Assessing The Impact of Cluster Farming Initiatives on Small and Socially Disadvantaged Farmers, Ranchers, and Forestland Owners: A Case of The Southeastern Region of The United States

Farming in clusters is an economically viable practice to sustain small, limited resource, and socially disadvantaged farmers and forestland owners with their agricultural operations. The objectives of the study were to strengthen the capacity of clientele on cluster farming and to lower production and marketing costs by sharing input costs. Clusters were created and interventions were provided by project partners through several activities, including workshops, meetings, field days, loans, and materials/equipment. The results showed that 29 clusters involving 224 farmers, and 14 cooperatives involving 410 farmers were formed and strengthened. The number of farmers participating in workshops, training programs, field days, and meetings were, respectively, 4,921, 3,095, 1,426, and 1,285. The results also revealed that 190 producers received access to farm loans, mobile and stationary cold storage facilities, and marketing materials. Additionally, 930 farmers strengthened their knowledge and skills, and changed their behavior due to the implementation of the cluster farming approach

Assessing The Impact of Cluster Farming Initiatives on Small and Socially Disadvantaged Farmers, Ranchers, and Forestland Owners: A Case of The Southeastern Region of The United States

Farming in clusters is an economically viable practice to sustain small, limited resource, and socially disadvantaged farmers and forestland owners with their agricultural operations. The objectives of the study were to strengthen the capacity of clientele on cluster farming and to lower production and marketing costs by sharing input costs. Clusters were created and interventions were provided by project partners through several activities, including workshops, meetings, field days, loans, and materials/equipment. The results showed that 29 clusters involving 224 farmers, and 14 cooperatives involving 410 farmers were formed and strengthened. The number of farmers participating in workshops, training programs, field days, and meetings were, respectively, 4,921, 3,095, 1,426, and 1,285. The results also revealed that 190 producers received access to farm loans, mobile and stationary cold storage facilities, and marketing materials. Additionally, 930 farmers strengthened their knowledge and skills, and changed their behavior due to the implementation of the cluster farming approach

Electron-capture delayed fission properties of 244Es

Electron-capture delayed fission was observed in {sup 244}Es produced via the {sup 237}Np({sup 12}C,5n){sup 244}Es reaction at 81 MeV (on target) with a production cross section of 0.31{+-}0.12 {micro}b. The mass-yield distribution of the fission fragments is highly asymmetric. The average preneutron-emission total kinetic energy of the fragments was measured to be 186{+-}19 MeV. Based on the ratio of the number of fission events to the measured number of {alpha} decays from the electron-capture daughter {sup 244}Cf (100% {alpha} branch), the probability of delayed fission was determined to be (1.2{+-}0.4) x 10{sup -4}. This value for the delayed fission probability fits the experimentally observed trend of increasing delayed fission probability with increasing Q value for electron-capture

Electron-capture delayed fission properties of 244Es

Electron-capture delayed fission was observed in {sup 244}Es produced via the {sup 237}Np({sup 12}C,5n){sup 244}Es reaction at 81 MeV (on target) with a production cross section of 0.31{+-}0.12 {micro}b. The mass-yield distribution of the fission fragments is highly asymmetric. The average preneutron-emission total kinetic energy of the fragments was measured to be 186{+-}19 MeV. Based on the ratio of the number of fission events to the measured number of {alpha} decays from the electron-capture daughter {sup 244}Cf (100% {alpha} branch), the probability of delayed fission was determined to be (1.2{+-}0.4) x 10{sup -4}. This value for the delayed fission probability fits the experimentally observed trend of increasing delayed fission probability with increasing Q value for electron-capture