N.C. Cooperative Extension-Alexander County Newsletter September 2021

"Cleaning up your garden? Got some tomatoes that are starting to ripe? Try canning your own salsa. Within the last week, we've received several calls around issues with canning homemade salsa. Making salsa is easy and does not require any high tech equipment, but we recommend using tested recipes when canning. Follow these steps below from the National Centers for Home Food Center for your own choice salsa. Got a question about a recipe or canning gone wrong? Call or send an email to our Family & Consumer Science Agent, Der Holcomb at 828.632.3125 or email der_xiong@ncsu.edu.

From an overflowing abundance of home grown produce to traditional family practices, we all canned food for our own personal reasons. Some may have been practicing this art since childhood while others may be attempting their first jar. Regardless of the motive or reason, we should all be following a tested recipe when canning to ensure that there is very limited risk of getting you or anyone you love sick from eating your canned foods. From an overflowing abundance of home grown produce to traditional family practices, we all can food for our own personal reasons. Some may have been practicing this art since childhood while others may be attempting their first jar. Regardless of the motive or reason, we should all be following a tested recipe when canning to ensure that there is very limited risk of getting you or anyone you love sick from eating your canned foods. One of the most common mistakes that we see within Extension is not using a scientifically tested recipe. So what do we mean when we say “research-tested” or “research-based” when it comes to canning? When developing and testing out new recipes, several things are tested including acidity or pH and viscosity or density for proper processing time. Canned foods are tested for acidity to ensure that there is very little risk for botulism and other food borne illness to occur while viscosity is tested to ensure that the correct amount of time is executed to allow for proper heat penetration to kill off all spoilage pathogens. Although there are more variables measured when completing these tests, most homeowners will most likely not have the right equipment to properly measure and test these two variables out. Hence our biggest recommendation is to start with a tested recipe from a reliable resource such as the So Easy to Preserve book.

If you would like to purchase the So Easy to Preserve book, the NC Cooperative Extension Alexander County Center has a limited supply and can be purchased at $25 per book. This book is great as a gift for new canners and expert canners containing over 185 tested recipes along with step-by-step instruction and in-depth information to canning, pickling, jams and jellies, freezing and drying.

USDA is providing up to $1 billion for payments to contract producers of eligible livestock and poultry of up to 80 percent of their revenue losses from January 1, 2020, through December 27, 2020. These funds were made available through the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021.

Contract producers of broilers, pullets, layers, chicken eggs, turkeys, and hogs and pigs may be eligible for CFAP 2. Ducks, geese, pheasants, and quail produced under contract are also eligible commodities, as well as breeding stock of eligible livestock and eggs of all eligible poultry types raised by contract producers.

Payments for contract producers are based on a comparison of eligible revenue for the periods of January 1, 2019, through December 27, 2019, and January 1, 2020, through December 27, 2020. Contract growers may elect to use eligible revenue from the period of January 1, 2018, through December 27, 2018, instead of that date range in 2019 as a more representative comparison to 2020. This is intended to provide flexibility and make CFAP 2 more equitable for contract producers who had reduced revenue in 2019 compared to a normal year for their operation. The difference in revenue is then multiplied by 80 percent to determine a final payment, as shown in the following equation:

Expected CFAP 2 Payment for Contract Producers = ((Eligible Revenue Received from January 1, 2019 through December 27, 2019 OR January 1, 2018 through December 27, 2018) – (Eligible revenue received from January 1, 2020 through December 27, 2020) x 0.80)

FSA may now adjust a contract producer’s eligible revenue based on information certified by the contract producer if the producer did not have a full period of revenue from January 1 to December 27 for either 2018 or 2019, or if the contract producer increased their operation size in 2020. Additionally, payments will be provided for eligible contract producers who were not in operation in 2018 or 2019, who would have been ineligible under the previous final rule. Assistance for these producers is based on their 2020 eligible revenue and the average revenue loss level, which will be determined by USDA for a geographic area or region based on the best available data.

Payments to contract producers may be factored if total calculated payments exceed the available funding. These flexibilities will be available to contract producers beginning Monday, August 30, 2021. For more information please contact the Farm Service Agency at 704-872-5061 ext. 102.

https://www.farmers.gov/coronavirus/pandemic-assistance/cfap2

Planting a Winter Annual Mix for Grazing
Are you considering planting annuals to improve your late winter, early spring grazing? Winter annuals can provide increased quality forage for creep grazing calves, stockers, or supplementing the cow herd to reduce hay consumption. Ryegrass has always been a go to when planting winter annuals. It is definitely hard to beat when it comes to tonnage and quality. However it can sometimes hang on well into late spring early summer, depending on the weather. Typically ryegrass will die out as temperatures rise and hot weather sets in.
Winter annuals can be particularly beneficial in a grass fed beef operation or to supplement low hay inventory. Below is a chart with recommended seeding rates for planting one species or a mixture.