Transcript
Alexis : Hello friends! How's everybody feeling today?
Plant People: Hello, hello. It feels like it's still summer in Kentucky.
Jessica : Hmm.
Alexis : Yes.
Plant People: I know we start out with the weather here lately, it seems like, but it's been hot.
Alexis : Yeah, it's Muggies.
Plant People: it's its summer's not Summer's here, and it's staying for a while.
Alexis : miserable outside, but.
Plant People: Yeah.
Alexis : That's okay. We're going to get through it. that's the That's the positivity we're bringing today.
Plant People: It's fun.
Alexis : We're just we're just getting through stuff. But um I have a fun question for you I thought of. um And we're going to start with our guest that we have on today, Esten. So Esten, my fun question is...
Alexis : If you were to have... Any? unusual pet. I'm not going to say exotic. I'm going to say unusual, but you can go that way if you want to. What would you have?
Brett: Unusual pet.
Alexis : Unusual Pet
Eston Williams: Oh, wow. You know what? It would have to be a lion.
Plant People: Ooh.
Alexis : i knew You were going to go big cat.
Eston Williams: yeah
Plant People: going strong right out of the gate I like that not messing around
Jessica : Oh.
Alexis : Yeah, yeah.
Jessica : Yeah.
Eston Williams: and And let me share this with you because being that...
Alexis : ah
Eston Williams: you might not believe in zodiac signs but i'm a leo and my birthday is coming up this month the 21st of august so
Alexis : o August babies.
Eston Williams: Yep. Hey yeah! What better... animal or pet to have would be a lion but now we have to be claw him and maybe do some other adjustments.
Jessica : so Some safety precautions.
Alexis : Yes, yes
Plant People: Now you're going to have to feed that line, you know.
Alexis : he of course would be non -aggressive you know you would have endless money to feed him you know that's what we're going with this unusual pets that you can care for ah
Eston Williams: Yes.
Plant People: The dad part of my brain says. Thank you.
Eston Williams: so
Plant People: Yes. Yeah.
Eston Williams: Yeah.
Plant People: The Lion.
Eston Williams: Oh, yeah. ah Yeah. So I'll have to go with the lion.
Alexis : Perfect. I like it. Strong.
Eston Williams: Yes.
Alexis : We like it.
Eston Williams: Good question.
Alexis : All right.
Eston Williams: Yeah.
Plant People: Love it.
Alexis : Jessica?
Jessica : I have a long list. Um...
Plant People: Oh.
Jessica : One I always said as a child it was I would always want an elephant.
Alexis : Same.
Jessica : But in reality, um something that my husband would probably leave me for a toxic trait of mine would be probably a raccoon.
Alexis : and
Jessica : That would be something easily to get.
Eston Williams: That's all.
Plant People: Dang. Why does everyone on social media wants a raccoon?
Jessica : he He would probably leave me.
Eston Williams: yeah
Alexis : A new Jimothy.
Jessica : Just just something something about them, right?
Alexis : you're The next Jimothy.
Plant People: Jimothy.
Jessica : They look so cute. But they're also so violent.
Eston Williams: Yes.
Plant People: Mom.
Jessica : got a lot of We got a lot of beef with raccoons and chickens lately.
Alexis : Is that why you like me, Jessica? Is that why we're friends? So cute but so violent.
Jessica : Right, exactly
Alexis : Alright.
Plant People: Approachable, but yet prickly. Yes, there you go. Perfect.
Alexis : All right, ah Ray, what's your unusual animal?
Plant People: Well, since Raccoon was taken up, I was thinking a bentarong, a bearcat.
Jessica : aha
Plant People: It is a real creature called a bearcat.
Eston Williams: oh ah
Jessica : Oh. Yes.
Plant People: It's a bentarong, but it's a nickname my dad gave me, and I thought it was always made up, and I looked it up one day, and I was like, oh. It's a real thing. A bear cat.
Alexis : My dad is so smart.
Plant People: is a real thing and so my son's nickname is also bear cat so that's our that must be our family spirit animal i mean just like me it can't make up its mind of what it wants to be so a bear cat
Eston Williams: oh
Jessica : I'm...
Plant People: I bent her wrong.
Jessica : Pretty sure they're supposed to smell like popcorn. I'm not making this up. So do you smell like popcorn?
Plant People: Even better.
Alexis : We're going to be fact -checked in the comments.
Plant People: Even better.
Alexis : Fact -check us in the comments.
Brett: it smell Does it smell like a popcorn whether or not you're having a stroke when you smell it? or
Plant People: True, yes.
Alexis : ah
Jessica : Right.
Plant People: Is it just a your brain firing off, or does it really smell like popcorn?
Brett: Yeah, yeah
Alexis : ah
Eston Williams: that
Plant People: These are things we need to know, yeah.
Brett: Our blood pressure went up now. Sort of like toast or popcorn.
Plant People: Yeah. Yeah. I'm smelling popcorn.
Alexis : Top one, yeah.
Brett: i cannot na yeah
Plant People: Yeah.
Eston Williams: ah
Plant People: So a binturong.
Alexis : Brett, what's your unusual animal?
Brett: Well, so we have we have a pet snake.
Eston Williams: Oh wow.
Brett: at our house.
Alexis : Good.
Brett: I don't. It's my... more belongs to my wife. um And I have, you know, most people won't know this. I have a ah passion for falconry. uh it sort of like makes me unique oh no wait that's you alexis
Plant People: Yeah.
Alexis : ah
Brett: So I think i think if if you're a falconer, I'm more like an ostricher. So I'm going to say an ostrich.
Eston Williams: Okay.
Plant People: Okay.
Brett: I don't know how sociable if they require a lot of socialization, probably not. But like if we can just sort of meet outside and kind of.
Alexis : Just vibe outside.
Brett: look at each other and then
Alexis : Yeah.
Plant People: I'm thinking of the Swiss Family Robinsons, the original Disney movie, where those things, I've always wanted to ride one of those. I don't know if that's advisable or possible, but I've been infatuated with ostriches ever since I watched Swiss Family Robinson at an early age on Disney.
Plant People: That goes way back.
Alexis : affect isn' it
Brett: i don't I don't think just considering the... the rules of physics that i will be riding an ostrich anytime soon but
Alexis : ah
Brett: I think someone could, you know, maybe maybe Alexis or or or Jessica.
Plant People: And I hear they make big omelets, rather large eggs. So, I mean.
Brett: I didn't know they could cook.
Plant People: Winning, winning.
Brett: Hmm.
Eston Williams: guys
Plant People: They can, they can.
Brett: Okay.
Plant People: They will even do like a scramble for you.
Jessica : Give a little...
Brett: are you telling me ah Are you telling me a shrimp fried this rice?
Jessica : Little tiny chef hat.
Brett: Yeah.
