Delaware Inducts Three Farm Families into Century Farm Program

DOVER, Del. (March 21, 2024) – Governor Carney, Secretary of Agriculture Scuse, and state legislators inducted three Delaware farm families into the Century Farm Program, honoring them for their commitment to keeping farmland within the family for 100 years.

“Agriculture has long been Delaware’s number one industry. Family farms built our state; in fact, there are 18 farms still in operation that are older than Delaware,” said Governor Carney. “I’m honored to be a part of this event recognizing the committed work of these three family farms who have been a part of our state’s history for 100 years.”

The Delaware Century Farm Program was established in 1987 to honor farm families who have owned and farmed their land for at least 100 years. The farms must include at least 10 acres of the original parcel or gross more than $10,000 annually in agricultural sales.

With the announcement of these three new families, Delaware will have recognized 155 Century Farms over the past 37 years. Delaware Century Farm families receive a sign for their farms, an engraved plate, a certificate, and legislative tributes.

Delaware Secretary of Agriculture Michael T. Scuse also took the opportunity to announce a new program related to long-term ownership of family farms.

“The family farm is at the heart of our number one industry – feeding Delawareans, Americans, and citizens worldwide. We want to ensure we recognize not only those farms that have been in production for 100 years but also the 24 farms that have already received this award and have kept the farm in the family for 200 years or more,” said Secretary Scuse. “The Delaware Department of Agriculture has created a new ‘Multi-Century Farm Award’ to highlight these farms, including a new lane sign denoting this achievement.”

2024 Delaware Century Farm Awardees:

R & C Evans Farm L.P. (Harrington, Kent County): The Evans family is recognized for their 60-acre family farm located in Milford Hundred.

Mr. William Biggs, our great-grandfather, purchased the original 64 acres from Jacob Pleasonton on January 9, 1917. On January 18, 1922, he purchased 22 more acres from Mr. Pleasonton, called “Potter Land.” William laid down with his infant great-grandson, David, to nap and never awoke; in turn, the farm was passed down to David’s grandmother, Hazel Biggs Davis, on November 21, 1970. On February 1, 1990, Carolyn Davis Evans and her husband, Reginald Evans, purchased the farm from her parents. For estate planning purposes, on October 31, 2005, the farm became known as R & C Evans Farm. Carolyn lived on the farm until her passing on July 4, 2021, and Reginald lived there until he passed on December 26, 2023.

The farm remains in the family, where they raise grain crops on 60 acres of farmland. While times have changed from when William Biggs tilled the land behind a mule to today’s technology, the same dinner bell remains on the pole that called generations of family members in to eat around the family table. David’s sister remembers watching Al Johnson flying his bi-wing crop duster over the farm and waggling his wings to say hello. They both look to keep the farm in the family for future generations.

 

David Evans, Linda Samulevich, and Heather Evans accepted the Century Farm Award posthumously for Carolyn and Reginald Evans.Picture (L to R): David Evans, Linda Samulevich, and Heather Evans accepted the Century Farm Award posthumously for Carolyn and Reginald Evans.

Fleetwood Family Farm (Laurel, Sussex County): The Fleetwood family was honored with the Century Farm Award for their 35-acre farm in Broad Creek Hundred.

Earl C. Fleetwood and his wife, Blanche, purchased the original 55-acre farm from Robert T. and Nancy J. Spicer on November 17, 1920, for $2,500. The farm was bequeathed to his son, Roland V. Fleetwood, when Earl died in June 1978. Roland and his wife, E. Jean Fleetwood, are the current owners of the farm.

The family currently farms 35 acres; the property still has the original farmhouse built in 1845. Additional farm buildings included a chicken house built in 1961, a garage in 1965, and a shed in 1980. Over the years, the family has raised corn, beans, strawberries, melons, tomatoes, and poultry.

Picture (L to R): Todd Fleetwood, son; R.T. Fleetwood, grandson; and Roland Fleetwood accepted the Century Farm Award.Picture (L to R): Todd Fleetwood, son; R.T. Fleetwood, grandson; and Roland Fleetwood accepted the Century Farm Award.

