The eight district winners in the 72nd annual Arkansas Farm Family of the Year Program have been selected, representing the diversity of Arkansas agriculture, the state’s largest industry.
Jay Lee's family has been farming in the Bismarck community of Hot Spring County since the 1800s. Now Jay and his wife Valorie are continuing the multi-generation family legacy with JV Farms Homestead, where they sell their pork, dairy, eggs and produce direct to customers on the farm and at farmers markets in central Arkansas.
We spoke with Cathy Gifford, a Crawford County Arkansas Farm Bureau Insurance agent, who helped to launch a leadership program for the county that meets rgularly to learn about important industries in the area, including agriculture. We caught up with her during the county agriculture tour.
We visited Delta Plastics and spoke to owner and chairman Dhu Thompson about the company's recycling technology and how partnerships with farmers play a critical role in the company's success. Watch our latest video to learn more about the unique role this company plays in the agriculture industry.
Randy Arnold grows strawberries on his farm outside of Alma. The heavy rains this season have challenged strawberry growers statewide. In this video, Arnold discusses how he’s dealing with this year’s weather-created problems.
Farmer Derek Helms, University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture Clark County Staff Chair Amy Simpson and John David Farabough of the UA Division of Agriculture Cooperative Extension Service discuss how many farmers in the state are experiencing delays in planting, loss of yields and rushed field prep times due to excessive rains.
Pigweed problems led Adam and Seth Chappell to to experiment with cover crops and no-till farming techniques on their family farm near Cotton Plant. Hear Adam discuss how they went about the process and the results of these new approaches.
April has been National Pecan Month, and April 14 was National Pecan Day. We visited with Conway County grower Robert "Crash" Carruthers, who talked all things pecans, including the ongoing trade and tariff war with China, how weather affects pecan nut development and the increasing acreage of pecan groves in Conway County.