Plant People: Boo. Boo, Brett. Boo. Well played, sir. Well played.
Brett: Alexis, is yours?
Alexis : Where he pulls this from. what what were you
Brett: Is yours falconry or?
Alexis : Well, I actually didn't consider that unusual, but... ah
Brett: Ha ha. Me either.
Alexis : Hehehehehehe
Plant People: Yeah, it is totally normal.
Alexis : My lifelong passion is not um unusual, but yes. No, I would say. Besides that, um I would love to have a little. It's going to sound kind of weird, but I'm a little obsessed with them. Jessica knows.
Alexis : ah pet jumping spiders, the little cute fluffy ones.
Brett: We know.
Jessica : Oh, yeah.
Eston Williams: boy
Plant People: Little Lucas.
Jessica : They're cute.
Plant People: You want a little Lucas?
Eston Williams: And then we'll kiss.
Alexis : Yes, they're so cute.
Jessica : We... We can make that happen, Alexis.
Alexis : They're so cute.
Brett: Yeah, it feels the most feasible of all the ones that were listed
Alexis : I know, but but I said unusual, not exotic, because how many people do you know with Pet Jumping Spider?
Plant People: yeah You probably have that on your porch right now.
Brett: Oh yeah. No, it wasn't the judgment. I just mean, I just mean like if this, I don't know how deep your desire runs beyond just.
Alexis : Okay. Yeah, well, you know. We all have a lot to have goals.
Jessica : well Guess what you're getting for your birthday.
Alexis : which have goals
Plant People: Hmm.
Eston Williams: on a
Plant People: A tiny jumping spider.
Alexis : My husband will lose his mind.
Brett: When we went to the
Alexis : He does not like spiders.
Plant People: Doesn't like spiders, yeah.
Brett: When we went to the reptile show in Louisville to get any snake, there was a woman there with a jumping spider on her shoulder.
Alexis : but
Brett: And apparently. the The female jumping spiders are considerably more independent and so sort of finicky and the male jumping spiders are more like loyal and kind of will hang around.
Plant People: Okay.
Alexis : Needy, needy.
Brett: Do for that what you will. I um i didn't... Submitted without commentary.
Plant People: Okay. that was not a leading comment or anything no
Brett: But... So if you know if you're looking for one that's going to hang around for a while. See if you can get a boy jumping spider.
Plant People: Get a Lucas.
Eston Williams: ha
Alexis : Noted. Noted.
Brett: Mm -hmm.
Plant People: Duly noted.
Alexis : Well, as you as you all heard, we have a guest on today.
Eston Williams: Yeah.
Alexis : I'm very excited um to welcome Esen. So Esen, tell us about yourself. Who are you? What you do?
Eston Williams: Oh, great, great. Once again, my name is Esten Williams. um I serve as right now the Navigator Project Specialist with the Southern Risk Management Education Center at the University of Arkansas.
Eston Williams: a little bit of background uh for myself uh grew up in Tennessee, the western part of the state, right outside of Memphis, a little small town. called Summerville.
Eston Williams: My grandfather. truck crop. We still now on We used to run a cow -calf operation. we now run standard bred horses we have about 60 horses that
Alexis : Well?
Eston Williams: we go to shows compete things that nature's my high school days uh got involved a lot with agriculture because we grew up kind of on the farm but i got involved with ffa Did a lot of livestock judging.
Eston Williams: land judge and soil judge and you name it went on to college Tennessee State University and major in plant science, had a minor in animal science. and became the president of the Gromit Club of the era. and After graduation, went on to work for, at the time,
Eston Williams: I'm dating myself now. Oh. soil conservation service. which got started in 1937 by Hugh Henry Bennett and then later on
Alexis : Mm hmm.
Eston Williams: Some years later, we switched names to Natural Resources Conservation Service. so did about 32 years of the agency and then my latter part of my career i uh serve as the um We had a thing called. um We ran a national scholars program. I became a USA liaison. I was housed at Tennessee State University where I brought in kids and linked them with careers and opportunities across the country with USDA. so
Eston Williams: giving close to about 42 years of USDA work and now Thought I would retire, but as a good friend of mine. Run Rainey and say, Esten, your work is not done, man.
Eston Williams: We could use you.
Alexis : ah
Eston Williams: with the Southern Risk Management Education Center.
Alexis : You too. Good.
Eston Williams: You got a wealth of knowledge. I said, you think so, Ron? He said, man, I know so.
Alexis : Oh.
Eston Williams: He said, just give me some time and I'd like to have you on board with us and like you to serve in this space with us covering. Kentucky. North Carolina and Tennessee. And so here I am.
Eston Williams: Yes.
Plant People: And I love the fact you referenced... truck crops because I also grew up with truck crops in the eastern part of Kentucky. That's back when, Esten, you may remember when everybody that you took...
Plant People: Green Beans 2 bought a bushel. They didn't want a pound.
Eston Williams: That's right.
Plant People: They wanted a bushel.
Jessica : you
Plant People: So, yeah.
Eston Williams: That's right.
Plant People: Yeah.
Eston Williams: That's right Yeah.
Plant People: Good times.
Eston Williams: We sold green beans. We sold okra, black -eyed peas, purple -holed peas. um you name it squash you name it that's what
Plant People: Good stuff.
Eston Williams: Yeah, all that good stuff. yeah
Plant People: Real good stuff. Good times.
Alexis : all right so somebody's gonna have to make sure we're all clear on what a truck crop is now because we've got listeners from everywhere aka me
Plant People: Well, that's easy. hu
Eston Williams: Yeah.
Plant People: ah Aston, you give us your definitions. I've got a real straightforward one.
Jessica : heaven
Eston Williams: Yeah, well well, mine was basically we just took it from the farm and and we pulled it back in the truck and went through the community and and people.
Plant People: Yep. There you go.
Eston Williams: came out and and wanted it, and they bought it from us right off the truck. Yeah.
Plant People: Yeah. Did you have regular customers that like repeat year after year on your route, didn't you? Yeah.
Eston Williams: Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. And we have some in the community with just. ride over to the house sometime when we won't come around and they'll just buy stuff right off the farm.
Plant People: Mmm.
Eston Williams: They're from us. You know, we always.
Plant People: When it's sweet corn season.
Eston Williams: Love it.
Plant People: Yeah.
Eston Williams: Oh Lord, yes.
Plant People: Oh yeah, they'll come to you.
Jessica : No.
Eston Williams: Yeah, sweet potatoes.
Plant People: Yeah.
Alexis : Thank you, sir.
Eston Williams: We had it all, you know.
Plant People: Yeah.
Eston Williams: Yes.
Alexis : um
Eston Williams: Yes.
Plant People: Yeah, it's good good times.
