A southeastern Alabama couple received a national award this weekend for their commitment to conservation and community service through their farm operation, the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service announced today.
Russell and Jewel Bean of Eufaula, Alabama, were named the National Lloyd Wright Small Farmer of the Year Award for 2016. The National Organization of Professional Black NRCS Employees honored the Beans at its annual conference in Atlanta, Georgia, on Saturday.
The Beans have supported their large family operation, S&B Farm, by learning all they could about sustainability and conservation, according to a NRCS press release.Through their relationship with the NRCS, they’ve been able to combine their knowledge and conservation assistance to improve their farm.
“Not only have the Beans helped the land on their farm, they have made it their mission to help other small and beginning farmers,” the release reads. “They regularly host training seminars and workshops on their farm and have been instrumental advocates for conservation programs.”
The Beans have also used the Environmental Quality Incentives Program to address water quality, water quantity, soil erosion and soil health.
The couple have operated their farm — an 88-acre property — since 2008, managing livestock on 20 acres with plasticulture and hoop houses on additional land, according to the release. Their farm includes cropland, pastureland and forestland.
Their main enterprise is raising goats and growing vegetables such as collards, turnips, kale and broccoli, though the Beans raise pigs, chickens, cows, ducks and rabbits too. They also grow peppers, melons, strawberries and pineapples.
Through the years, the Beans have participated in workshops, leadership institutes and built relationships with land-grant universities such as Tuskegee, Alabama A&M and Auburn universities, the release states.
The Alabama NRCS also recently named the Beans the 2017 Small Farmers of the Year.
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