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USDA to host workshop for farmers today
The U.S. Department of Agriculture is hosting a workshop for farmers at the Kagman Community Center today, June 25. All farmers are encouraged to attend the workshop that will start at 6:30pm.
The workshops theme is “What’s good for the farmer is good for everyone” and will focus on how to explore grants, financing, risk management, and technical assistance programs as well as opportunities to leverage resources and build partnerships.
Delegate Gregorio Kilili Sablan (Ind-MP) said that farming has been gaining momentum in the CNMI in the past few years, as evidenced by the increasing number of representatives that USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service sends to talk about the workshop’s goals.
“Your congressional office has encouraged this outreach by working with the Guam and Hawaii regional offices of FNS. This month’s visit is especially well timed, coinciding with the opening of the Garapan Public Market, where fishermen and farmers will be able to sell their products,” Sablan said.
Sablan said the public market was paid for in part with a $200,000 congressional earmark he obtained for the CNMI in fiscal year 2010.
The public market was through a collaborative leadership effort, which dates back to the February 2009 Agriculture Summit held at the Saipan World Resort. It will soon bear fruit with the opening of the first Garapan Public Market located at the Garapan Fishing Base. The public market offers a modern facility located along the Beach Road waterfront that will provide farmers and other local producers an important outlet to market their fresh produce, fresh catch, locally made value-added agricultural products and other local fresh products where buyers and other consumers will find local and fresh off-the-land produce and products and fresh off-the-water catch and marine products at a centrally located market.