Alexis : but So yeah, you've been involved in the all aspects of agriculture, it sounds like. I mean, no wonder you're good at your job. i have i'm zero
Eston Williams: I don't know about that.
Plant People: I was going to say that that's a great background.
Eston Williams: me
Plant People: You know, sometimes when we think of agriculture We think of these, ah you know, people you ask people to visualize that or when I'm talking to students or just people in general, so they usually ah visualize these large. monocultures like corn soybeans but you just mentioned Uh, more kind of not niche crops, but smaller crops sometimes for smaller farmers. Has that kind of helped you or guided you to where you are today, some of those experiences with your truck crops?
Eston Williams: Most definitely, you know. ah my grandfather uh in in just some of the land we have now of course is generation farm um we still right now we don't do much of that like i said now we're running horses on that that land now. But back in the day, you know, we Everything we ate, we know we we ate it off of the farm, even to the point of
Eston Williams: Killing our pork our beef, you know, you name our chickens everything came right off the farm, you know, I mean and No, things have changed now. Back then, the community work as a whole if we were killing a hog Everybody had meat.
Eston Williams: Everybody come together and...
Alexis : Thank you.
Eston Williams: we would do a lot of them at the same time and come together and do that same thing with our vegetables if we had vegetables everybody had vegetables you know
Plant People: ah
Eston Williams: Okay. Nobody went hungry. We just shared with each other. and those those days that Folks would come together to one location, you know, and just...
Alexis : yeah
Eston Williams: ah the moms and grandmoms get in there and man and cook up their favorite dish and all and we all in the yard plan and all of a sudden it's time to come in and eat and you had everything from black -eyed peas to sweet corn to squash to okra you name everything you could think of in the garden you know that was grown in garden was
Plant People: Oh man.
Eston Williams: on the table you know so it was
Plant People: You're talking about good times, and I know when you killed those hogs and scalded them, got them all cleaned up.
Eston Williams: Thank you.
Plant People: You had tenderloin that night, I bet, didn't you?
Eston Williams: oh You better know it. You better know it. You better know it. Yeah.
Plant People: <unk> Good stuff.
Eston Williams: Yeah.
Plant People: I always waited on that.
Eston Williams: you can But you know the craziest thing now? I don't eat pork any longer.
Plant People: Oh, man.
Alexis : Mm -hmm.
Eston Williams: I know, man, and my wife loves it, and I don't eat it any longer. but and does not to smell any better than some good bacon cooking the sausage of the morning pork chops oh my goodness but um I just don't do it any longer.
Eston Williams: but
Alexis : I miss, I don't eat pork either. I miss pork chops though. um
Eston Williams: have I know, too, man.
Alexis : Big old fat pork chop.
Eston Williams: I'm telling you. Oh, Lord.
Alexis : but
Plant People: Those are some good, good memories, man.
Eston Williams: i asked
Plant People: Those are, that that's the good stuff there. are Good memories, community and food.
Eston Williams: Yeah.
Plant People: Good stuff. Good stuff. I'm always interested when we talk to someone like yourself, especially. with um all of your experiences, but kind of what makes your position that you're in now and some of the positions you've worked with in the past, kind of what makes the risk management?
Plant People: With the clientele you kind of target now, is it a little bit different than... you know, maybe some other risk management. I mean, what sets aside a navigator?
Eston Williams: Yeah, so here's the thing um when I was working for USDA. I didn't look at... the risk management part as much because you know rma risk management agency covered that
Alexis : Mm hmm.
Eston Williams: And we were more of a technical agency, you know. putting in structures you know nrcs control sodium erosion has water quality and working with those lano's farmers and rangers just make sure to be more productive in what they were doing but now i'm in the space of me and now you know i question my myself sometimes edson How did you not engage in the risk part? Now, we engage in the part from a tech standpoint, like we build a... ah
Eston Williams: a a levy or a terrorist or diversion. Will the rain come through and wash it out?
Alexis : Right.
Eston Williams: Or will our water center control basin just blow out because of so much rain hit the area in a constant? try to flow hit it so quick to blow up but look at a different risk management type thing that we're doing now now it's more so like being insured, you know you And now I'm wondering.
Eston Williams: all those folks i worked with those lounge farmers normally normally they were on a larger scale than what we were now with especially crops things that nature but There's always a risk factor there.
Plant People: oh
Alexis : mm -hmm
Eston Williams: those folks. will pretty much insure it, whether it be with your Farm Bureau, your farm, just any of those other agencies out there that was providers. But now with these specialty crops,
Eston Williams: We're more so humming in on a little bit more smaller acres, if you will. And I'm finding and learning that it's just more important for them to have coverage as is for those larger folks too.
Eston Williams: Some of them, although they're part -time farmers, But at the same time, they have a lot of invested into that as well.
Alexis : Yeah.
Eston Williams: we talk about what you have to take to the farmer's market and imagine You have... you have a drought or disease or something to just wipe you out. you I mean, hey, that's a lot of money that you're missing an out on.
Alexis : Yeah.
Eston Williams: you know
Plant People: Yeah, absolutely.
Eston Williams: and and and so this thing we talked about like the whole farm unit you know we we always include now so knowing that hey it's more important now i think to some of these growers to have that because it seems to me that everything now is just cost cost cost and what it takes to get people back to where they can be productive again to Make a living for themselves, you know
Alexis : thank you
Eston Williams: to me is a little bit more expensive now has it been back olden days so so it's
Plant People: Yeah.
Eston Williams: Gordon dead. We educate them on it and then not. If it happened, it's when it happened. because we talking about the climate now you know
Plant People: and Mhm.
Eston Williams: Some may be facing floods right now because some'm of the rain. We get some facing drought because they're not getting enough rain. So it seems like now things are more prevalent now than it being in the past because these. Weapon patterns we're having now, man.
Eston Williams: you can't put your finger on it because one day
Alexis : No.
Eston Williams: it's 100 degrees the next day there's flooding over here and it's just all across the board so if anyone ever need courage. as it relates to um getting crop insurance of that nature. I think now is the time that you you want to do it. And we've seen our numbers.
Eston Williams: ticking up more so with people. or grab and host those don' Holds those coverage now for the mere fact that these weather patterns that we have and i think too We're making it.
Eston Williams: bringing more to them now and we're meeting where they are and letting them know of the risk factors just out there if you're not
Alexis : Yeah.
Eston Williams: having those coverage too and everything. so I hope that answered your question there.
Plant People: Yeah, I mean, you know, I think back when we had the truck crops, you know, on the farm growing up, yeah we had tobacco and cattle and then we did. the other more horticulture related crops on this i never thought about insurance for any of that and i look back and think you know what could have happened in some years it did happen because you know, we manage risk to a point with just diversity, small farm diversity, had a lot of different crops. But as I'm talking to producers now, it seems like the conversation always steers to one thing. It kind of gets around to a major point, and I'm beginning to appreciate that more and more. is The differences in risk management and when we're talking about one commodity crop risk management, let's say corn.
