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ArborOne Farm Credit part of Crop Insurance Discussions

Don Boice and Debbie Fowler of ArborOne Farm Credit attended a round-table discussion about the proposed changes to the federal crop insurance program Monday, March 22, 2010, in Washington DC. This meeting was organized by the Farm Credit Council, the trade organization for the Farm Credit System, and attended by Farm Credit crop insurance experts, representatives of the Risk Management Agency and members of the FCC.

Congress is considering making changes to the crop insurance program next year. This insurance is a crucial part of farmers’ risk management planning which makes it important to Farm Credit.

“We are at the table and making a difference,” said Don Boice, Chief Relationship Manager at ArborOne.

William Murpy of the Risk Management Agency was present and interested to hear Farm Credit representatives’ comments.

“This is the beginning of a well-respected and informative relationship with RMA,” Debbie Fowler, Crop Insurance expert with ArborOne.

Future meetings are planned for this group to continue the crop insurance discussions.

ArborOne Farm Credit is an agricultural and rural financing cooperative covering the twelve counties of the Pee Dee region in South Carolina and a member of the Farm Credit System, a national federation of lending cooperatives serving agriculture and rural America since 1916.

Celebrate Ag Day!

March 20th is coming! How appropriate that the first day of spring is also National Ag Day. Whether you know it or not, agriculture provides almost everything we eat, use and wear on a daily basis. National Agriculture Week and National Ag Day is the time members of the agricultural industry come together to promote American agriculture.

You may ask "why should we celebrate Ag Day?" A few key reasons...

- increased knowledge of agriculture and nutrition helps you make better and more informed decisions about diet and health

- informed citizens help establish policies supporting a competitive agricultural industry in this country and abroad

- there are many employment opportunities in agriculture (including farm production, food science, processing and retailing, education, landscape architecture, urban planning, energy, and many more)

- from kindergarter to 12th grade, all students should receive some ag instuction

- agriculture is too important to only be taught to the small percentage of students considering careers in agriculture

- agricultural literacy includes an understanding of agriculture's history and current economic, social and environmental significance to all Americans. This understanding includes some knowledge of food, fiber and renewable resource production, processing and domestic and international marketing.

For more information about Ag Day and the importance of agriculture in our society, please visit the Agriculture Council of America website, www.agday.org.

Be sure to thank your local farmer!

Crop Insurance Sales Closing Day

Monday, March 1st, should be on every farmer’s calendar. March 1 is the sales closing day for crop insurance. What’s that? Sales closing day is the final day to make any changes (adding crops, entity changes, etc.) to an existing crop insurance policy or to write a new policy on spring crops.

ArborOne’s relationship managers are out making sure all customers and potential customers have made necessary updates.

"This is an important touch of our customers," says Andrea Benton, an ArborOne crop insurance coordinator. "It ensures that they and their operations are adequately protected for the 2010 crop year."

About ArborOne Farm Credit
ArborOne Farm Credit is an agricultural lending cooperative owned by its member-borrowers. It provides farm loans for land, equipment, livestock and production; recreational property loans; crop insurance; and rural home mortgages. It is part of the national Farm Credit System, a network of financial cooperatives established in 1916 to provide a dependable source of credit to farmers and rural America. ArborOne covers the twelve counties of the Pee Dee region of South Carolina. For more information, visit www.ArborOne.com.

More Than Loans for Land and Livestock - ArborOne Farm Credit

ArborOne Farm Credit is the cover story for the February Issue of the Greater Pee Dee Business Journal. In an in-depth article by Dan McCue accompanied by Benton Henry's photographs, ArborOne and its employees are introduced to readers.

President and CEO Jack Shuler is quoted, "Everyone here is dedicated to serving rural America..." And that is just what ArborOne Farm Credit does.

To read this article and view the pictures, please follow this link.

Website to feature articles by Dr. David Kohl

ArborOne Farm Credit is pleased to now offer quarterly articles by well-known agricultural economist Dr. David Kohl.

David Kohl has traveled over seven million miles throughout his professional career and conducted more than 5,000 workshops and seminars for agricultural groups such as bankers, Farm Credit, FSA, and reulators, as well as producer and agribusiness groups. He has published four books and over 1,000 articles on financial and business-related topics in journals, extension and other popular publications. Kohl regularly writes for Ag Lender and Corn and Soybean Digest.

Dr. Kohl received his M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Agricultural Economics from Cornell University.

We hope you will take advantage of this opportunity to enjoy Dr. Kohl's articles.

RAIN VI Conference - January 29th

"ADDING VALUE TO THE BUSINESS OF AGRICULTURE IN SOUTH CAROLINA"
The Business of Agriculture in South Carolina is big, and folks in the agribusiness industry as all other industries in today’s economy are looking for ways to add value and increase profits. It is for this reason Carolina AgriSolutions Growers Association "CASGA", Clemson Institute for Economic and Community Development, SC Department of Agriculture, Farm Bureau, Palmetto Institute, SC Tobacco Growers Assoc. and many others are taking part in the RAIN VI Conference to be held on Friday, January 29th at the Lake House on Clemson’s Sandhill Research and Education Center. (900 Clemson Road, Columbia, SC).

The focus of the 6th annual RAIN conference is to bring together farmers, agricultural leaders and others interested in the future of South Carolina agriculture. We will discuss and learn how to: develop and market enhanced value-added agricultural products and services; preserve and sustain agriculture for the overall quality of life and profitability in South Carolina and rejuvenate agriculture in the region.

The keynote speaker for the RAIN VI Conference will be Rowland Alston host of "Making it Grow!" He will bring an informative and enlightening message on "The Business of Agriculture in SC, Making it Grow". We will also hear from Tim Will, Executive Director of Foothills Connect, who has helped build a successful CSA program connecting small growers in the Rutherford County area of N.C. with restaurants and direct markets (www.FarmersFreshMarket.org). The SC Commissioner of Agriculture, Hugh Weathers will discuss the 50 / 20 vision for SC Agribusiness. Other topics on the agenda are: Agritourism, Muscadine and Value Added Initiatives, impact and survey studies, processing facilities and much more.

An outstanding "SC Fresh on the Menu" lunch from SpottedSalamanderCatering.com will be served, as well as an afternoon social featuring local beverages and products from the members of SC Specialty Foods Association.

Lots of things are happening with value added agriculture in South Carolina. We hope you will join us on Friday, January 29, 2010. Pass the word to others who may have an interest. Register by January 25th for the early bird registration - $30. For more information about RAIN VI (directions / hotel / etc.) visit the RAIN Blog: www.rainconference.blogspot.com or contact Jody Martin at 843-662-8423 or jodyamartin@gmail.com