Industry Events

2023 Regional Pecan Listening Sessions

2023/03/28 to 2023/05/30

Region	Date	City	Session Address	Time
High Plains	May 2, 2023	Lubbock	Texas A&M AgriLife Research & Extension Center,1102 Drew Street, Lubbock,TX 79403	12-2 pm
Concho Valley	May 9, 2023	San Angelo	Tom Green County 4-H Center, 3166 N. US Hwy 67, San Angelo, TX 76905	12-2pm
Central Texas	May 16, 2023	Goldthwaite	Mills County Civic Center, 1103 Cline St., Goldthwaite, TX 76844	12-2 pm
North Central- Red River	May 23, 2023	Bowie	Bowie Community Center 413 Pelham Street, Bowie, TX 76230	12-2 pm

 

Texas Pecan Growers Association received a 2022 Specialty Crop Block Grant to critically assess the Texas pecan industry’s economic development and sustainability through a series of survey-based projects. According to the USDA Census of Agriculture, pecan acreage in Texas declined 17.5% from 1997 to 2017, when acreage increased 7% nationally. Uncovering the factors behind this trend will be helpful in setting new research, education, and outreach goals for the Texas pecan industry, which is important to the state’s economy, sociology, and historical legacy.

TPGA has partnered with Dr. Monte Nesbitt, Dr. Larry Stein, and Dr. Amit Dhingra with Texas A&M University’s Department of Horticultural Sciences to engage the pecan growing community with three fact-finding assessments: 1) in-person listening sessions that will uncover grower attitudes, perceptions, and needs, 2) a crop cycle survey focused on crop management and production problems, and 3) a mixed mode quantitative survey of Texas pecan growers that will define its demographic and geographic influences on scope and health. These outcomes will raise awareness of the current condition of pecans as a specialty crop industry in Texas, identify research and Extension priorities, and define critical needs for sustainability and growth of pecan production in Texas.

• Pecan growers across Texas are invited to participate in all of these survey efforts, including one of twelve town-hall-style listening sessions hosted in various cities across the pecan-growing areas this spring.

“We simply want to meet with pecan growers in or near their home communities, talk with them about what they’re facing, and hear about their successes, challenges, and needs,” says Dr. Monte Nesbitt, Extension Program Specialist and lead contributor to the project for Texas A&M AgriLife. “These will not be typical Extension pecan meetings. Yes, we will attempt to answer questions about pecan growing if folks have them, but this is about us listening carefully and critically to grower opinions on where the legacy of pecan growing stands right now. I think we all want to keep it standing.”

Pecan growers in Texas of any size orchard and any businesses aligned with the pecan industry are invited to attend one of 11 regional meetings, beginning March 28 in Bastrop County and concluding June 8 in El Paso County. A twelfth listening session is planned to coincide with the TPGA Annual Conference in Denton, Texas, on July 30.

The specific meeting time and location for each of the eleven regional sessions can be found at TPGA.org or by contacting the TPGA office at (979) 846-3285 or pecans@tpga.org

26th Annual Arizona Pecan Growers Association’s Conference

2021/08/26 to 2021/08/27

Arizona Pecan Growers Association will be hosting their 26th Annual Conference in person at the Desert Diamond Casino & Hotel in Tucson, AZ. Visit their website for more information ArizonaPecan.com

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Oklahoma Pecan Growers Association

2022/06/09 to 2022/06/11

Oklahoma Pecan Growers Conference, Stoney Creek Convention Center, 200 W Albany St. Broken Arrow, Oklahoma. Contact Admin@okpecangrowers.com, 580-279-0357, or visit their event registration page, https://www.okpecangrowers.com/annual-convention

Georgia Pecan Growers Association Annual Conference

2021/06/02 to 2021/06/03

GPGA will be hosting its in person Annual Conference & Trade Show in June, date to be released at a later time. For more information click the link, https://georgiapecan.org/

Texas Pecan Growers 102nd Annual Conference & Trade Show

2023/07/30 to 2023/08/02

Texas Pecan Growers 102nd Annual Conference and Trade Show at Embassy Suites in Denton, Texas on July 30-August 2, 2023. Visit tpga.org or email pecans@tpga.org
for more info.

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