We speak with Communications Manager, Mary Wilson, of the Alabama Extension System on the second annual Alabama Extension Week. This year, the event will be held April 12-18. There will be in-person events as well as online webinars. Visit the ACES website to get more information. Below is a list of the webinars for the week. If you are interested, please register at THIS WEBSITE.

○ Monday

■ 2 p.m. - Your First Steps Into the Market is super timely to help farmers think about their farmers market spaces and setups.

■ 6 p.m. - Pollinator Power in Alabama will be a fun one where folks can learn about the Great Southeast Pollinator Census. If you like bees, and want to help out our pollinators, you definitely want to register for this one.

○ Tuesday

■ 12 p.m. - is for all the aspiring entrepreneurs. It’s Small Business Cafe — Idea to Impact.

■ 2 p.m. - we’re talking mental health in agriculture. And that’s a BIG topic right now with the row crop economy like it is… high input costs and low prices make farming even tougher than usual.

■ 5:30 p.m. - any sheep or goat farmers will want to join in to learn about postpartum nutrition and lactation management in small ruminants

■ 6 p.m. - we round it out with another hot topic - invasive plants. You can learn more about Extension declaring this the Year of Invasive Plants and how you can help work to reduce the populations of those plants.

■ 6:30 p.m. - for any farmers facing financial hardships, this webinar provides a place to discuss challenges and learn about resources that can help.

○ Wednesday… this one is a FULL day

■ 10 a.m. - houseplants for homeowners… people are gonna LOVE that one

■ 12 p.m. - a really intriguing and different webinar — it’s exploring the science of forestry, geology and pottery

■ 2 p.m. - we have a group of Extension agents who will be hosting the Women in Ag webinar, which will be really exciting.

■ 6 p.m. - we’re talking about landscape trees and things you can plant aside from crape myrtles… because diversity in what we plant is a good thing!

○ Thursday

■ If you’re a forest landowner, you’ll want to join in for the 2 p.m. webinar about forest health in Alabama… the current challenges and management strategies.

■ At 6 p.m. - we’re talking about the Grow More, Give More program and the 250 Pound Challenge… which is all about growing extra fruits and vegetables to help people in your communities

○ Friday

■ We round it all out with a final webinar at 2 p.m. that’s all about caregiving for loved ones suffering from memory loss. This one fits within Human Sciences Extension, and we know there’s a lot of people out there who can benefit from this kind of information.

Eggcellent Food Safety: Keeping Easter Fresh and Fun

With the arrival of spring and warmer weather, many people start to think about the upcoming lineup of holidays, including Easter. Some people join friends or family for a big meal and hiding eggs, while others enjoy going out to eat for their celebrations. No matter the plan, make sure that all Easter foods follow the proper safety guidelines.

Cooking at Home

When cooking an Easter meal at home, the following are important things to remember:

• Keep it clean. Wash your hands before preparing food and in between different kitchen tasks. Use clean cooking equipment, including tools and countertops.
• Keep cold foods at an internal food temperature of 41 degrees F or less. Also, keep hot foods at an internal temperature of 140 degrees F or greater.
• Check temperatures with a food thermometer. Ensure that the thermometer works properly by putting it in ice or boiling water. It should read 32 degrees F and 212 degrees F, respectively.
• Make sure hot foods are fully cooked to the minimum recommended temperature for that food item. Find recommendations in the publication, HE-0733, There’s No Place Like Home for Food Safety.
• If foods cannot be kept at the correct internal temperatures, limit the time that you serve that food to 2 hours. After then, throw the food away. Do not keep them for leftovers.

For more information about keeping it safe at home, see the Extension Brief, Host Guests, Not Bacteria: Simple Food Safety Tips For Entertaining at aces.edu.

Easter Eggs

It is fun to decorate and hide Easter eggs, but there are a few safety tips to keep in mind.

• Before decorating, inspect eggs for cracks and cleanliness.
• Store raw and boiled eggs in the refrigerator.
• When cooking, cooling, dyeing, and even hiding eggs, wash your hands with soap and water before and after handling the eggs.
• Consider using plastic eggs for hiding, particularly if the event will take more than 2 hours from the time the eggs would have left refrigeration.
• If you choose to hide boiled eggs, avoid hiding them in areas where they might come in contact with pets, wild animals, birds, reptiles, insects, lawn chemicals, or other potential sources of bacteria or other contaminants.
• Discard any cracked or dirty eggs, as well as ones that have been out of refrigeration for more than 2 hours.
• Rinse uncracked eggs that have been out of refrigeration for less than 2 hours, and put them back in the refrigerator to eat up to 1 week later.
• If you are using fresh-from-the-flock eggs, find recommendations on how to wash and care for them in the publication, ANR-2642, Enhancing Egg Quality & Safety in Small Flocks.

Out to Eat

In the restaurant, you should see one or more food safety training certificates on display as you enter the establishment. The Alabama Extension Food Safety and Quality team teaches one of these certifications, ServSafe for Managers. That certificate is usually white and blue. The ServSafe training is a comprehensive class where participants are taught and tested on microbiological, chemical, and physical contamination. To learn more about the scoring system, or to see what your favorite restaurant’s score is, visit www.alabamapublichealth.gov/foodscores/system.html.

Hello and welcome to the Alabama AgCast News for April 1, 2026. The AgCast is produced by the Alabama Farmers Federation and sponsored by Alabama Ag Credit.

On today’s AgCast, we will get the latest national and state news, check in with Morgan Desselle as the legislative session begins to wind down, hear the Commodity Column from Marlee Jackson, and go IN THE MARKETS with Chris Prevatt.

On today’s AgCast, we will find out the latest from our nation’s capital, we recap the Jr. Livestock Expo, we’ll explore what’s going on at the State House in Montgomery, Jacob Davis will bring us the Field Staff Report, and Chris Prevatt will take us…In the Markets.

Chandler Gruener is embarking on a multi-year study to determine soil sulfur recommendations for producers in Alabama. He just received a grant from the Soybean Checkoff Committee and will be reporting on his findings in the coming years.

Find out more about our sponsor, Alabama Ag Credit, and also about Alabama Farmers Federation.

We sit down with Director of Governmental and Agriculture Programs, Mitt Walker, on The Farm Bill and other movement in Congress.

Find out more about our sponsor, Alabama Ag Credit, and also about Alabama Farmers Federation.

On today’s AgCast we see why young farm families gathered at the beach, check in with Maggie Edwards and the Commodity Column, hear the Legislative Report from Morgan Desselle, get the boots-on-the-ground Field Report with Guy Hall, and follow Chris Prevatt as we go In The Markets.

Find out more about our sponsor, Alabama Ag Credit, and also about Alabama Farmers Federation.

Today’s AgCast Feature will be a conversation with Auburn University’s Variety Testing Manager, Henry Jordan. Henry recently applied for and received a grant from the Alabama Soybean Check-off program.

Find out more about our sponsor, Alabama Ag Credit, and also about Alabama Farmers Federation.