Our 4th stop on our trip, and our 1st stop on
our 2nd day was at the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Science(FDACS). Firstly we saw the herd of cracker cattle that they house at the
facility. They are called cracker cattle because they are the living
descendants of the original breeds that came over from Spain in 1521. They have
multiple differing coat colors and patterns but they are trying to breed back
to the original solid colors of the cattle rather than the spotted/speckled
patterns. They are also breeding the cracker cattle and modern day cattle to
create beef herds that fit todays beef market standards while keeping the high
maternity rates and high disease resistances that the cracker cattle posses.
Next we went to the FDACS marketing and advertising department where we learned about the “Fresh from Florida” state
brand. They use that brand on commodities that were grown and processed in
Florida. They have over 103 retail partnerships and their logo is used in 36
states in the U.S. and in 25 other countries around the world. Their goal is to
spread awareness about their brand to the public and to help local businesses
and farmers. They advertise directly to the public and explain what “Fresh from
Florida” is all about and give recipes on some of the “Fresh from Florida”
commodities. While also advertising to the members and farmers of “Fresh from
Florida” and what exactly they offer to their business. They are continuing to
grow and expand and we learned so much between the two departments and how they
give back to the community that fuels these businesses. We are so appreciative
of them and all that they provided for us, knowledgeably and souvenirs. Also,
something that I thought was a little funny: FDACS marketing gave us their
“Fresh from Florida” volume 8 2022 magazine and the Cedar Key Aquaculture Farm
that was our first stop on day 1 was featured not once but twice in the
magazine! It’s nice to see how well connected Florida’s agriculture community
really is and what we all do for each other!
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