Plant People: versus whole farm risk management. Have you had much experience in that area and how that's changed over time and how you deal with that? It's a whole farm risk management versus individual crop.
Alexis : There's micro farm as well, right?
Eston Williams: Yeah.
Plant People: Yes, yes, that's that's it, Alexis.
Alexis : like there's oh
Plant People: That's what I was thinking of, that program.
Alexis : then
Eston Williams: Yeah, the micro farm. Yeah. And, and you know, you touched on it. One of the things that we're doing now when we're talking to these growers. is And a lot of them... um We talk.
Eston Williams: of course with the micro farms we let them know that it's just as important for them. to have what they need to be covered as as it is for others too. so Mind you that I came on board back in December and hit the ground running and didn't realize so many growers are in this space that we're talking about now and and it's more so now that um
Eston Williams: I'm learning more and more about it every day
Plant People: Mm -hmm.
Eston Williams: But. Microfarm is huge, but what we try to educate people on now. is more so uh the whole phone deal too, you know.
Plant People: Gotcha.
Eston Williams: with With our training we just had, you know, we're always trying to Talk to them about. doing that and then, you know, we either put them in different categories you know we looked at things like whole farming, enterprise, basic and optional, those type things that we have that we offer these folks and everything. And we're seeing now that more so that um The whole farm thing now is more so of a...
Eston Williams: of a larger push if that makes sense than some of the others
Alexis : Hmm.
Plant People: who
Eston Williams: down so so we're trying to get our arms around that and and when we speak into these growers we just Let them know that, hey, We have a provider for anything you think you might want to go into with our partnership with RMA. Now, we don't get out there and.
Eston Williams: direct them to which providers go to, but we can give them a website where they can go and find those, talk to the different ones and see. who best fit the operation that you're operating with. And some of them...
Eston Williams: pick and choose different ones based on the operation and what they have to offer to us especially crops whole farming of Micro farms or whatever you want to call it. Yes
Alexis : Mm hmm.
Plant People: And ah you guys, you and Alexis mentioned micro farm program.
Jessica : that's
Plant People: I don't know if we need to. Flesh that out a little bit more for the listeners or you guys mentioned that.
Alexis : Yeah, I'm thinking like, Esen, do you mind to give, um you know, just a big picture look at sort of, you know, these different things for those folks who might be out there who have maybe never heard of it? Because that's what we've we run into with some of our specialty crop growers is they thought this stuff was only for corn and soybean guys.
Plant People: Absolutely.
Alexis : They didn't realize there was something available for them.
Jessica : Yeah. That's.
Plant People: We get that all the time yeah.
Alexis : Is there like? Can you give us kind of a big picture of those programs?
Jessica : That's a very common. Common thing.
Eston Williams: Yeah, so so so so here's the thing uh as i stated earlier we have um With us, we are the navigators that...
Eston Williams: Mainly what we do is that we analyze the crop insurance metrics to improve. performance measures, okay? We also tried to build awareness and understanding.
Eston Williams: about the network and approved insurance providers, as I stated. And our other biggest piece that we do is that we get out there and try to connect. with outreach educator enhanced and leveled the crop insurance outreach historically to those smaller growers if you mean and that's getting into a lot of the micro farms we will be learning with our micro farms too a lot of those are part -time farmers they have
Alexis : Hmm.
Eston Williams: of the jobs that they do. This is not really their bread and butter, if you will.
Alexis : mm -hmm
Eston Williams: for some people it is they go on a larger scale get into the farmers market space and things of that nature But for a lot of them, you know, they're in in that little community that folks will come to them and they have this deal set up that we can provide you fresh.
Eston Williams: fruits and vegetables, things of that nature and try to make a living from that. versus hopeful but when we talking to people about being insured you know We have September experts if that makes sense a lot of time is you guys extension that can go out there and evaluate their farm look at all the natural resource concerns and everything they're trying to do and then They can.
Eston Williams: From there, turn them on to us, and then we can line them up. with some of those providers that can help them get insurance. on based on what they're doing and and and we tried to tell them too that you want to look at all things because a lot of folks a lot of those growers are not aware
Alexis : mm -hmm
Eston Williams: uh which category they should be in and and that's where
Alexis : Yeah.
Eston Williams: some of our other folks with the team with act have some of the others come in that space and they talk to them even everything from bookkeeping
Alexis : mm -hmm
Eston Williams: to record I mean, you name it. and and We do a lot of of ah formulas that they have that share with them. how they can see what a profit margin would be and all those good things too. So we have some about experts to help them along those lines. So for us,
Eston Williams: we're just an outreach component of this um southern richmond education center just enough to let them know there is help out there for you and then we also let them know too with those micro farmers a lot of those costs those premium calls could be subsidized as well and that's why a lot of love to hear that that they get that break where others do not get that break so it's important to them to know and understand
Alexis : you
Eston Williams: what category they fit in because it does. save them money by knowing. by being micro farmers versus you know these large farmers and then we talk about the whole farm things too but we also encourage them hey We like to do the whole farm thing too because it might consist of a whole lot of other things too, but we do know And. with what we're dealing with now are more of our smaller growers uh they may be veterans they may be um
Eston Williams: you know in different categories you know i don't want to label them as such, but some of them, they recognize what category of that they fit in and where the needs might fall as well.
Alexis : Mm hmm.
Jessica : So.
Alexis : And a lot of the time it's based on income.
Eston Williams: It's definitely based on income, yeah.
Alexis : Right. Like.
Plant People: Oh, is it?
Jessica : That's that I was curious about of like, I know you said there's other people that help figure out what category they should be in. But the micro farm, if somebody was just, you know, starting to get interested in that, would it be like based on your acreage, right? Because so somebody who's just like has a backyard.
Jessica : you know because you can produce a lot and be like that you know neighborhood hub for produce you know, they fall under the micro farm or like, is it. Versus acreage or. you know
Eston Williams: Yeah. ah
Plant People: Yeah.
Eston Williams: And don't quote me on this. I think the margin is that. if they can stay uh under that oh i want to say that making
Alexis : The...
Eston Williams: i think 90
Alexis : 350? 350 I think is micro farm now.
Eston Williams: Yeah. Yeah. It's something like that.
Jessica : okay
Eston Williams: um I was thinking about another one too. I have this booklet. I'm still learning.
Alexis : There is one that's like a hundred maybe.
Eston Williams: yeah yes yeah that's what i was thinking about yeah so so if they can stay within that that range there then.
Alexis : um okay
Eston Williams: they can be considered micro farms things of that nature yeah
Alexis : Mm hmm.
Eston Williams: Yeah.
