CORONAVIRUS (COVID-19) RESOURCE CENTER Read More
Add To Favorites

Program To Aid Farmer Veterans

Daily News-Record - 8/7/2017

HARRISONBURG - When their military service ends, veterans can have a hard time finding a job.

A new state program, though, aims to give men and women who served their country a marketing edge if they opt to go into Virginia's largest industry.

On July 24, Gov. Terry McAuliffe announced a partnership with the nonprofit Farmer Veteran Coalition to highlight products grown in Virginia by veterans.

A new image will combine the Virginia Grown logo with the coalition's Homegrown by Heroes insignia.

The goal is to give consumers inclined to support veteran-owned businesses a way to identify items grown or manufactured in Virginia by former military personnel.

"There is a groundswell of support for veterans, and there is a dire need for new farmers," John Fant, chairman of the newly formed Virginia FVC chapter, said in a news release from the Virginia Farm Bureau Federation. "We worked with the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services to develop this logo to demonstrate that a product is grown by veterans here in Virginia."

A cattleman and retired U.S. Army colonel, Fant said the branding effort's goal is to encourage more veterans to take up farming when their military careers end. The unemployment rate for veterans was 5.1 percent in 2016, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, slightly higher than the national average of 4.9 percent for the year.

Richard Tate isn't ready to dive full time into farming yet. But the retired navy aviator thinks he and one of his sons might leverage the Virginia Grown-Homegrown by Heroes branding program for food grown on his family's Century Farm outside Stanley.

"Rural communities have borne the majority of folks participating in those efforts overseas," Tate, 55, said of the conflicts abroad the U.S. has been involved with in recent decades. "This is a great opportunity to support that group of folks that really has been involved in the Middle East conflicts, those rural sons and daughters."

Marketing Value

Tate, who retired from the Navy as a commander in 2005, understands the potential value of the program from both sides of the equation.

From the agriculture side, he leases pasture and is produces beef, timber and hay on the Richard Foltz Farm. From the marketing side, he's the director of the Center for Professional Sales in James Madison University'sCollege of Business and a lecturer in the business school's master's program.

When he retired after 20 years of military service, Tate said he took ownership of his family's farm but has only had a chance to dabble in its production opportunities because he took jobs with companies such as Boeing and Lockheed Martin before joining JMU's faculty.

But Tate thinks his sons - particularly 26-year-old Kevin, who's doing environmental education work in small Peruvian communities through the Peace Corps - might see agriculture as a potential career, so he has an eye toward boosting production.

"When I became involved, my intent was for us to become producers in Virginia," he said in a phone interview. "It can provide some opportunity for my children in the farming community in Virginia."

The Virginia Grown-HBH designation, he said, could give military men and women a boost as they try to start or grow an agriculture-related business, whether it's a direct-to-consumer business, wholesaling a value-added product, or selling to farm-to-table restaurants.

"It's a marketing opportunity for veterans," said Tate, "and there's a great group of veterans not only Virginia but throughout the country getting involved in those family farms, those rural communities."

Support Expected

The branding effort won't provide a boost to farmers growing birds for a major poultry company or milk sold to a cooperative. It's tailored to help veterans involved in direct-to-consumer sales and those using Virginia-grown products to manufacture value-added foods.

To qualify to use the Virginia Grown Homegrown by Heroes logo, a producer must meet the Virginia Grown criteria and:

¦ Be a veteran or on active duty in the U.S. Armed Forces, National Guard or Reserve.

¦ Provide a copy of his Department of Defense Form 214 or equivalent.

¦ Have received an honorable discharge or general discharge under honorable conditions.

¦ If on active duty, provide a letter of support from his commanding officer or designated representative attesting to his service under honorable conditions.

¦ Maintain 50 percent or greater veteran ownership of their business or operation and 50 percent or greater veteran management control.

¦ Have 50 percent or more nonwater ingredients produced by HBH-certified producers for items certified under the label.

The program includes training and education for farmers.

Steve Cooke, general manager of the Friendly City Food Co-op, said Friday that he patronizes Mission Mulch, owned and operated by veteran Jimmy Flynn, and he thinks Homegrown by Heroes products can be popular on the store's shelves.

"I think," he said, "people will be interested in supporting that, absolutely."

VDACS spokeswoman Dawn Eischen said some farmers already have inquired about the program. The department hopes to have the new logo in circulation "at farmers markets, farm stands and in grocery stores as soon as possible."

Applications are being taken, with details available at VirginiaGrown.com. Farmers must sign up with the FVC (farmvetco.org), then work with VDACS to get the logo.

The coalition, Tate said, is a great resource for veterans, providing microloans and other assistance.

"A lot of veterans are coming back to their farms, they've been gone a long time, and their farms might have declined in their absence," he said. "They may not be taking over well-run farms that have been in operation over the last few years.

"The Farmer Veteran Coalition provides the types of resources and marketing to help them perhaps get through the initial hurdle from a startup perspective and market their products."

Contact Vic Bradshaw at 574-6279 or vbradshaw@dnronline.com