Warnick Family Farm (Greenwood, Sussex County): Valerie Warnick was presented with the Century Farm Award for their family farm located in Nanticoke Hundred.

The original farm was purchased by Gideon E. Hershberger and his wife, Susanna on September 1, 1914, from Josiah B. Hostedler. After Gideon passed away, Susanna took on the farm and left it in her will to her nieces and nephews, Dwight, Archibald, Leota, and Walter Warnick in 1941. On January 24, 1944, the farm was purchased by Dwight and Sue Warnick. While Sue passed away on October 17, 1956, Dwight continued to farm the land until he was 85 and then rented the land to two local farmers until he died on April 8, 2011. He was 102 years old. Dwight left the farm to his children, Mary Kathryn Warnick and Donald L. Warnick. Mary Kathryn lived on the farm until October 2011. The farm was purchased on June 19, 2015, by Edward C. Warnick and his wife Valerie. In January 2022, Edward passed on, leaving the farm to Valerie. They have three children, Ashley, Blake, and Wade.

The family still uses the original farmhouse. Over the years, the Warnick Family has grown corn, soybeans, wheat, and rye. They also grew chickens for many years; at some point, family members had dairy cows, beef cattle, and pigs.

Picture (L to R): Evelyn Shahan, Blake, Natalie, and Stephanie Warnick, Ashley Warnick Heuchling, Valerie Warnick, Logan, Ava, and Zane, Mary Kathryn Warnick, Samantha, Wade, and Kylie Warnick, and Jean Warnick Kenton and Harvey Kenton were present to support Valerie in receiving the Delaware Century Farm Award.Picture (L to R): Evelyn Shahan, Blake, Natalie, and Stephanie Warnick, Ashley Warnick Heuchling, Valerie Warnick, Logan, Ava, and Zane, Mary Kathryn Warnick, Samantha, Wade, and Kylie Warnick, and Jean Warnick Kenton and Harvey Kenton were present to support Valerie in receiving the Delaware Century Farm Award.

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Delaware Department of Agriculture Opens Request for Applications for Resilient Food Systems Infrastructure Program

DOVER, Del. (March 12, 2024) – The Delaware Department of Agriculture (DDA) announced today they are accepting applications for the Resilient Food Systems Infrastructure Program (RFSI) through April 30, 2024. Through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS), more than $1.7 million in competitive grant funding is available for projects designed to build resilience across the middle of Delaware’s food supply chain.

Funds will support expanded capacity for aggregating, processing, manufacturing, storing, transporting, wholesaling, and distributing locally and regionally produced food products. These include specialty crops, dairy, grain for human consumption, aquaculture, and other food products. Ineligible products include meat and poultry, fiber, wild-caught seafood, exclusively animal feed and forage products, fiber, landscaping products, tobacco, and dietary supplements.

RFSI is funded through Section 1001(b)(4) of the Federal American Rescue Plan Act of 2021. Using a standardized competitive review process, DDA will award two types of grants:

Simplified Equipment-Only Projects, using a simplified application to fund smaller grants between $10,000 and $100,000. This project option is a fixed-price grant, which will fund only equipment purchases. Applicants cannot use these funds for associated facility upgrades, staffing, or other costs. The amount awarded will only equal the equipment cost up to $100,000. No match is required for this type of grant project.
Infrastructure Grants, with a minimum of $100,000 and a maximum of $1,156,597 for infrastructure projects and activities. Infrastructure grant applicants must contribute 50% of the proposed project cost as a match to the grant unless the applicant qualifies for a reduced match as outlined in the Request for Applications (RFA).

Based upon stakeholder outreach, Delaware is seeking projects that provide technical assistance to producers working to develop value-added products, expand access to climate-smart technologies for farmers and food waste management, and increase the number of facilities that support product aggregation, cold storage, warehousing, and distribution of targeted agricultural products.

Applications should be submitted by agricultural producers or processors or nonprofit organizations, for-profit entities, local government entities, and tribal governments operating middle-of-the-supply-chain activities. Institutions such as schools, universities, or hospitals bringing producers together to establish cooperative or shared infrastructure or invest in equipment that will benefit multiple producers’ middle-of-the-supply-chain activities such as processing, aggregation, and distribution of targeted agricultural products may apply. All businesses and organizations must be domestically owned, and project facilities must be physically located in Delaware.