Alexis : And this covers. Like, you know, again, going back to... um who Who is covered? I think you know we... A lot of people might know, oh, well, yeah, I'm veg is covered, but you know.
Alexis : Flowers are also a crop that can be covered you know we work with a lot of flower growers in Kentucky and they range from kind of that micro program on up to some of these bigger ones but you know there are nursery crops and different things that can be included. under these whole farm protection. we' We're doing research and and and those of our listeners who heard Brett and I's sort of...
Alexis : talking about grants and what we are up to. We actually have a Southern Extension risk management grant looking at. ah Risk management for specifically looking for cut flower growers.
Alexis : So that's a space that is needed. A lot of those growers are really new to agriculture in general. They're doing great work, but they, number one, are not keeping the right reports, to your point of you know teaching people like what they actually need to keep track of um and report to.
Jessica : thank you
Alexis : you know FSA, but also, you know, what they're eligible for. And so we're doing you know some work on educating our growers, but also technical advisors around the state um on.
Alexis : this And also flipping it towards the the folks who are doing some of this ensuring of what do you need from our growers and how would we how can this make your life easier?
Alexis : because um When we do have growers that are like, okay, I've got my ducks in a row. I'm going to go find you know someone to give me this insurance. the underwriters aren't comfortable enough to give them that. They don't have enough data. So looking at price information. And so we've we've been doing some surveys on that. um So that kind of all all ties into trying to just gather more. There's just not enough out there.
Plant People: You know, that we run into that a lot in horticulture, it seems like, it just overall, yeah.
Eston Williams: Yeah.
Alexis : Mm -hmm.
Eston Williams: Yeah. And, you know, um I don't know how often y 'all utilize RMA, you know, ah they do. have those such amount of experts on their what in their shop that can help you out with that and that's why they're one of our largest partners that we have you know we
Alexis : um
Eston Williams: we ah i think you mentioned something about Is that Grant you're talking about is from RMA, right?
Alexis : It's no through um Through Arkansas, it's the.
Eston Williams: Okay.
Alexis : um
Eston Williams: episode oh okay and and there again and when you look at our cars and thing you know they're
Alexis : as well.
Eston Williams: on our card right beside us you know we look at them like
Alexis : Hmm.
Eston Williams: Our sister and brother, if that makes sense to you.
Alexis : Yeah, yeah Partners.
Eston Williams: We're not. anything without them. And even whenever we meet, they're always.
Alexis : Mm hmm.
Eston Williams: in those space but one thing i was going to make mention At this meeting we had in Pensacola, Florida, and And kudos to Kentucky. John was there. from the University of Kentucky. Jonathan Ajand.
Alexis : John Shepard maybe?
Brett: Jonathan Shepard. Yeah.
Eston Williams: Yeah.
Alexis : Johnson Shepard.
Eston Williams: And one of the questions I posed when we were doing the presentation. I said I have a unique situation in Kentucky. And I think I may have mentioned to you, Alexis, when we was out there.
Alexis : uh -huh
Eston Williams: I visit. Kentucky State. where I went to a shrimp symposium.
Alexis : Mm -hmm.
Eston Williams: Aquaculture. So my question was, I never heard of any providers. I never heard of dim. doing aquaculture. And so the room went quiet when I mentioned that the other day.
Alexis : Uh -huh.
Eston Williams: um And I said, being that I'm coming to Kentucky, I said, I need to know. What is it that we can offer these growers that are growing? Shrimp. tilapia or whatever you may have, you know, because. They are growers too.
Alexis : mm -hmm
Eston Williams: Oh. Although it's not plant, but. They're growers, you know.
Alexis : They're producers, right? Right.
Eston Williams: Yeah, and and they need to be covered too because, hey. at risk there's risk there's like it is with growing crops So... I put... um hunter On the spot.
Eston Williams: And so Hunter is doing some research right now for me. he asked her He said, man, you got me on them. He said, man, I never had him out of approach when I said, hey, it's real because in Kentucky. They have a shrimp farm.
Eston Williams: Those people would... doing a do everything, you know, um with with with the food chain, with hydroponics, you name it, they're doing it.
Alexis : Uh -huh.
Eston Williams: and there's risks there so How do we? address those so i said hunter i'm looking for you to get back with me with with an answer That makes sense because I will be.
Alexis : Was this the guy?
Eston Williams: Thank you.
Alexis : We were at, we ah sat through, he was with... fsa and you asked him this question you were like do you have anything for aquaculture folks yet and he was like we're working on it and uh i remember you kind of like stumped him a little bit but uh it's It's good to know that feedback is being received.
Eston Williams: Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Well, you know, because when I go back to Kentucky. was with the kentucky state and may very well blend over and in your area too, you know.
Alexis : Mm -hmm.
Eston Williams: people. People gonna want to know you know hey cuz they put a lot of money mean being at that dady shrimp symposium I saw a lot of folks investing a lot of money in those projects, and and they need to make sure that.
Eston Williams: there's stuff out there for them too that that maybe can be... subsidized too because we will talk about whole farm plan or micro farm too you know i i think that that could fit right into the category
Alexis : Mm -hmm
Jessica : that That has me thinking now about ah like with farmers markets and other products. products that are, you know, products that you've grown and you've modified them, you know, those value added products.
Eston Williams: See ya.
Jessica : As well, is there... coverage for those because that's a big thing i know i've ran into with uh personally and with local growers is they're hoping to get they you know they grow the produce they grow you know all their products and then they also do like they might grow blackberries and make blackberry jam or they do tomatoes and make salsa and then they want that insured um you know, before they sell.
Jessica : sell those products at the market and i know a couple of people who've had some problems trying to get those items you know those coverage or it gets listed as uh It suddenly jumps from like, oh yeah, we we're covering you like farm coverage to suddenly like, oh wait, you're a commercial now.
Alexis : Mm hmm.
Jessica : And it's like. skyrocket to get those, you know, products.
Alexis : Right. Yeah. It's the same amount of acreage you always had, but suddenly you're, yeah.
Jessica : Right.
Plant People: Mm -hmm.
Eston Williams: Yes. You know, one of the discussion we had out there and and and I know we. got all the listeners out there but you know what we have learned was that was turned over and discovered that It really set my heart to hear that some of the providers out there If you're not on a short scale, they will not fool with you.
Eston Williams: Um, and a lot of them are commissioner base and they feel that they're not getting commission from it. They'll tell you that they don't write, they don't do this and that and other, which we know better than that because they.
Alexis : Mm -hmm.
Eston Williams: they need to and they should and it's not fair to those growers that um are not getting the opportunity to get. the best coverage that they need to just because They're small.
Eston Williams: and things of that nature and and they don't seem that they can make a lot off of it you know at so i was
Alexis : mm -hmm
Eston Williams: it was It set my heart to hear. that someone came from the floor. and said that they had. providers out there were doing things like that if it wasn't nothing. for the DM.
