Virginia consumers are increasingly interested in purchasing locally grown berries such as strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries. This demand has piqued Virginia growers’ interest in berry crops as a potential specialty product. Nearly two-thirds of Virginia’s berry crop producers sell through direct markets such as pick-your-own operations, roadside stands, farmers markets, and Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) programs. Some producers are also interested in selling to alternative markets such as supermarkets. This publication assesses the potential demand for berry crops among supermarkets in Virginia and examines the requirements producers must adhere to in order to successfully sell to supermarkets.

The purpose of this publication is to help improve buyer understanding of retail meat and poultry product labels using text and infographics. Each infographic contains basic facts and straightforward definitions of common words and phrases included on labels used on meat and poultry products found in grocery stores nationwide.

Grain and soybean production is a critical component of Virginia agriculture — the state’s No. 1 industry (VDACS 2013). Virginia’s farmers produced more than half a billion bushels of grain and soybeans over the span of 2006 to 2012 (USDA-NASS 2013b)1. The objectives of this publication are to characterize the market for grain production and storage in Virginia.

Agriculture is the largest industry in Virginia, with an economic impact of about $52 billion, and it provides over 357,000 jobs to Virginia’s residents (VDACS 2013). In addition, those value-added industries that depend on the farm products employ an additional 76,000 individuals, which generates another $34.6 billion in value-added revenue (VDACS 2013a). Despite the impact that the agriculture industry has on Virginia’s economy, there are several issues of concern.

This fact sheet is a product of the 2014 Spring Kohl Centre Experience. To find out more about this project team and related information, please go to the Kohl Centre at Virginia Tech’s website: www.kohlcentre.aaec.vt.edu.

This fact sheet is a product of the 2014 Fall Kohl Centre Experience. To find out more about this project team and related information, please go to the Kohl Centre at Virginia Tech’s website: www.kohlcentre.aaec.vt.edu.

In response to the COVID-19 Pandemic, a project was initiated through a partnership between the Virginia Seafood Agricultural Research and Extension Center (VSAREC), the Virginia Institute of Marine Science Marine Advisory Program (VIMS MAP), the Virginia Coastal Policy Center (VCPC), and Old Dominion University (ODU) to address a variety of topics related to seafood marketing and new marketing channels. From this project several resources pertaining to direct-to-consumer marketing, online sales, COVID-19 at the workplace, and general requirements within the industry were created and made available to Virginia seafood producers and allied businesses.

This site outlines commodity information and resources to help Virginia producers build successful agricultural enterprises. It includes auctions, historical prices, basis, marketing trends, and more.

The purpose of this white paper is to convey findings of a large Hard Cider Sensory Project conducted from 2020-2022, with realistic applications for how best to communicate the sensory quality of cider. Recommendations made in this white paper are based on the most current research in the field initiated by researchers at Virginia Tech and Cornell University. These sensory-focused research projects were funded by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) to support growth of the hard cider industry particularly in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic United States.