NEW YORK, Oct. 12, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The National Minority Supplier Development Council (NMSDC) and the Southern University Agricultural Research and Extension Center (Southern University Ag Center) are partnering to enhance NMSDC’s Acres: Cultivating Equity in Black Agriculture program. As part of the partnership, the Southern University Ag Center will provide instructors and course material for the Acres 12-week learning curriculum focused on growing program participants’ capacity to take on major national contracts with NMSDC corporate members.

Courses that will be provided to this year’s cohort include:

• National Certification.
• Agribusiness Planning.
• Sustainability: People, Profit and Planet.
• GAP certification (Good Agricultural Practice/Global Animal Partnership USDA - Worker Protection Standard).
• Global Food Safety Initiative Certification.
• Sustainability and Environmental Footprint.
• Access to Capital - Financial Prep, Business Credit, and Farm Financing.
• What are My Options? Loans and Venture Capital.
• Marketing, Branding, and Sharing Your Story.
• Procurement Capability and Supplier Readiness.

Upon completion of the courses, Acres farmers will receive a certification of completion from the Southern University Ag Center, in addition to further strategic business support from NMSDC. The Ag Center will also conduct participant assessments aimed at enhancing the learning content provided to future cohorts of the Acres program.

“This partnership will provide the farmers in the Acres program a more robust and effective learning curriculum and lead to greater contracting opportunities for them as they look to scale their business and work with the leading corporations in the U.S. food supply chain,” said NMSDC Senior Director of Strategic Alliances and Programs Jetheda Hernandez.

“Each and every participant will get immense amounts of knowledge from experts in their specialized field of study. This is invaluable to the participants' understanding of farming in the world today,” said Southern University Ag Center’s Associate Specialist for Small Farms Brian Phillips, Ph.D.

Applications for the next cohort are now open until October 30. Interested applicants can apply at nmsdc.org/acres-cultivating-equity-in-black-agriculture.

About Acres
NMSDC, Cargill, Walmart, and UNFI have partnered on a program to advance agricultural supply chain access for Black farmers, Acres: Cultivating Equity in Black Agriculture. This initiative is creating a pathway for emerging Black farmers to achieve parity in the agriculture industry with learning solutions, certification, lending, networking, and new contracts. It consists of two elements: a learning program and strategic business support. Learn more about the program at nmsdc.org/acres-cultivating-equity-in-black-agriculture.

About NMSDC
Founded in 1972, NMSDC is the longest-operating business growth engine for the broadest group of systematically excluded communities of color (Asian-Indian, Asian-Pacific, Black, Hispanic, and Native American), and its impact goes far beyond the supply chain. It’s about upward mobility for the emerging majority of Americans, an equal shot at participating in the American experiment of free-market capitalism and entrepreneurship. Its work is about correcting the unequal access to wealth-building opportunities. For more information, please visit nmsdc.org.

About Southern University Ag Center
The Southern University Ag Center embraces a tripartite mission of teaching, research, and extension/public service. As a land-grant institution, its role is to educate, train, and mentor a cadre of highly skilled students and professionals to prepare them for a highly technological and globalized workforce. The Center aims to help small-scale and limited-resource farmers and ranchers develop and maintain viable farming operations that are in harmony with the environment; help communities build capacity to enhance the growth and development of the business and industrial sectors and improve the quality of life for families and youth throughout Louisiana. They cover 48 parishes in Louisiana and currently serve 43,798 farmers. Learn more at suagcenter.com.

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Jered Weber
National Minority Supplier Development Council
701.388.7283
jered.weber@nmsdc.org