Eston Williams: To if you mean fat in their pocket with that they didn't have time to even write you or even
Alexis : Mm -hmm.
Eston Williams: have a discussion with you about coverage.
Brett: So Jess, were you were you talking about like... if If somebody eats your thing and gets sick. that type of insurance.
Jessica : ah Yeah, I think so. Like with that, with... um And just... getting... some insurance for those value added products. Cause I've had a couple of farmers market vendors before who've, you know, or if somebody.
Brett: Yeah.
Jessica : I don't know, they drop the jar, you know, on the ground when they leave the farmer's market and they maybe chips on the inside or, you know, you have some might not have necessarily been you who dropped it, but you still your farm has some protection from.
Brett: Yeah, that's one of those things I think where where we do do ourselves a disservice by calling it all insurance because it's kind of like they're.
Jessica : You know, those kind of things.
Brett: they're different stuff and so you know a big part of what we're trying to focus on is more like the crop insurance along the lines of what they have for. for corn or soybean farms where it's like a your field gets flooded and your stuff is all killed.
Jessica : mm -hmm
Brett: Do you have a way to recover some of the. the costs in that and then mixing that with the i think it's another point of confusion too with the the product liability insurance or the you know farm liability insurance and
Jessica : Right. That's, yeah.
Alexis : again
Eston Williams: Sure. Sure.
Brett: um So... esten So you mentioned kind of like there's ah a network of people to help. It sounds like the extension or the answer we give an extension a lot, too, is like I might not be the right person, but there's someone who's right.
Brett: So... Can you take us like give us like a sort of an example or a hypothetical example of like. Somebody comes and talks to you. what are you to How are you typically going to interact with them? What are you typically going to share with them? Who who else might they get? referred to or uh chat with
Eston Williams: Yeah, thank you for the question. So based on basically it it it really matters Yeah. what region that they're in because we are region region driven. And just the let me just tell you, our region that that we cover is I can't remember all of them, but I have a... card in front of me. We have Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Florida, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi.
Eston Williams: North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia. So. My go -to is always you know um If there's something I cannot answer, we have a website.
Eston Williams: with those symptomatic experts because As a navigator. I'm not such an expert on everything, but I do the outreach component to direct them. If you it makes sense, I'll be like, I'm directing traffic.
Eston Williams: i send them to the store so i know they can get an answer from and it and we have a website that you can you can call in on and and and if all festival rma is there with their pace that's my experts too that can dig into the weeds of things and make sure they get a definitive answer for whatever the question might have.
Eston Williams: uh you get down to nothing most in fact the prime example for things like I mentioned earlier that they add F -TAP program too. Most of you have probably heard of that, right?
Eston Williams: and And I'll have you if you're not so So so they deal with different things like the farm taxes uh the financial part you know talking about the 1099 reporting requirement schedule f and uh long services they do all that type stuff so it all depends on what question one may have who we would direct them to and act f tap is part of our structure too with southern risk management education center so we have folks covering
Eston Williams: All errors if you... if that makes sense to you and and so we can get you an answer and we can direct you to I'm such a mighty expert. that can give you everything that you pretty much need. ah with those questions to to make you be, I mean, just to get you what you need, because.
Alexis : Okay.
Eston Williams: i tell people it all the time you don't know what you don't know
Alexis : Yeah.
Eston Williams: Okay.
Plant People: Yeah.
Eston Williams: I'm not going to sit here it and try to tell you I know it all, but... I can direct you to those people. that can dig in the weeds with you and get you what you really need because We come when you talk about.
Eston Williams: dispatch the crop and and micro farm whole farming you know you could all walks of life come from all parts of the world with different concerns and needs and questions. And it's not a cookie cutter out there for you.
Eston Williams: You know, you have to.
Alexis : of
Eston Williams: talk to those folks dealing with your issue, your concern that you're having. because yours might not be what i have brad and so therefore So um it goes something like this. You talk to me. I try to figure out what is that you need, what operation you're running.
Eston Williams: And then... I'll direct you. to that subject matter expert that can go a little bit more in depth. with your operation that you can learn from.
Alexis : It's like plant diagnostics.
Brett: Yeah, I'm looking. um
Eston Williams: Yes.
Brett: um I'm
Alexis : You never know.
Jessica : Yeah.
Brett: I'm looking at this agftap website .org. It's the Agriculture Finance Tax and Asset Protection Education Program. Seeking to enhance farmer and rancher ability to understand and navigate farm business tax and asset protection.
Brett: So that's pretty cool.
Eston Williams: Yeah. Yeah. And so and we have that. And that's another whole set of team. Out there that that that's all they do is that
Alexis : Hmm.
Eston Williams: You know. and And they can set you down, even if you want to go into estate planning. Heirs property that can get into all of that stuff with you
Alexis : Huh.
Eston Williams: Thanks.
Plant People: and yeah And that's another acronym I've got to write down now. I know that we have a lot of people that they struggle, especially with the federal level acronyms. My goodness. It's almost like alphabet soup, but it's necessary.
Plant People: But yeah, I'm ah learning things and trying to jot down notes as I go. So I totally get it when a new producer comes and says, oh, where do we get started? And I start throwing acronyms at them.
Plant People: And they're and I'm like.
Eston Williams: Oh man. usda we were the world worst you know we get in our space with our colleagues
Alexis : Thanks.
Eston Williams: and we start throwing out things and then people that never heard of around us They look at us like... What? what did that mean? And we think, and everybody should know, but we catch ourselves.
Alexis : Mm -hmm.
Eston Williams: Now we try to spell things out. And just like Brett just told you what. AgAFTAP stands for Agricultural Finance nat Tax and Access Protection. uh you know a program so uh we We get into all of that all the time. I mean, you'll you'll you'll be amazed.
Eston Williams: Some of the things you think it may mean this, but it means something totally different from what we were thinking about.
Plant People: yeah
Eston Williams: Yeah.
Plant People: Well, along those same lines, I'm i'm curious, like ah let's say you run onto a new, as Jessica said, like a BlackBerry producer and they have not the first clue of navigating. So they've approached a navigator. They've not the first clue. Like what's your typical first steps when you're working with a brand new producer with no background in any kind of risk management? Is there sort of a knowledge tree that you sort of plug them into? How do you approach them?
Eston Williams: Yeah, well, well... With me, I like to know about what size what's as operation that they have.
Plant People: Mhm.
Eston Williams: where are you expecting to get out of your operation and and and always just get a good feel for i want to know the area that you in because that means something to a navigator too you know um based on because it could be that you're trying to grow a crop that is not suitable for the area that you're in Now, a lot of time we don't get into the real.
Plant People: Got him.
