Ryan O’Neil, PFCI, of Curate Floral Software; Rod Crittenden of the Great Lakes Floral Association; and Jennifer Barnard, AAF, of Tillie’s Flower Shop in Wichita, Kansas, conduct a virtual congressional appointment earlier this year in which they asked for additional funding for FNRI.
The industry is one step closer to securing a big increase in floriculture research funding after the House announced it is in favor of a $1 million funding increase for the 2023 fiscal year.
Society of American Florists members pushed for the additional funding earlier this year during SAF’s Congressional Action days. Members requested a $2 million increase in annual funding for the Floriculture Research & Nursery Initiative — the largest increase request in the program’s history. That funding would be in addition to the $5.4 million annually going toward research projects in the current program.
SAF’s government affairs team followed up on SAF members’ Congressional office meetings by submitting official appropriations requests to 10 House of Representatives’ offices and four Senate offices. With the last major funding increase in the program coming in fiscal year 2018, the requests emphasized the need to keep up with heightened costs as well as the need to bring newer technologies — such as unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) or drones — to floriculture.
Research for drones was included in the House’s budgeting language. The House Agricultural Subcommittee called for an additional $1 million for floriculture research focused on “breeding programs to increase tolerance from insect pests, diseases and other climate change impacts; testing of new organic and non-organic pesticides; implementing integrated pest management and biological control programs and innovations in unmanned aerial systems.”
SAF flagged the potential for improving grower operations through drones after visits with California growers last year. Drones have the potential to reduce labor for scouting and pesticide application, lower pesticide volumes because of better targeting, and reduce worker exposure to pesticide and soil compaction and erosion with less foot traffic in the fields. (To learn more about how drones can help a growing operation, watch this on-demand SAF webinar featuring an expert from Mississippi State University’s Raspet Flight Research Laboratory.)
The Senate now has to complete its budgeting process, which will happen later this summer.
SAF members should be extremely encouraged by this strong show of support for FNRI by the House, says SAF Senior Lobbyist Joe Bischoff.
“This important step forward in securing additional FNRI dollars is an example of what can be accomplished, in a relatively short time, when the industry comes together to advocate on the Hill for important issues during SAF’s Congressional Action Days and builds relationships with targeted Congressional offices,” Bischoff says.
Katie Butler is the senior vice president of the Society of American Florists.