To review Delaware’s RFA and other Resilient Food Systems Infrastructure program documents, visit https://de.gov/rfsi. Using the link on this website, applicants can apply for the RFSI grant through the Delaware Community Foundation (DCF) application portal. The DCF online portal allows applicants to submit their applications more easily. While DCF is facilitating the grant application process, this is not a grant program of the DCF.

DDA will host an informational webinar about the RFSI grant program at 10 a.m. on March 21, 2024. RFSI virtual office hours for prospective applicants to connect with the Delaware Department of Agriculture on the grant process are scheduled for April 4 and April 18 at 10 a.m. Registration is required for each session and will be available online at https://de.gov/rfsi.

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2024 Delaware Ag Week Promises Networking and Latest Innovations

DOVER, Del. (December 26, 2023)— Delaware’s agricultural industry looks forward to attending the annual Delaware Ag Week at the Delaware State Fairgrounds in Harrington from January 8 – 11, 2024.

“Ag Week is the largest venue where Delaware farmers, agribusinesses, and subject matter experts can network and learn about the latest innovations and research that will impact them in the upcoming growing season,” said Secretary of Agriculture Michael T. Scuse. “Nineteen years ago, the Department of Agriculture, University of Delaware, and Delaware State University Cooperative Extension developed Ag Week to help farmers get everything they needed in one spot so we could reduce the time they were away from the farm in the height of planting and harvesting, and it’s now a tradition everyone looks forward to attending.”

The four-day event offers many sessions featuring agronomy, animal science, beekeeping, fruits and vegetables, woodland management, and more. Attendees can earn continuing education credits for nutrient management, pest management, and Certified Crop Advising for Delaware and Maryland.

Those looking to attend the event can find the focus of each day, session topics, speakers, and locations online at https://sites.udel.edu/delawareagweek.

The information delivered is crucial to maintaining the success of the agriculture industry, which is the state’s top economic driver. According to the 2023 Feeding the Economy Report, agriculture employs 69,000 and provides nearly $10.3 billion in economic activity to Delaware. In addition, the state’s 2,300 family farms had $1.5 billion in direct sales to consumers.

According to Ag Week Chairman Cory Whaley with the University of Delaware Cooperative Extension, “Delaware Ag Week is a great time to get continuing education credits, soak up information, and catch up with friends and others in the ag community. Session organizers have done a tremendous job in putting together great programs that will provide relevant and timely information.”

While registration is not required for the overall event, specific sessions require pre-registration, as specified online, to ensure adequate preparation for the caterers.

This event is brought to you by the Delaware Department of Agriculture, the University of Delaware Cooperative Extension, and the Delaware State University Cooperative Extension. These organizations are equal opportunity providers. If you have special needs requiring accommodations, please get in touch two weeks before the event at 302-831-3328.

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Department Adds New Test Options and Increases Fees for Seed Lab

DOVER, Del. (December 13, 2023) – The Delaware Department of Agriculture (DDA) announced beginning January 2, 2024, their seed laboratory will offer additional testing service options to assist producers. For the first time since 1999, DDA is increasing fees for services performed by the DDA Seed Lab.

Under 3 Del. C. § 1507, DDA’s Seed Lab can charge for seed testing services. The laboratory has not changed its fee structure in 24 years; however, the rising costs of testing supplies and equipment necessitated this increase.

The Plant Industries Section, which oversees the DDA Seed Laboratory, has added services, including Noxious Weed Count ($10/sample) and Cold Germination ($15/sample). In early 2024, the lab will add the Falling Number test, which helps identify flour quality by testing the enzymatic activity and structural integrity of starch chains in cereal crops. The Falling Numbers test will be $50/sample.

