Pacific Region
In May of 2022, the Intertribal Agriculture Council (IAC) hired Ginny Hatch (Yerington Paiute) to serve the 28 federally recognized Tribes in Nevada. Ginny came to IAC with a background in Tribal leadership, environmental management, and various food sovereignty-related initiatives.
Over the last several months, Ginny has coordinated with IAC’s Natural Resources program team to lead a regenerative agriculture field training at Cottonwood Ranch in Wells, Nevada. The field day centered on topics relating to regenerative ranching on arid lands. The Natural Resources Conservation Service’s (NRCS) Nevada team provided information about their programs and used a rainfall simulator to demonstrate hydrology and erosion. The two-day event focused on regenerative agriculture practices and soil health. Although Ginny comes to IAC with extensive Tribal leadership and outreach experience, she was excited to work directly with Tribal producers and partners to support this field-based opportunity.
In just a few short months, Ginny has directly assisted Nevada-based Tribal producers. Linda Ely is a pig producer near Nixon, Nevada. Linda acquired the pigs from a Tribal agricultural project that had recently decided to liquidate its stock due to capacity issues. Linda identified the opportunity and decided to enter into the pork business. She contacted Ginny for general information on raising pigs for direct-to-market sales and stated that she needed guidance on processing, packaging, and marketing strategies. She was also interested in the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) inspection process to increase her market options.
Ginny drew on IAC’s extensive networks throughout the country and engaged Chris Roper at Flower Hill Institute to guide Linda through the development of her pork business. Then Ginny connected Linda with IAC’s American Indian Foods program to apply for the Native Made/Produced Trademark label, the first step in receiving even more IAC services and marketing assistance.
Ginny will offer Tribal outreach and technical assistance in Nevada to increase access to USDA programs and services. She meets regularly with existing USDA contacts to build relationships and collaborate on Tribal outreach activities.