Georgia Vegetable Growers to vote to continue Vegetable Assessment

Georgia vegetable growers will vote February 1 through March 2, 2021, to determine the continuation of the Georgia Vegetable Commission marketing order which allows assessment of one cent per marketing unit of vegetables as described in the current marketing order.  The marketing order applies to growers with 50 acres or more of the total annual production of the following crops – beans, bell pepper, specialty pepper, broccoli, beets, cabbage, cantaloupe, carrots, cucumbers, eggplant, greens (including collards, turnip greens, mustard, and kale), squash ( including yellow, zucchini and winter squash), sweet potato, and tomato.  Funds collected by the Georgia Vegetable Commission are used for research, education, and promotion of the crops mentioned above. It is the policy that the commission allocates at least seventy-five percent of the money collected toward research projects by the University of Georgia and other research institutions that best serve Georgia growers. Some of the areas previously funded have focused on whiteflies, fungal disease diagnoses and control, viral diseases, variety development, fumigation, and weed control.  The Georgia Vegetable Commission was established by the Georgia General Assembly in 2006 at the request of the Georgia vegetable growers. The marketing order must be reapproved by vote of the eligible vegetable growers every three years by a two-thirds affirmative vote.  If you are a qualified grower and have not received a ballot in the mail by February 10, please contact Andy Harrison, Manager, Commodity Commissions of Georgia Department of Agriculture at [email protected] or call 404-710-1196.