Production is the science, art, or occupation that involves cultivating land, raising crops, feeding, breeding, or raising livestock as well as hunting, fishing, or foraging. May include: gardening, specialty crop production, and urban farming.
– Defined by the Iowa State University Extension & Outreach Community Food Systems Program
Production is one of the five sectors of the Nebraska Regional Food Systems Initiative. It seeks to provide educational opportunities and research to support producers and consumers.
Technical Assistance, Programs and Training
Nebraska Master Gardener Program
The Nebraska Extension Master Gardener Volunteer program extends the outreach of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln by providing volunteers with science-based horticulture education, which prepares them to share their knowledge with the citizens of the State.
Contact:
Terri James
Assistant Extension Educator,
Statewide Master Gardener Coordinator
tjames2@unl.edu
Growing Together Nebraska
Growing Together Nebraska is a SNAP-Ed funded donation garden project that increases food security and promotes healthy food access for families and individuals who are food insecure. This team engages Extension Master Gardeners, local community organizations, and volunteers to build and manage donation gardens to improve access to affordable, nutritious, and safe foods. Since 2016, more than 89,000 pounds of produce (over 267,000 serving of fruits and vegetables) have been donated to those in need.
Contact:
Natalie Sehi
nsehi2@unl.edu
Urban Agriculture Program
Urban farms and community gardens are flourishing in cities across Nebraska. Urban areas not only requires navigating production and environmental issues, but also local policies, zoning, and neighborhood relations. This program provides production assistance to urban farmers and home growers alike while also engaging communities and organizations to collaborate in building the local food system. The urban agriculture program also works with local leaders to enact policy change in support of urban agriculture. Currently, Omaha Home for Boys’ Cooper Farm is hosting our urban farming incubator, education, and demonstration site, providing farming opportunities for refugee and other marginalized communities.
Contact:
John Porter
Assistant Extension Educator
john.porter@unl.edu
AgVets Program
Putting the Pieces Together, A Year in the Life of a Diversified Farm
Through NIFA’s Enhancing Agricultural Opportunities for Military Veterans -- also called AgVets -- program, Nebraska Extension and the Center for Rural Affairs have developed a training program featuring workshops, field demonstrations, business planning and other educational programming led in part by three veteran-owned farms. Experienced producers from the Barreras Family Farm, Lakehouse Farm and Anchor Meadow Farm, along with other expert resource providers, will share business and production skills for beef, vegetable and pork enterprises.
Aspiring Farmer Virtual Course
A 6-week long interactive online course for aspiring and beginning farmers interested in starting a, or improving their, small- to mid-scale produce, livestock or other diversified operations.
Research
Vegetable & Fruit trials
All-American Selections
Information coming soon!
Specialty Crop Black Grant ProjectVegetable Variety Trial Research and Education for Eastern Nebraska Growers (2020-2022)
Objectives:
- To evaluate newly-released broccoli, bell pepper, and cucumber cultivars for yield, quality, pest-resistance, and customer preference across two years.
- To develop educational programming and published resources about vegetable cultivar selection for commercial growers.
- To evaluate learning implications of on-farm research and the emergence of participating producers as farm community leaders.
Partnerships
