VVBGA technical advisor briefs House committee on Vermont vegetable and berry sector needs, risks and resources

Vern, a technical advisor with the Vegetable & Berry Growers Association (VVBGA) and University of Vermont Extension, told the Vermont House Agriculture Committee that the growers she works with are diverse, growing vegetables, berries, ornamentals and greenhouse products and that membership in the VVBGA now totals about 400 farms.

Her presentation summarized a 2023 membership survey and other outreach: 77 farm owners or managers responded to the survey; 92% of respondents grow vegetables, about 88% use greenhouses or high tunnels, and 68 reporting farms recorded combined product sales of roughly $42,000,000. "Pumpkins are vegetables," Vern said when clarifying how product categories are counted. She emphasized that roughly one-third of growers are certified organic, one-third are “functionally organic,” and about one-third follow more conventional practices.

The nut graf: Committee members heard that the two top challenges for growers are extreme weather and farm labor, and that growers want more direct technical support, applied research and grant opportunities to adapt. Vern said direct technical support is ‘‘number 1’’ in farmers’ list of needs and…