48th annual B.I.G. conference, Mid-Tex show to tout modern farm management
By Kay Wilson Tribune-Herald staff writer
Blackland Income Growth schedule
Feb. 9
8 a.m. — Registration
9 a.m.-noon — grain, Glass Room; horticulture, Backporch Club; beef, Creative Arts Building.
2-4:30 p.m. — cotton, Creative Arts Building; forage, Creative Arts Building and wildlife, Backporch Club.
8:30 a.m.-4 p.m. — Family Issues Summit, MCC’s Emergency Services Education Center, 7601 Steinbeck Bend Drive.
Feb. 10
8 a.m.-3:25 p.m. — B.I.G. Recertification Program, Creative Arts Building.
9 a.m.-3 p.m. — Private Applicator Training and Testing, Backporch Club.
10 a.m.-2:30 p.m. — Tools and Strategies for Developing Corporate and Community Leadership, Wizard Room.
3-5 p.m. — Renewable Energy, Creative Arts Building.
Farming and ranching have changed in the years since grandfathers walked the family acreage in bibbed overalls.
Producers at the upcoming Blackland Income Growth Conference and the Equipment Depot Mid-Tex Farm and Ranch Show in Waco will likely be donning crisply creased blue jeans or khakis.
They will study new strategies and develop tools necessary for modern farm management at the 48th annual B.I.G. conference and the Mid-Tex show Feb. 9-10.
As many as 1,000 producers are expected from the blackland area of Texas — 24 counties in North Central Texas that face similar challenges with crops and soil because of the heavy clay content.
For the second year, programs will be based at the Heart of Texas Fairgrounds.
Offerings include the renewable energy session and the Family Issues Summit.
The latter event consists of a full day of tips on balancing farm family needs with new technologies.
The Equipment Depot Mid-Tex Farm and Ranch Show will exhibit the latest products and services for farmers and ranchers Feb. 9-10 in Waco.
Duane A. Laverty/Waco Tribune-Herald
It will be held at the Emergency Services Education Center, 7601 Steinbeck Bend Drive.
The renewable energy session is “an outgrowth of the present economy,” said Rebecca Parker, Texas Agri-Life Extension Service regional program director for agriculture/natural resources.
Jeff Hatch, president of Imperial Electric Inc., will present the seminar.
Producers are always looking for ways to increase production without using more resources, he said, as well as building wind or solar generators “to feed excess back into the grid and using it as another source of income.”
Hatch said the federal government offers a variety of tax breaks for farm and ranch producers to “stimulate interest in renewable energies.”
Among them are a federal investment tax credit up to 30 percent, and U.S. Department of Agriculture grants and low interest loans.
Hatch said the state has incentive programs to encourage renewable resources. Oncor provides a 2.24 percent per watt rebate for commercial users, which includes farmers and ranchers.
For fees and specific events and times, call 972-952-9258. Information also is available at dallas.tamu.edu/BIG.
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