Eston Williams: We never want to, I never want to destroy a customer saying, oh man You might as well quit this because... yeah You fight in the uphill battle and it'll never work.
Plant People: I'm going to go into Kiwi farming in Kentucky.
Eston Williams: Right.
Jessica : yeah
Eston Williams: yeah Right.
Plant People: Yeah.
Eston Williams: Right, so I tried to fill them out. just to see what the operation is like. And from my background as a conservationist, A lot of those things, I know just from my experience, too, that I can talk to them a little bit more in depth. because of let's be mindful a lot of our navigators didn't come from the farm background we got some of them that came from um
Plant People: No.
Eston Williams: business, entrepreneurs. I mean, some of our entrepreneurial themes of that nature. so I think when Ron looked at me, he thought, and a lot of times, I get calls. They'll hit me with those questions about those things like that because of my background. So I. typically try to make them feel as comfortable as possible and upside i learned what operation you have What size acreage you have.
Eston Williams: what are you trying to accomplish from you you know what your expectation might be then from them telling me little things about the operation things i kind of know how to navigate you know, them in that space, then if if I need to.
Eston Williams: stop right there and call the extension person let them carry on a little bit further with them before we do this before they get to this other party if that makes sense and then
Plant People: Yeah.
Eston Williams: If they side. That. what they need coverage of, then that's when I'll... a lot of time Rather than me trying to tell them everything, I give them the website to go to because the website has everything on it. You can find anything you need on my website to address. Any questions, concerns you have, and those types of...
Eston Williams: subject matter experts are right there and they're ready to answer those questions for you So that's how I...
Plant People: Yeah, it sounds like...
Eston Williams: I would get through that, yes.
Plant People: It almost sounds like at a point you mentioned a chicken and egg thing. At some points they may have jumped ahead without even... you know, being nailed down to specific crops. I mean, where out in the process do you recommend for producers to address you know risk management situations.
Plant People: Is it early on or later on after they've established what they're going to grow? Where where does that fall?
Eston Williams: well Well, you you know, ah we're looking enough here in Tennessee. to have a small farm Academy. it ran ran by an extension gentleman named his finest dribbling
Plant People: who
Eston Williams: so um And Founder is really from Arkansas, but he works here in Tennessee. So a lot of time. If I catch them before they start to begin to farm,
Eston Williams: I highly recommend them. Take this course before you do anything because...
Plant People: Hmm.
Eston Williams: You can waste a lot of time and money by going out. And we have a lot of folks. like to do a trial and error. They like to go out here. try things in later on and try to figure out how i'm gonna protect this what i need to do later because some people just like that but if i get a chance to get in that space with them i'm going to tell them first of all Let's talk to Finers because Finers is here in Tennessee and he covered out of space.
Eston Williams: Let's try to get you in this. New Beginning Farmers Academy, first of all. But now. If they're already out there starting their operation, I'm going to meet them where they are. I'm going to assess.
Eston Williams: As I stated. The operation is C. where they are how far they are into it. And then I'm going to ask a lot of questions to them too. I'm going to be all ears because I want them to tell me too.
Eston Williams: what is it that they have going on rather than me just running off because sometimes you might find out that you're hurting them more than helping them. when you start throwing things out and they're like oh god before then what have i done here What have I done here?
Alexis : overwhelmed.
Plant People: Yeah.
Eston Williams: So so I... do a huge inventory of the operation myself just to fill them out and then everything seemed to be going right And then. i can further assist them but the hard part is is that they had invested this money and stuff everything and it's not going right and then you got Turn that ship.
Plant People: ah
Eston Williams: And that can be a little tough sometimes.
Plant People: Best time to start was yesterday, yeah.
Eston Williams: Hello, somebody.
Alexis : Yeah.
Eston Williams: Yes, yes
Plant People: Yeah, yeah
Eston Williams: yeah telling somebody you know the slope that you're growing say like a vineyard that you're growing your grapes They're not going to grow because of. What slope they're on so you fighting uphill battle you need to be on this other slope in order to get it? You know a good production of your grapes and stuff things of that nature so the address i say the error is not a one it's not a cut a cookie cutter thing is
Alexis : mm -hmm
Eston Williams: it's where those people are and what they have going on i just take it just like that i go put my old hat on my conservation had that make sense you know and do those inventories first of all that's how i do yeah
Alexis : we've We've all been there when you show up to a farm and you never know what you're going to eat. like what to expect there. You're like, this could be really good or they could have removed all their topsoil to level the ground or, you know, you never know what you're going to get.
Eston Williams: have I have to tell this real short story. We have time. so When I was working in Dyersburg, Tennessee. There was a guy came into a lot of money and he want to go into growing catfish.
Eston Williams: Mind you. Mississippi and Arkansas with the water table, they got that sold up. And I tried my... Best to tell this guy, I said, hey. What are you going to do different that they're not, that they're doing now?
Alexis : kindness
Eston Williams: Okay, you gotta look at... Are you going to... First, you got to get the ponds built and everything. You got to look at. Who are you going to service?
Alexis : Who's your market?
Eston Williams: Yeah. All this. and He had all this money. and and and and And he just so sold on. building a catfish farm.
Eston Williams: and and And it's one of those things he's so passionate about it.
Alexis : It does.
Eston Williams: Fred was a real lightweight because he was very adamant about building this catch fish farm. so I took an engineer out there with me. And a lot of time the engineers, they know how to soften you up and hit you hard too.
Eston Williams: And please.
Plant People: Putting the facts out.
Eston Williams: Hey. Hey. i Took him out there. I told him what to expect that out there. He's always I got him I can handle it and sure enough He convinced that guy. Not to go in and catch the farm dead. You're going to lose. He put it in black and white. You're going to lose.
Eston Williams: X amount of dollars because you cannot compete with what's already out there. There's not a market here for you now if you were somewhere maybe Thousand miles away to do this fine, but right now this region we in now Mississippi Arkansas got that sold up.
Eston Williams: You cannot compete.
Alexis : Mm hmm.
Eston Williams: because one you don't have the water table they have here you can't grow it for the price they're growing now they have already connection with the restaurant the market and everything you can't tap into that because What you're going to do, you're going to...
Eston Williams: low ball everything and do this. So we just, and so he. Talk him to, um... Going on, I think. And this was kind of bad too, but it was better that he ended up building a dairy.
Jessica : Oh. Okay. Okay.
Eston Williams: Milk was good then back then with the cost of milk and everything.
Alexis : Yeah.
Eston Williams: He wanted to spend his money, so we ended up talking to him. to go into the dairy business and that's why we went to the business yeah
Alexis : Well, I will be still in the dairy business, but ah who knows these days.
Eston Williams: Okay, that I don't know. Yeah, that was back in 1989.
Eston Williams: That's when that was.
