Louisiana introduces Homegrown by Heroes Program

Aug 13, 2015

Program aimed to identify crops grown by veterans

The work that the men and women of the military put in on the battlefield is recognized on a regular basis. In Louisiana, when veterans who have made farming their post-military career, their crops and other farm products will be recognized too.

Army Farmer

During the Farm to Table International conference in New Orleans, Mike Strain, Commissioner of the Louisiana Department of Agriculture officially introduced the Homegrown by Heroes program – a farmer-veteran initiative that highlights military service and promotes agriculture.

“There are more than 300,000 veterans who call Louisiana home. The Louisiana Homegrown by Heroes program is an excellent way to provide military veterans an opportunity to engage in agriculture as well as aquaculture production. In addition, there are marketing materials that help enhance their visibility to better market these products,” said Strain. “Whether they are gardening as a hobby or farming as a career, we will do what we can to help our veterans increase their ability to be successful as well as provide them tools for sustainability.”

Louisiana becomes the sixth state in the United States to adopt the Homegrown by Heroes program, joining Illinois, South Carolina, Arkansas, Ohio and the state that started the program, Kentucky.

“Homegrown by Heroes is a national branding initiative that helps the consumer identify a product as one that is grown in Louisiana and by a military veteran. The goal is to raise the profile of farm products grown and raised by these heroes at the point of sale,” said Ben Shaffar, creator of Homegrown by Heroes program and director of business development of the Kentucky Department of Agriculture.

Any veterans interested in careers in food, farming or agriculture can check out Ag Warrior.

Video: Finding a Balance of Innovation and Regulation - Dr. Peter Facchini

Regulations help markets and industry exist on level playing fields, keeping consumers safe and innovation from going too far. However, incredibly strict regulations can stunt innovation and cause entire industries to wither away. Dr. Peter James Facchini brings his perspective on how existing regulations have slowed the advancement of medical developments within Canada. Given the international concern of opium poppy’s illicit potential, Health Canada must abide by this global policy. But with modern technology pushing the development of many pharmaceuticals to being grown via fermentation, is it time to reconsider the rules?

Dr. Peter James Facchini leads research into the metabolic biochemistry in opium poppy at the University of Calgary. For more than 30 years, his work has contributed to the increased availability of benzylisoquinoline alkaloid biosynthetic genes to assist in the creation of morphine for pharmaceutical use. Dr. Facchini completed his B.Sc. and Ph.D. in Biological Sciences at the University of Toronto before completing Postdoctoral Fellowships in Biochemistry at the University of Kentucky in 1992 & Université de Montréal in 1995.