Press Releases

 Pictured, left to right, Jeremy Flowers, operated of Flowers Timber Company; Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler; Arnold Flowers, who started the Flowers Timber Company; and Michelle Wang, NCDA&CS International Marketing Specialist.
WHO/WHAT:The Agricultural Development and Farmland Preservation Trust Fund will hold an advisory committee meeting to:
The N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services’ Standards Division has collected fines from 52 stores in 33 counties because of excessive price-scanner errors.         
 Joseph Hudyncia of Apex is the new Section Chief of Field Services for the N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services’ Agronomic Services Division. 
Rowan County has an emu that tested positive for High Path Avian Influenza (HPAI). The positive sample was identified by the N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services Veterinary Diagnostic Lab in Raleigh.This is the first confirmed positive in Rowan County. In late spring and early summer, HPAI was found at nine poultry farms in Johnston and Wayne counties, and recently HPAI was found in a single backyard flock in Wake County, a single backyard flock in Durham County, a single backyard flock in Carteret County and two flocks in Union County.
The N.C. Board of Agriculture will hold a meeting Monday, Jan. 30, at 1 p.m. in the training room of the Steve Troxler Agricultural Sciences Center in Raleigh.The board will take up the following items:
 Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler has named Kelly Nilsson director of the Emergency Programs Division at the N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. Nilsson replaces John Howard, who retired Dec. 31.
Now that harvest is complete, the focus for many growers turns to soil sampling and formulating nutrient management plans for next season. For some, it is a time to reflect on yields and if goals were not met, ponder different strategies. 
Group tours of three of the most widely used N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services’ Agronomic Services labs have resumed. Groups can book a tour for the nematode assay; plant, waste solution and media; and soil testing labs Monday through Friday, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.Growers and homeowners throughout the state use these labs for soil and growing recommendations. In fiscal year 2022, these labs analyzed 379,039 samples and issued 52,414 reports. Tours had been discontinued due to COVID and concerns for the safety and health of workers and the public.
The N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services is accepting grant applications for the Specialty Crop Block Grant Program. Nonprofits and government agencies wishing to apply have until March 3 at 5 p.m.Applicants can submit a draft application for staff review by Jan. 25 to gain feedback on their grant proposals. A pdf of the draft application should be sent to jenni.keith@ncagr.gov.