The Structure Supporting Success in SWVA Agriculture

During our trip to Southwest Virginia, the theme that surfaced for me is the importance of the support structure that overlays the agriculture industry in this region. I will focus on how I saw the outpouring of assistance related to ag infrastructure in Southwest.

It was apparent as we traveled at most every stop that the producers and businesses we visited are not on “islands.” They all have benefited from the local infrastructure in the form of collaborative relationships with county, state and federal government agencies, Cooperative Extension programs, community outreach organizations that support local food and fiber production, and fellow producers. Sara Williams, who is a fellow in our VALOR cohort, pointed out many projects that the Tobacco Region Revitalization Commission has funded such as upgraded vacuum coolers at Virginia Produce Company.

While in Grayson County, the focus on land and viewshed conservation was apparent at John Fant’s livestock operation and the Hanes’ family’s diversified farming enterprises. The county’s commitment to create an Agriculture Economic Development Director position (and hire Lyndsie Young in our cohort) and have ag representation on the Board of Supervisors shows the importance of this vital industry to their county’s political framework.

In talking with Amy Byinton (VALOR IV fellow and Extension Agent) who planned part of our tour, the importance of a strong support system in Lee County was apparent, through her work with Extension youth programs, local livestock markets, and individual relationship building with producers.

There was mention of several different ways producers fund getting started in agriculture, upgrades of their facilities, and branching out into new enterprises. Local lenders play a part in conjunction with local, regional, state and federal programs. Since I work for an ag lending organization, it was particularly interesting to learn how public-private partnerships and programs fund the advancement of agricultural technology implementation and growth of farms. Appalachian Harvest Food Hub demonstrated this firsthand in their coordination of produce marketing along with educational programs for producers.

A sense of philanthropy and giving back to help others was demonstrated through Virginia Produce Company’s partnership with FFA, Jim Fogleman’s servant leadership philosophy, and DeBusk Angus Farms’ lease of land to establish LMU’s Veterinary School in Ewing, VA. The number of leaders and proactive thinkers that have been and continue to be committed to making agriculture sustainable for producers is impressive.

As we drove through many economically depressed areas that used to be vibrant with coal mining jobs, it’s encouraging to see these bright spots where people and organizations are committed to be successful in agriculture (such as Mountain Rose Vineyard on reclaimed coal land), provide for their communities (such as the mobile Health Wagon), and make a good living in Southwest Virginia, which contains the poorest counties in the state. What a dichotomy we are seeing in our travels across the Commonwealth!