Situation/Background Statement
Mississippi's vegetable industry is confronted with limited resources for research and extension on numerous crops grown in a variety of cultural conditions. Our producers must cope with erratic weather conditions in addition to dynamic and demanding market forces in their efforts to build and maintain sustainable positions in the U.S. vegetable production system.
The Vegetable Program Action Team leads the efforts to identify and prioritize the needs of the vegetable industry and to obtain and disseminate needed information and technology. Our sources of this information will be research-based results from Mississippi State University, other land-grant institutions, agribusiness industries and the personal experiences of our producers and team members.
Goal
Our goal is to facilitate exchange of information between Mississippi State University and the vegetable industry of Mississippi.
Program Objectives
1. Identify and prioritize needs and issues which should be addressed in both short-term and long-term educational programs.
2. Coordinate the distribution of relevant research summaries to agents and integrate production guides by commodities.
3. Make crop insurance information available to those who need it and develop a current list of brokers in Mississippi.
4. Develop information relating to production budgets, risk management, and production expectations for selected crops to aid producers in dealing with lending agencies.