View Poster Application

Animal Waste Training For North Carolina Hog Producers

Extension Education

Becky Spearman
County Extension Director
United States
Elizabethtown

Abstract

This poster demonstrates how North Carolina Extension agents and specialists collaborate to identify training needs, as well as offer both initial and continuing education classes, and provide experiential learning opportunities (in-person and virtual tours) to growers and technical specialists. The state of North Carolina, through the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ), provides certification for operators on permitted animal farms and for technical specialists who advise and assist those operators. All permitted animal waste facilities must have at least one operator in charge (OIC) to ensure all rules and regulations are followed. Additionally, OICs must obtain six hours of continuing education credits every three years.  NC Cooperative Extension has been the lead agency training producers and technical specialists through offering continuing education classes and field tour activities to meet credit requirements. 

This training is mainly executed on the county level by Extension Agents supported by specialists.  During Covid-19, a group of agents planned statewide Zoom classes to continue providing operators their continuing education credits.  Since then, those classes continued each year with two 3-hour Zoom classes, plus many in-person classes.  Agents and specialists also provided the majority of continuing education classes for technical specialists. 474 producers have attended the Zoom trainings in the last three years. Field tours and demonstrations geared toward technical specialists are offered in coordination with industry stakeholders. The team also developed videos to be used for agent and producer workshops.  URLs for the videos: go.ncsu.edu/sludgegreenhousevideo (posted 2023, 9.2K views), go.ncsu.edu/digestervideo (posted 2025, 409 views), and go.ncsu.edu/animalwastevideos (posted early 2026, 285 views). Producer feedback on Zoom training indicated 93% learned “a lot or some” new ideas from the information provided and 92% indicated “yes or maybe” to making changes to their farm based on the training.  For the technical specialist group, 100% learned new ideas and 86% adopted new practices from the information gained on the field tours. 

Poster has NOT been presented at any previous NACAA AM/PIC

This poster is being submitted for judging. It will be displayed at the AM/PIC if not selected as a State winner. The abstract will be published in the proceedings.

Click to view Poster

Authors: Becky Spearman, Max Knowles, Amanda Hatcher, stefani_sykes@ncsu.edu Stefani Sykes, Dr. Mahmoud Sharara, Dr. Steph Kulesza
  1. Spearman, B. County Extension Director, NC Cooperative Extension - Bladen County, North Carolina, 28337-0249
  2. Knowles, M. Livestock Agent, NC Cooperative Extension - Sampson County, North Carolina, 28328
  3. Hatcher, A. County Extension Director and Livestock Agent, NC Cooperative Extension - Duplin County, North Carolina, 28349
  4. Stefani Sykes, S. Livestock Agent, NC Cooperative Extension - Wayne County, North Carolina, 27534
  5. Sharara, D. Extension Specialist, NCSU - Biological and Ag Engineering, North Carolina, 27695
  6. Kulesza, D. Extension Specialist, NCSU Crop Science, North Carolina, 27695