Plant People: oh That was good advice in the 80s.
Alexis : That's when you got into the got milk campaign came shortly after that.
Eston Williams: Yeah.
Plant People: That was good advice.
Alexis : So he had at least one, some upward trending.
Plant People: Commodity prices were a little different in the late 80s, early 90s for milk. yeah
Eston Williams: you know ah we've had all kind of and i got another story y 'all y 'all bear with me this otrix farmer
Alexis : Hmm.
Eston Williams: Had an ostrich farmer in...
Plant People: There you go, Brett.
Eston Williams: And rule. East Tennessee, Newport, Tennessee, up on the North Carolina line, Cocke County. this guy Now here it is. When the time was right, was right.
Eston Williams: He was selling eggs for fifteen hundred dollars i can't make this up If you grow out that ostrich. And sell it. You can sell it for $37 ,000.
Eston Williams: Okay, make this up. He built a dairy. All for his Oxford farm. After he did that, the bottom foul. You couldn't give him away.
Eston Williams: You couldn't give the Oscars away because... Now, if you know a little about ostrich, you know, they're very... picky birds i mean you can't walk around with with your earrings on alex but they will come at you
Alexis : Yeah.
Eston Williams: It ain't shining.
Alexis : yeah Scary.
Eston Williams: I never get one Christmas more than one. grab a nail off of the ground out there where they were grazing, where they was housing at. had to take him to the vet and they swept his stomach with a magnet to get it out because that's 37 000 you want to lose that thing die you're out invest
Plant People: Wow.
Alexis : Yeah.
Eston Williams: But seriously though, this guy actually built...
Jessica : Wow.
Eston Williams: a dairy fryer. Never forget the last name is R Eninger. They built a dairy farm. from growing oxfords but shortly after that the bottle fell out so i'm saying this Telling the story to you.
Eston Williams: timing is a whole lot to everything too you have to strike when it's hot and that guy
Plant People: Right place, right time.
Alexis : Yeah.
Eston Williams: hit it right on the nail and got rid of all those oxygen just a lick of time because he couldn't give him away shortly after that because it didn't mean anything but back then you know the meat was somewhere around 14 a pound you know they were using the eyebrows to make paint brushes you know you know that they use the feathers to do certain things uh so just all kind of every piece of that bird was used pretty much
Alexis : Yeah.
Eston Williams: to uh to make money. Yeah.
Plant People: You just never know.
Alexis : Wow, well...
Jessica : Full circle.
Alexis : Yeah, you never know, especially on this podcast, we might start with ostriches and end with ostriches. That was the perfect.
Plant People: That was a good bookends.
Alexis : again.
Plant People: That's a perfect bookend ah for this conversation.
Alexis : um
Eston Williams: ah
Plant People: It could not have ended any better. Perfect. Thank you, Brett. Thank you, Aston, for bookending this entire conversation.
Alexis : Yes. genius.
Eston Williams: And Brett, be aware of those things too. They kick hard. They can kill you.
Plant People: I was going to say, yeah, I bet you they can kick.
Brett: got me You've got me strongly reconsidering my pet.
Eston Williams: Ha ha!
Brett: I might i might get like a snail or something.
Eston Williams: Thank you.
Alexis : if want
Eston Williams: They can kill you. They can kill.
Alexis : ah
Eston Williams: They kick extremely hard.
Plant People: Brett's reconsidering his ostrich farm.
Brett: Yeah. I think I'm going to keep a snail and and keep it a long way so I can see it coming from a long way off.
Alexis : yeah
Plant People: Yeah.
Eston Williams: thought
Alexis : A tortoise is your next.
Plant People: And they run fast, yeah.
Eston Williams: Oh yeah. Yeah, yeah. So I hope I didn't get off. race too far, you know.
Alexis : No, it's great.
Plant People: ab not With this group, ab there's no such thing.
Jessica : This is good.
Plant People: We we chase a lot of ah butterflies.
Alexis : We'll have all kinds of comments and emails about bring the ostrich guy back.
Eston Williams: that fast
Alexis : um So that would be perfect.
Eston Williams: Yeah. We'll find Mr. Arieger. uh they were probably on a third generation farm at the time shoot that farm was a century farm too and uh They're way up. and and cop count i never forget that one of the best farmers that that that i had too i mean those people knew what they were doing you know when they went in with they dare they Use every.
Eston Williams: operation that you can think of on the high level of technology back then, if you ever can imagine. They were doing it. Yes.
Alexis : Well, we will make sure to put, i've I've been taking notes on the links that you have mentioned, not only the Navigator links, but um RMA and that AGF tap.
Alexis : So we'll have those links in the show notes for folks. But if anybody wanted to reach out, s since SNU covered Kentucky and a lot of our listeners are from Kentucky or close by, just shoot you a need.
Alexis : What's the best way to get ahold of you if they've got questions?
Eston Williams: The best way. You can email me at ewilliams. at UADA. edu
Alexis : Got it. Love it.
Eston Williams: not us sda Not USDA.
Alexis : We'll put that in the.
Eston Williams: USDA. It's UADA.
Alexis : Yeah.
Eston Williams: like it but When I sent you an email, you didn't respond.
Alexis : Yeah, that's that's true.
Eston Williams: I said, what's your email? You said, send it to ewilliams at USDA. dot I said, it will never get to is you.
Alexis : No.
Plant People: Yeah.
Eston Williams: It's UADA, not USDA.
Alexis : yeah
Plant People: More acronyms.
Eston Williams: Yeah.
Alexis : Well, we will.
Eston Williams: What?
Alexis : ah Hup!
Eston Williams: what Well, Alexis, here's the thing. for four to two years it was usda for me and they still got it
Alexis : yeah
Eston Williams: You know, I tell you, that's it's not it any longer.
Alexis : Yeah.
Eston Williams: Yeah.
Alexis : that's not That's not the Esten of today.
Eston Williams: No, it's not
Alexis : Perfect. Well, we hope that we'll have Esten at our Kentucky Fruit and Vegetable Conference talking a little bit more about what they're doing.
Eston Williams: I'll be there
Alexis : um I'm saying it ah on recording so that I can make sure to guilt him into being there. So um if but I'm putting it in. out in the world, out in the universe. but
Alexis : Anyways, Esen, thank you so much for joining us today. I think this will be really helpful. If folks have questions, they can, of course, reach out to Esen, reach out to us, and we'll make sure that you're getting who you need to talk to if we can't answer your questions because that's what we're here for. But ah we appreciate you guys listening and joining us today. We hope that you'll join us next time. Make sure to follow us on Instagram at Hort Culture Podcast. Shoot us an email if you've got questions. Leave us a review. It helps people find us you know and tell us how much much you want to know about ostriches. ah But we appreciate you guys. Have a good great one.
Eston Williams: All right.
