24, 2007.

Florida Agriculture Literacy Day is organized by the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services and Florida Agriculture in the Classroom, Inc., a non-profit organization based in Gainesville and charged with educating Florida students and teachers about the importance of agriculture.

“Florida Agriculture Literacy Day has become a popular event for members of the Florida agriculture industry, and is a great way to teach students about the importance of the agriculture industry,” said Cara Martin, chairman of Florida Ag in the Classroom and assistant director of government and community affairs for Florida Farm Bureau.

“Children today are several generations removed from the farm so it’s important we use events like Florida Agriculture Literacy Day to teach them their food, fiber and landscape materials come from farms and not from stores,” said Bronson, a former agriculture teacher.

The numbers of industry volunteers and classrooms participating in Florida Agriculture Literacy Day this year by region are: 277 volunteers in 463 classrooms in the Panhandle, 286 volunteers in 367 classrooms in Northeast Florida, 227 volunteers in 365 classrooms in North Central Florida, 188 volunteers in 753 classrooms in Central Florida, 294 volunteers in 557 classrooms in the Tampa Bay area, 106 volunteers in 363 classrooms in South Florida and 37 volunteers in 37 classrooms in Southwest Florida.

Florida Ag in the Classroom’s Educator Advisory Panel selected “Oh Say Can You Seed?” by Bonnie Worth, a book that’s part of the Cat in the Hat series and is about flowering plants.

Florida Ag in the Classroom provides the books to industry volunteers free of charge, and asks that they donate the books to school libraries after their readings. In addition to the books, Florida Ag in the Classroom provides volunteers with a lesson designed for the book for teachers, and a classroom set of bookmarks for students that list Florida farmers’ contributions to the state economically and environmentally.

Florida Ag in the Classroom is able to offer the books and materials free of charge to industry volunteers because of the funding it receives from sales of the agriculture specialty license plate also known as the ‘Ag Tag.’

In addition to Florida Agriculture Literacy Day, Florida Ag in the Classroom provides curricula, materials, workshops, grant money and other programs to teachers and agriculture industry volunteers who reach out to Florida students in kindergarten through 12th grade.

The mission of Florida Ag in the Classroom is to expand youth awareness and understanding of Florida agriculture and natural resources by integrating agricultural concepts into core educational disciplines and Florida Ag in the Classroom supporting programs.

USDA FACILITY TO HOLD OPEN HOUSE

The U.S. Horticulture Research Laboratory in Fort Pierce will hold its 2007 open house, themed “Coming Together to Solve Agricultural Problems,” April 20, 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Guided tours and demonstrations will be offered. The facility is located at 2001 S. Rock Road and is part of USDA’s Agricultural Research Service. It was established in 1892 in Eustis and moved to the Fort Pierce facility in 2000.

UF RESEARCHERS WORKING ON FOLATE-PACKED TOMATO

Researchers at the University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences have developed a tomato with a full day’s worth of folate in a single serving. The nutrient is essential for a healthy start to pregnancy and is traditionally found in leafy greens such as spinach. Most mothers-to-be do not receive adequate amounts of folate.

The researchers’ work to develop the genetically engineered tomato was published online March 5 by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

The researchers said the tomato could potentially be beneficial worldwide, however, more studies must be completed before they will be able to seek FDA approval. “It can take years to get an engineered food plant approved by the FDA,” said one researcher.