The sessions will be held at the NMC instructional sites on the islands, with registration beginning at 7:30 a.m. and activities following from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. each day.
The academy is aimed at building local agricultural capacity and educating farmers and ranchers about increasing the economic viability of their products.
The workshops, which require no registration or participation fee, will include training on pasture and livestock management issues, including soil management, cattle breeds and genetic differences, grazing animal behavior, range and pasture animal nutrition, ruminant digestion, animal handling and facilities, and animal health and management. The workshops will also include farm visits, field activities, and an open discussion on the local beef industry.
The academy, a project organized through a collaborative effort between NMC-Cooperative Research Extension and Education Service and experienced pasture, livestock, and soil specialists from the University of Hawaii, University of the Virgin Islands, and the University of Guam, seeks to enhance the production of high quality meat products, which can serve to improve food sustainability through the adoption of appropriate technologies and practices in grazing and livestock management.
“The scheduled workshops are continuations of the sessions we held earlier this year in February and March,” said Dr. Allan Sabaldica, who heads the CREES livestock improvement program. “We encourage local ranchers to take advantage of the information to be share at the sessions and look forward to another great turnout on both islands.”
The academy also seeks to provide local farmers, ranchers, technical resource personnel and other interagency collaborators with assistance and guidance in planning and developing special local projects to improve the economic viability of grazing activities in the CNMI.
To register for the workshops or for more information, please contact Alejandro Badilles on Rota at 532-9513 or 285-9513 and Lawrence Duponcheel or Dr. Allan Sabaldica on Tinian at 433-0639 or 433-2576.
The Marianas Grazing Academy project has been made possible by a grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Institute of Food and Agriculture, Outreach for Disadvantaged Farmers and Ranchers Program.