The following fee schedule will take effect on January 2, 2024, and be applied to each sample submitted:

 

2024 Seed Lab fees for germination, purity, and nozious weeds per sample for soybeans, corn, small grains, vegetables, grasses, grasses mixes, each components, and flowers, ornamentals, and herbs

 

For testing, one pound of seed should be submitted in a clean bag labeled with the type of seed and the date it was harvested. Samples are expected to be free of foreign matter, including debris and chaffing from the seed. Uncleaned samples and samples containing other grains will be subject to a cleaning fee of $30 per sample.

The Seed Lab also offers the following analyses:

  • Vomitoxin: $46/sample
  • Aflatoxin: $46/sample
  • Round-Up Tolerance: $20/sample
  • Seed Count (conditioned samples only): $10/sample

For additional details about these changes or submitting samples for testing, please contact the Delaware Department of Agriculture’s Seed Laboratory at 302-698-4590 or visit https://agriculture.delaware.gov/plant-industries.

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LEADelaware Seats Twelve Fellows for Class VII

DOVER, Del. (December 12, 2023) – Following an extensive application and interview process, LEADelaware has seated 12 fellows representing Delaware’s agriculture industry, who will begin a 2-year journey to develop leadership skills within the food, fiber, and natural resources industries.

“With 21 applicants, we had the second-largest pool of applicants in the program’s history, and these 12 fellows really rose to the top throughout the selection process for Class VII. This class will gain a unique perspective with five fellows actively farming in the state,” said LEADelaware Co-Director Chris Brosch. “The class represents all three counties, and we have a wide representation, including educators, growers and producers of poultry, specialty crops, grain, individuals involved in food access, and agency employees.”

The LEADelaware Fellows for 2024-2026 include Justin Blessing, Mule Run Farms; Kyle Brolis, Food Bank of Delaware; Nate Bruce, Delaware Cooperative Extension; Logan Field, Growmark FS; Nichole Krambeck, Insight Crop Scouting, LLC; Ash Kunder, Pint Family Farms / DNREC; Ashley Tabibian, DNREC; Lisa Porter, L & L Farms; Jill Pollock, Delaware Cooperative Extension; Melissa Tracy, Odyssey Charter School; Brooke Walls, Delaware Department of Agriculture; and Rebecca Schaller, Delaware Department of Agriculture.

“Chris and I are very pleased with the exceptional pool of applicants to Class VII. We are excited to get the program back up and running after a two-year hiatus, which allowed us to take time to assess what was working well with the program and what modifications were necessary,” said LEADelaware Co-Director Jennifer Volk. “With this cohort, we plan to not only discuss leadership and experience Delaware’s agriculture and natural resources but also focus on how we can all contribute to addressing the issues that challenge the sustainability of agriculture.”

The program offers unique learning opportunities where fellows will do site visits, attend seminars and expert panels, and participate in team activities and workshops. At the end of the program, the cohort will go on an international agriculture study trip to be determined in 2025. The trip will last roughly ten days, exhibit a country or region’s diversity of agriculture, and offer a behind-the-scenes look into an industry that is very different but likely has surprising similarities.

According to Delaware Secretary of Agriculture Michael T. Scuse, “Agriculture is Delaware’s number one industry, providing more than 69,000 jobs and nearly $10.3 billion of economic activity. While Delaware farmers produce various agricultural products on 530,000 acres of farmland, many Delawareans do not understand the importance of protecting our land from development. The LEADelaware graduates play an integral role in communicating and promoting the importance of agriculture to the communities and industries throughout our state.”

LEADelaware Alumni from Classes I – VI are invited to gather on January 9 from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. at Delaware Ag Week to meet the newest members of Class VII and learn what is planned for their cohort. Alumni Amber Bataille, Lindsay Lancaster, and Patti Web will share about their recent travels to Wyoming for the International Leadership Alumni Conference and discuss opportunities for additional alumni engagement going forward. Alumni must register before January 3, 2024, by contacting Karen Adams at adams@udel.edu or calling 302-831-3328 to ensure an accurate count for food.

LEADelaware is a partnership between the University of Delaware’s College of Agriculture and Natural Resources and the Delaware Department of Agriculture to build the next generation of leaders in agriculture, natural resources, and sustainability. For more information on the program, visit http://sites.udel.edu/leadelaware.

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