The University of Kentucky Center for Crop Diversification (CCD) helps farmers and businesses to plan, grow, and market better. We create and curate up-to-date, relevant, and accessible publications, price reports, videos, and in-person training opportunities.
The CCD is part of the University of Kentucky Cooperative Extension Service. Learn more about Extension and find your County Agent here.
You can learn more about our Team Members here, or Contact Us here.
As funding is available, we work with college students interested in specialty crops. Recent UK CCD Undergraduate Fellows have been funded through the gracious support of the Kentucky Horticulture Council.
This experience is enriching and beneficial to our students and we consider it an investment into the future of our food and agriculture systems.
2024 CCD Summer Fellow, Macey Thompson meets with KDA Specialist Sharon Spencer to talk about KDA's work and what it's like to work in agriculture.
Visiting farmers markets and collection price information was one of Macey's key responsibilities.
In July 2024, Macey joined CCD Specialist Brett Wolff to talk with over 350 attendees about the economics of plasticulture at the Franklin County Farm Field day at Happy Jack's Farm.
The Center for Crop Diversification got its start as the New Crop Opportunities Center—a collaboration between the UK Departments of Horticulture and Agricultural Economics—in 2000. This era of diversification was defined by a transition away from tobacco. In a state where tobacco had always been a staple of small-farm solvency, it became important to identify other new potential crops that farms could grow instead. Initially funded by a USDA Special Research grant, the Center supported these industry needs through horticulture and specialty grain research projects, fact sheets on a variety of crops and marketing channels, as well as other resources, including crop budgets. After the initial USDA funding ended in 2013, the Center was renamed to its current moniker, known to most as the CCD.
Since 2013, the scope of programming offered by the Center has expanded to include new marketing curricula, video production, graphic design, and includes innovative award-winning projects like the Horticulture BizQuiz, High Tunnel Planting Date Calendars, and the adaptable Marketing for All curriculum. Since 2013 we have led a regional specialty crop extension and research group called SERA-45. From 2013-2019 we rebuilt our website according to user needs and travelled to 14 different states to promote and share our resources and build collaborative relationships with specialty crop communities in those states. When the pandemic started in early 2020, we led a support and outreach effort to producers in the state helping them stay informed and adopt some digital technologies to continue selling their products. We also worked with USDA-AMS on a project called Local & Regional Food Systems Response to COVID-19 and Recovery and Resilience. From 2016 to 2024 we have seen nearly 6-fold growth in social media following, and our website has provided over 1.2 million publication downloads to over 300,000 visitors. We are always working to keep our large and growing library of resources up-to-date.
Now in 2025, as we celebrate 25 years as a Center, we are launching a new improved website, are again revamping our Marketing for All Curriculum, and we are envisioning what our next 25 years might hold. Join us on facebook, Instagram, our website, and via our newsletter in celebrating and continuing to grow at the CCD.
Southern Extension and Research Activity 45 collaborative includes a talented and diverse group of researchers and Extension personnel from across the region. Learn more here.
