DOVER — Farmers and agricultural professionals attending Delaware Ag Week 2015 can now get even more business advice and expertise, as the Delaware Department of Agriculture is expanding its popular direct marketing workshop to a full day.
The Jan. 15 workshop will include presentations in the morning on website development, selling to grocers, roadside farmstand traffic safety, Delaware’s Buy Local initiative, and other topics. The afternoon will feature presentations and a Q&A forum on federal, state and private grant and loan programs that can make farming more profitable.
“An important part of our mission is to help farmers maintain profitability and expand into new markets,” said Delaware Secretary of Agriculture Ed Kee. “These workshops will help teach some new business techniques and opportunities to farmers who are already growing the best farm-fresh products out there and want to make the right connections.”
The marketing workshop, normally held on Tuesday or Wednesday, was moved to Thursday to avoid conflicting with attendance at the Fruit & Vegetable Growers Association sessions. It will be held in the Department of Agriculture’s Education Building, near the Dover Building. Attendance is free, and registration is not required.
Delaware Ag Week is attended by more than 1,900 Delaware farmers, and includes sessions on topics including fruits and vegetables, poultry, grain crops, marketing, beef cattle and irrigation. It runs from Jan. 12-16 at the Delaware State Fairgrounds in Harrington, and is sponsored by the University of Delaware Cooperative Extension, Delaware State University Cooperative Extension, and the Delaware Department of Agriculture. For a complete schedule and more information, visit sites.udel.edu/delawareagweek.
# # #
Media contact:
Dan Shortridge
Chief of Community Relations
Delaware Department of Agriculture
302-698-4520
daniel.shortridge@delaware.gov