This year marks a decade of Hillsborough County’s commitment to provide military veterans a firsthand look at careers in the modern agriculture industry through the annual Military Agriculture Tour.
Over the years, the popular, daylong bus tour has inspired dozens of military veterans, active-duty personnel and their families to start an agribusiness career. Today’s farming operations increasingly focus on technology and management systems to produce food, medicine, consumer products and energy. Transitioning veterans are at a competitive advantage for these jobs because of their unique skillset gained through the military.
The 10th annual Military Agriculture Tour, hosted by the Hillsborough County Extension Service, took place in March. The tour took veterans to a wheat processing facility, tropical fish lab, plant nursery, blueberry farm and the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) Gulf Coast Research and Education Center. Attendees were able to hear from former veterans-turned-agribusiness professionals about how they utilized their skills to transition from the military to careers in agriculture.
The Military Agriculture Tour is organized through a partnership between Hillsborough County Extension, Lightning Foundation, Farm Credit of Central Florida, Veterans Florida, Hillsborough County Farm Bureau, University of Florida Gulf Coast Research and Education Center and the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office. Hillsborough County and its partners are committed to assisting transitioning veterans by providing meaningful connections to quality civilian career opportunities and training.
The UF/IFAS Extension Hillsborough County is an educational service provided by UF/IFAS and Hillsborough County, and it provides education and services in:
- 4-H Youth Development.
- Agriculture.
- Family, Nutrition, Health & Finance Education.
- Lawn & Garden.
- Urban Trees, Forestry & Natural Resources.
- Professional Horticulture Services.
For more information on programs and services, visit https://hcfl.gov/departments/extension.
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