By: André Kok
Eight interns and five staff members from the Farm Service Agency (FSA) offices in Washington, D.C., were recently able to gain firsthand experience in the daily lives of FSA County Office staff and their customers during a visit to rural Virginia this July.
One day last month, the FSA group loaded a 15 passenger van and left Washington, D.C., at 8:00 a.m., arriving an hour later at the USDA Service Center in Fredericksburg, Va.
Farm Loan Manager Kim DePasquale welcomed the group and introduced the entire County Office staff. The crew received brief overviews of the loans process and the supplemental income programs administered through the county office. DePasquale explained how just in this one office alone, FSA supported 19 different agricultural industries from sheep cheese to turkey farms to wineries.
The D.C. crew then headed off to the Fredericksburg Farmers Market. The market is open daily and features fresh fruit and vegetables from local producers. The group sampled local cantaloupe, peaches and produce, and made some purchases as well.
“Visiting the farmers market made me think about how competitive the sales are for the farmers,” said Wendy Echeverría, an FSA intern in Human Resources. “With everyone selling almost the exact same thing right next to each other, the farmers are really challenged to market their products successfully.”
With their shopping bags loaded into the van, the group took a short drive through the country to Silver Ridge Farm, owned by Jerry Silver. For some interns, this was the first time they had ever set foot on a real farm.
Silver loaded the group onto a flatbed trailer and pulled them around the farm, showing many facets of his operation, including cattle grazing, a feedlot, corn and hay fields, Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) land, a butcher shop, meat locker and water conservation projects. Silver also explained how he utilized various FSA programs to keep his farm running efficiently.
“It was impressive to see all of the nearly identical cuts of meat hanging in rows in the freezer of Jerry's family-sized slaughter house,” said Timothy Hall, an FSA intern in the Public Affairs Branch. “I like that each customer can pick the particular kind of beef they want and which cow it will come from.”
After enjoying a picnic lunch on hay bales under the shade of a cluster of trees, the group departed for their final destination of the day, C&T Produce in Fredericksburg. Farm owners and operators Craig and Tracy DeBernard met the group at their distribution and packaging warehouse. The warehouse has recently upgraded to include an office, thanks to an FSA direct operating loan.
The interns learned how C&T farms have grown over the years and how they sell both wholesale produce and at farmers markets throughout the region. Many interns recognized C&T farms as one of the regular vendors at the weekly USDA Farmers Market held each Friday in Washington, D.C., during the summer months. Interns and staff were able to sample a variety of watermelons fresh from the field and then headed out to a field to see how the crop was planted and grown.
“Seeing, in practice, how farmers combine farm loans with other programs like crop insurance and conservation gave me a larger picture of how the USDA encourages and controls production,” said Margaret McKeehan, an intern in Farm Loan Programs. “The highlight for me was getting to see the types of operations the USDA is working to sustain and meeting the people behind them.”
Full of watermelon and new, firsthand knowledge of how FSA supports America’s producers, the group arrived back in Washington during the late afternoon.
Jerry Silver points out where specific cuts of meat come from as he explains how he butchers cattle on site for customers at his farm near Fredericksburg, Va.
FSA summer interns gather in front of the USDA Service Center in Fredericksburg. Back row (left to right): Adam Pesta, Timothy Hall. Front Row: Nathan Nazareno, Margaret McKeehan, Alana Wauneka, Melissa McCray, Wendy Echeverria.
Alana Wauneka and Melissa McCray, both FSA interns, inspect peaches for sale at a Farmers Market in Virginia.
