Governor's Office of Agricultural Policy, Kentucky Department of Agriculture

FRANKFORT, Ky. (Sept. 21, 2018) — The Kentucky Agricultural Development Board (KADB) approved up to $2,908,425 in state tobacco settlement funds over a two-year period to the Kentucky Department of Agriculture (KDA) to support the Kentucky Proud agricultural marketing program in the board’s Sept. 21 meeting.

The award was one of 28 agricultural investments totaling more than $5.5 million that the board approved in its September business meeting.

Kentucky Proud is the Commonwealth’s official agricultural marketing program. The Kentucky Proud brand designates agricultural and food products raised, produced, and/or manufactured in Kentucky. More than 7,700 farmers, processors, restaurants, retailers, school systems, colleges, farmers’ markets, Kentucky state parks, and Kentucky Farm Bureau certified roadside markets are members of Kentucky Proud. For more information about Kentucky Proud, go to kyproud.com.

Other funding awarded included:

Kentucky Grape & Wine Council
The Kentucky Department of Agriculture was approved for up to $280,000 in state funds over a two-year period to support the Kentucky Grape & Wine Council (KGWC). Funds for this program will focus on two main areas: branding and advertising, wholesale reimbursement incentives. For more information on this project, contact Tyler Madison at (502) 782-4117 or (859) 351-0323. Visit kentuckywine.com for more information about KGWC.

Mini-Grants & Demonstrations
Kentucky State University (KSU) was approved for an additional $495,000 in state funds towards a 2-year program that provides support to demonstration projects and mini-grants for underserved, small and limited-resource farmers. The focus areas for this project are aquaculture, value-added, organic, farmer education and food insecure areas. For more information about this project, contact Dr. Kirk Pomper at (502) 597-5942 or kirk.pomper@kysu.edu. More about KSU may be found at kysu.edu.

County Investments:

Agricultural Building Improvements
Greenup County Fiscal Court was approved for up to $3,000 in Greenup County funds for agricultural building improvements at the Greenup County Fairgrounds. For more information on this project, contact Robert Carpenter at (606) 473-6440 or rcarpenter@zoominternet.net.

Environmental Stewardship
The Deceased Farm Animal Removal Program serves as a measure to facilitate the coordination of environmentally sound and cost effective disposal of deceased livestock for Kentucky producers. Four Deceased Farm Animal Removal Programs were approved by the board totaling $23,462 for Franklin ($4,500), Montgomery ($6,400), Taylor ($7,500) and Washington ($5,062) counties.

On-Farm Investments
The County Agricultural Investment Program (CAIP) offers 11 investment areas that give Kentucky agricultural producers the ability to increase net farm income, add value to their products and diversify their operation. CAIP benefits and enhances agriculture across the state by stimulating markets for Kentucky agricultural products. Thirteen CAIPs were approved by the board totaling $1,629,262 for Caldwell ($93,728), Cumberland ($106,788), Fayette ($215,000), Franklin ($109,719), Hart ($250,000), LaRue ($30,000), Menifee ($69,950), Perry ($10,440), Robertson ($215,000), Simpson ($65,287), Trigg ($60,350), Washington ($153,000), and Woodford ($250,000) counties.

In addition to these new approvals, an additional $110,711 was approved to enhance an existing CAIP in Clinton ($90,000) and Mercer ($20,711) counties.

Next Generation Farmers
The Next Generation Beginning Farmer Program (NextGen) was developed to facilitate the growing need for a specialized program that would benefit producers engaged in an agricultural operation from three to seven years. One NextGen Program was approved for Washington County, totaling $52,500.

Shared-use Equipment Program
The Shared-use Equipment Program assists broad-based community organizations with the purchase of farm equipment. The equipment purchased is made available for producer use in a specific county on a leased basis. Two Shared-use Equipment Programs were approved totaling $30,446 for Hopkins ($9,206) and Woodford ($21,240) counties.

Youth Agricultural Incentives Program
The Youth Agricultural Incentives Program (Youth) serves as a measure to facilitate the growing need for a specialized program that benefits youth actively engaged in agriculture. Two Youth Programs were approved for a total of $15,099 for Shelby ($10,000) and Spencer ($5,099) counties.