August, 2018
AAD officials hosted 20 Arkansas high school junior and senior students from the Arkansas Farm Bureau Youth Leadership Seminar program. Students heard from various program areas and agencies, with encouragement from all speakers to choose agriculture as a career path.
The AAD's Arkansas Forestry Commission, Arkansas Game and Fish Commission, and Arkansas Fire Training Academy hosted Fire Boat Operations Training on Lake Dardanelle. Training introduces new boat operators, and crews that have acquired fire boats through the Rural Fire Program, to the basics of fire boat operation, safety, and maneuvering. Instructors and crew members from Wilburn, Yell County & Searcy fire departments are pictured.
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AAD Livestock and poultry inspectors visited with statewide cattle producers, families, and industry partners at the 60th  Arkansas Cattlemen's Association Convention and Trade Show.
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Aaron Palmer is winner of the AAD's Quarterly Efficiency Award. His idea to move seed analysis results to an online format results in an immediate savings for the Seed Laboratory of $1,500. In all over the last fiscal year, the AAD has reduced postage costs by $9,900+.
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Three new JD550K dozers were delivered to AAD forestry crews in Faulkner, Newton and Lincoln Counties, to continue maintaining a state-of-the-art wildland firefighting fleet across Arkansas. Crews are pictured at the District 7 Headquarters in Greenbrier, where personnel pick up and train with new equipment.
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For the second year, the AAD hosted student interns through the Southern United States Trade Association (SUSTA). Interns are responsible for providing Arkansas agricultural businesses access to opportunities in international markets through SUSTA.Baylee Milam of Vilonia, Sydney Smith of Beebe, Rob Branscum of Marshall participated in the program. Baylee and Sydney are pictured here with Governor Hutchinson and the AAD Marketing Team at the State Capitol.

In a new blog, find narratives that capture experiences and offerings of Arkansas operations with locally grown and made products:





Arkansas Ag Fact:

August is Catfish Month. AAD officials will gather alongside aquaculture industry leaders and stakeholders at the State Capitol on August 9 for an official Arkansas Catfish Month Proclamation event with Governor Hutchinson.

Arkansas consistently ranks in the top three states in the nation for the production of food-size, farm-raised catfish. Arkansas catfish farmers contributed $18.1 million to Arkansas's agricultural economy in foodsize fish sales last year.

Arkansas catfish producers had 10.3 million foodsize fish in inventory on January 1, an increase of 61% from 2017.

Learn more from the Catfish Farmers of Arkansas and the Catfish Institute.
What is one way the AAD serves Arkansas farmers and ranchers?

The AAD has signed a cooperative agreement with the USDA's Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) to serve as the state partner for the Livestock Market News reporting program.

AAD Livestock market news reporters will collect industry-specific data from five Arkansas livestock auctions in August and will add three additional auctions in September. Eight Arkansas livestock auctions with market reporters include those in Searcy, Hope, Ash Flat, Siloam Springs, Ratcliff, Green Forest, Ola, and Ozark. Daily and weekly reports will be listed, here. A voicemail update of the report is available by calling 501-823-1728. Find a list of all Arkansas livestock auctions, here.

The Arkansas Agriculture Department is a partner in the agriculture-focused microsite of Talk Business and Politics   The AAD has no part in content generated, but rather, is a partner in supporting agriculture-industry news in Arkansas. See a few of the latest ag-related stories: