Saturday, January 31, 2015

Healthy Farms Conference Friday Keynotes!


”Water, Soil, Toil: The Ways We Farm”

Farmers and ranchers make tough decisions every day in their farming and ranching practice. Recently proposed policy expansion and calls for increased consideration of animal welfare have pressured farmers, ranchers, and the organizations that represent them to take positions. Where are the farmers’ and ranchers’ voices? Dr. Thompson will provide a presentation laying out the various consumer-farmer-industry interests in agriculture while illustrating how these interests create dilemmas for our farmers and ranchers.

Dr. Paul Thompson holds the W.K. Kellogg Chair in Agricultural Food, and Community Ethics at Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan. He has formerly held positions in philosophy at Texas A&M University and Purdue University. His research has centered on ethical and philosophical questions associated with agriculture and food, and especially concerning the guidance and development of agricultural techno-science. He serves on the United States National Research Council’s Agricultural Biotechnology Advisory Council and on the Science and Industry Advisory Committee for Genome Canada. Thompson’s new work focuses on nanotechnology in the agrifood system.


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"The Key Ingredients for Animal Agriculture: More Farmers, More Attention to Animals"

Pacelle will discuss why it’s critical that family farmers & animal advocates unite to take back our food system from people who have little regard for animals, family farmers, & rural communities.  American consumers & corporate farmers have become too disassociated from the way animals are treated, resulting in a wide array of abuses & a dissolution in American family agriculture.  Consumers increasingly want options.  They want to know their farmers, they want to know how animals are treated, & they want more transparency in the process.  With more farmers on the land, we can help put an end to the disastrous 50-year experiment with factory farming & restore a conscious awareness of humane, responsible, & sustainable food production in the United States.

Wayne Pacelle is President & CEO of The Humane Society of the US.  The HSUS is the largest provider of direct care services to animals, & it works to shape public & corporate policies in the realm of companion animals, farm animals, horses, wildlife, & animals used in testing & research. In the last 9 years, he & HSUS have helped to pass more than 725 new state laws for animals & worked with dozens of major food retailers to provide markets for more humanely produced animal products. Pacelle is the author of the New York Times bestseller The Bond: Our Kinship with Animals, Our Call to Defend Them. 



Healthy Farms Conference Breakout Sessions III

Helping You Help Your Land! Charles Leinen

The session describes the Natural Resource Conservation Service in Nebraska and the program opportunities that are available to farmers and landowners.

About: Charles Leinen,  Civil Engineer with over 30 years of work experience with the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) formerly Soil Conservation Service.  He has multi-state experience in conservation planning, design, and implementation on several engineering practices, such as, terraces, waterways, ag-waste facilities, surface and subsurface irrigation systems, grade stabilization structures, wetland restoration, watershed rehabilitation, and emergency watershed program assistance. He is a graduate of Iowa State University, BS (1991) with over 16 years’ experience as an NRCS employee in Nebraska serving agriculture farmers in Eastern Nebraska.


Global Gardening: Urban Community Gardening & Farming with Refugee Populations

 This breakout session will provide insight into initiatives happening around Omaha and Lincoln that are providing refugee communities with available land and resources to grow their own food. We will focus on funding ideas, seed orders, overcoming initial challenges, and overall best practices for the most successful growing season.

About: Aaron French is currently the farm training manager at Community Crops, where he helps to oversee the day to day production and farmer training on the Prairie Pines Training Farm.

About: Laura Weiss is the Education, Employment, & Outreach Coordinator at Southern Sudan Community Association and founder of Root Down Community Gardens, a program aimed at providing resources for refugee communities to grow their own fresh and culturally appropriate food. Outside of work you can find her singing in her band, gardening with Root Down participants, eating Kim-chi, or conversing over coffee.


Nebraskan Permaculture Design & Trees as the Farmer’s Best Friend.

Gus would like to share Permaculture designs that highlight lessons he has learned when designing landscapes for the Nebraskan home, community or farm.  The main lesson he would like to showcase is the many uses for every tree in your landscape; with all its different stages of development and decomposition.

About: Gus Von Roenn is a permaculture designer in Omaha.  With a background in social sciences, he pursues sustainability projects that help improve healthy food accessibility for low-income communities.  As a general contractor for many years, he adopts a building sensibility when designing permaculture projects.   He engages his community by participating on boards of local food organizations to help promote sustainability and create awareness of water quality degradation from agricultural runoff.   He hopes to spread a vision of agroecology throughout the farms of the midwest.


Building a Local Foods Movement. Next Steps

Local food is fresher, tastier and more nutritious—good for our personal health and the health of our communities and local economies.  But with the onset of climate change and the increasing peril of extreme weather to our global food production and distribution system, local food is also vital to our ‘food security.’  The farther away we are from our food supply, the more food insecure we are.  The need for building a vibrant local food movement capable of meeting these economic and environmental challenges has never been greater.  In this workshop session, we will examine some possible ‘next steps’ local food advocates may want to take to dramatically grow both the production and consumption of local foods.


About: Tim Rinne just celebrated his 20th year as the State Coordinator of Nebraskans for Peace.  Long interested in environmental and climate issues, from 2004-2013, he was the Political and Legislative Chair for the Nebraska Sierra Club.  Helping create the Hawley Hamlet and learning to grow some of his own food is the most satisfying political thing he’s ever done.  Makes you wonder why he waited until he was in his fifties to get going…


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Friday, January 30, 2015

Healthy Farms Conference Breakout Sessions II

Biofuels: Clean, Renewable, and Local. Scott Williams

An overview of the cooperative organization, oil collection and processing, fuel partnership programs, & the science surrounding biofuels will be presented. Biofuels offer a clean, renewable, & locally produced way to improve sustainability & decrease carbon dioxide pollution, while ending the dependence on foreign fossil fuels. 


About: Scott Williams, Ph.D., is the Managing Director of the Omaha Biofuels Cooperative.  Scott has had an appointment as a Graduate Researcher at Los Alamos National Laboratory, worked as a postdoctoral fellow at Helmholtz Center Berlin, and then at Johns Hopkins University studying advanced biofuels made from algae.  He currently also works part-time as an Academic Advisor at NorthStar Foundation's after school program.  infoOmahaBiofuelsCoop.org, www.omahabiofuelscoop.org,


Urban Community Garden Initiatives: City of Omaha, Adams Park & NOIHC

The Adams Park Community Garden Program is a garden program developed on public land.  The program teaches community residents how to grow, cook, and preserve seasonally healthy nutrient food.  This session will share information about the program and what they plan for 2015. The Prospect Village Community Garden Program is a City of Omaha – Planning Department initiative that has put into production eight underutilized lots owned by the city.  This session will share information about project development and next steps.

About: Orentheian Everett, Recreational Supervisor, Adams Park Community Center for City of Omaha.  He is also a member of the Nebraska Recreation & Parks Association. Previously, he served as the Teen Program Director for Omaha Metro YMCA in Valley.

About: Bill Lukash works for the City of Omaha Planning Department as a City Planner.  His responsibilities include NEPA compliance, healthy housing, and the Omaha Lead Registry.


A discussion between a chef and a farmer. Rebecca Bloom & Clayton Chapman

Experiences of a farmer/chef relationship growing specialty produce for upscale restaurants

About:  For the past 14 years Rebecca Bloom has been owner of Bloomsorganic, a small diversified farm outside Crescent, Iowa.   She starts the season by providing plants for the public & the farms needs--growing herbs, veggies & flower starts inside a large greenhouse.  These plant starts & all the food grown are certified organic.  In the high tunnel & two acres of crop land, a wide variety of food crops are grown throughout the season.  She & her employees sell to restaurants, grocery stores & plants at the Benson Farmer's market & other local retailers.


How to Educate Farmers to Advocate. Kevin Fulton & Joe Maxwell

About:  Kevin Fulton (Fulton Farms is a full-time farmer with a 2,800-acre organic grass-fed beef operation near Litchfield in Sherman County. He has been passionately promoting sustainable agriculture for the last eight years after converting his land base from a conventional crop farm to an organic grass-based operation. Kevin also serves on the board of Director of NSAS.


About:  Joe Maxwell grew up on a family farm in the small town of Rush Hill, Missouri, the son of a hard-working family farmer. Today, as Vice President of Outreach & Engagement for The HSUS, Maxwell works directly with family farmers, helping them organize into producer groups to open direct markets for their own products. Maxwell is a former president of the Association of Family Farmers, an organization associated with the Agriculture of the Middle Project, and is a member of the Organization for Competitive Markets and the Missouri Farmers Union.


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Thursday, January 29, 2015

Healthy Farms Conference Breakout Sessions I

Managing Organics: Food Waste as Opportunities & Challenges. Kay Stevens & Adam Siegert

Kay Stevens will make the case will make a case for development of a model food waste supply analysis that challenges historic assumptions about ‘efficient’  waste management & proposes an innovative method for measuring & managing wastes based on collaboration, responsible management & accurate data. Adam Sagert will make the case for composting organics based on the economic & environmental benefits describe the methodology & outcomes of the 2014 Pilot Project, the HDR headquarters’ Zero Waste efforts & outline future goals and objectives.

About: Kay Stevens, Project Coordinator with No More Empty Pots in Omaha. kstevens@nomoreemptypots.org

About: Adam Sagert, founder of WeCompost, a start-up in Omaha that collects food waste from residential and commercial customers. wecompostomaha@gmail.com, http://wecompost.blogspot.com


Urban Community Gardening Inititiative. Big Garden & City Sprouts.


About:  Cait Caughey is the Education & Programming Coordinator at The Big Garden, a network of over 100 urban and rural gardens in Nebraska, Iowa, and Kansas. She has written a 10-week children & youth curriculum focused on sustainable urban agriculture, and teaches at Big Garden sites in the Omaha-metro May through October. Her main focus is equipping gardeners with the skills they need to have healthy, bio-diverse gardens that use organic growing practices. She is also a farmer and runs Botna Burrow in Hancock, Iowa with her partner Tyler Magnuson & their kids.


Cultivation Story: The Role of Art in Agriculture. Amanda Breitbach

Agriculture is more than an industry – it reflects a culture's value system and way of life. Session participants will explore how art can tell a meaningful story about agriculture using personal and communal narratives. Together, they will view visual and audio art and discuss how art can be used to communicate ideas about people and land.

About:  Amanda is a graduate student in photography at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She grew up on a family farm in eastern Montana, and her research examines the relationships between people and land.


Farms in the Media: How to get the Word out. Summer Miller

Summer Miller will share her own experiences as a food and agriculture journalist and author. She will also provide information on how to define your own farm story and bring it to the media.


About:  Summer is a freelance food writer and author based just outside the urban fringes of Omaha, Nebraska. Her writing has appeared in SAVEUR, Every Day with Rachael Ray, Edible Omaha, Edible Feast, Nebraska Life, Omaha Magazine, and The Reader. Her first book, New Prairie Kitchen: Stories and Seasonal Recipes from Chefs, Farmers and Artisans of the Great Plains, was heralded by Oprah Winfrey's private chef as "more than a cookbook -- it's a love letter to the heartland." It is currently available for pre-order on Amazon.com and slated for nationwide release in May.



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Friday, January 23, 2015

6LocalChefs & NSAS Membership!!

Hello NSAS friends!

Here is an outstanding deal that will run until midnight tonight (January 23rd):

Buy your tickets to the Producers Choice Chef Award Dinner at www.chefaward2015@bpt.me 
and get a year's membership for $10!!!  (Regularly $45) 

All you have to do is:
1.  go to www.chefaward2015@bpt.me and buy your tickets for Sunday's event
2.  respond to this by email @, chefaward@gmail.com so we know you're coming and will have membership sign ups ready for you on Sunday night.  You can pay for your special membership at the registration table that evening.

The Producers Choice Chef Award Dinner is at 5:30 -9pm on Sunday night (January 25th) in Omaha at the Institute for Culinary Arts, 32nd and Sorenson Parkway.  

Six local chefs will be preparing delicious and locally sourced food for our fundraiser dinner.  

Isa Moscowitz from Modern Love Omaha 

Ben Maides from Avoli Osteria 

Colin and Jessica Duggan from Kitchen Table 

Glenn Wheeler from Spencer's for Steaks and Chops

Kevin Shinn from bread&cup

John Hamburger from Back Alley Bakery 


There will be great raffle items to win, too!!!

Go to the NSAS website for more information or check out the attached invite.

REMEMBER: THIS DEAL IS ONLY GOOD THROUGH MIDNIGHT TONIGHT!!!!

Eat well, be well,
Krista, NSAS Board President

p.s.  gift memberships available upon request.



Tuesday, January 20, 2015

Weekly Events & Opportunities in Sustainable Farming & Foods

Celebrating the Fabric of the Local Food Community

January 25th. Omaha. Institute for the Culinary Arts. Join emcees Jeremy Maskel from KETV, Omaha News Leader and Chef Paul Kulik from Le Bouillon as well local chefs nominated by NSAS producer members for their dedication to building our local food system. This year our producer members have nominated 6 chefs and restaurateurs for the Producers Choice Chef Award! Isa Moscowitz from Modern Love in Omaha. Ben Maides from Avoli in Omaha. Colin and Jessica Duggan from Kitchen Table in Omaha. Glenn Wheeler from Spencers for Steaks and Chops in Omaha. Kevin Shinn from Bread & Cup in Lincoln. John Hamburger from Back Alley Bakery in Hastings! Each ticket includes two drink passes for beer from Ploughshare Brewing or wine Glacial Till Vineyard.  There will be a raffle for great prizes and Edible Omaha will have their winter issue available.  Join us for an entertaining and delicious evening as we celebrate the fabric of our local food community! http://chefaward2015.bpt.me/

Farmland Leases Built to Last: Content and Legal Context

Monday, January, 19. 12:00 pm. Leasing farmland is so commonplace farmers may not think twice about the lease itself… until things go wrong. Don’t let misunderstandings with landowners hinder your farm. Prevent problems with a strong lease that addresses water usage, equipment access, payment strategies, dispute resolution procedures, long-term concerns, and termination processes, plus more. Negotiating tactics and various laws affecting farmland leases will be on the agenda. This webinar is funded by USDA Risk Management Agency. http://farmcommons.org/farmland-leases-built-last-content-and-legal-context

Marketing Your Products - Turning Samples into Sales

Tuesday, January 20 at 11:00 am. Providing product samples is a great way to help increase sales at your farmers market booth or farm stand.  However, it is also important to do it in a way that does not give away all your product (and therefore profits!) and that also will provide a safe product that meets regulatory requirements. In this webinar, you'll learn how to choose which products to sample, how to control costs in sampling, and generally how to make the most of sampling. Lorin Fahrmeier, whose family sells a large amount of produce and other products through their farm stand and at farmers markets will provide insight from her extensive personal experience on how to turn sampling into sales. Londa Nwadike will also present some practical ideas on how to do sampling safely and also meet regulatory requirements. Lorin is the Farm to Institution Program Coordinator for the University of Missouri Extension and Londa is the State Extension Food Safety Specialist for both the University of Missouri and Kansas State University.https://connect.extension.iastate.edu/womeninag

Rotational No-Till, Mulching and Conservation Tillage for Organic Vegetable Farms Webinar

Tuesday, January 20 at 1:00 pm. Join eOrganic for a webinar on no-till, high-residue mulching and conservation tillage on organic vegetable farms, by German farmer Jan-Hendrik Cropp. The webinar will take place on January 20, 2015 at 2PM Eastern Time, 1PM Central, 12PM Mountain, 11AM Pacific Time. The webinar is free and open to the public and advance registration is required. Register now at http://www.extension.org/pages/71822

Health concerns with backyard poultry flocks

Tuesday, January 20 at 2:00 pm. The summer of 2014 saw many cases of Salmonellosis traced back to backyard poultry flocks - see CDC website: http://www.cdc.gov/salmonella/live-poultry-05-14/index.html. Dr. Colin Basler of the Center for Disease Control and Prevention will be speaking about health concerns related to maintaining a backyard poultry flock. This event was originally scheduled for January 13, but due to circumstances beyond our control, it had to be re-scheduled for January 20. https://connect.extension.iastate.edu/poultry

Food Safety Liability And Regulations For The Farm

Tuesday, January, 20. 12:00 pm. We’ve been hearing all about the upcoming regulations under the Food Safety Modernization Act. But, as important as it is, farm liability for food safety goes beyond this new law. A food safety incident has potentially disastrous implications for any direct-to-consumer farmer. We’ll talk about how a food safety incident plays out, from lawsuits to recalls and contract breaches. Most importantly, we’ll talk about ways to protect farmers. This webinar is funded by USDA Risk Management Agency. http://farmcommons.org/food-safety-liability-and-regulations-farm

 Connecting Migratory Waterbirds and Working Lands in South-Central Nebraska

January 21. Online. Participants will learn about the importance of central Nebraska for migratory birds, the suitability of agricultural working lands for accommodating migratory birds, and partnership efforts to create habitat to achieve bird conservation goals. This webinar is sponsored by the USDA NRCS National Wildlife Team. http://www.conservationwebinars.net/webinars/connecting-migratory-waterbirds-and-working-lands-in-south-central-nebraska

Growing Hops for Market

January 22.  This session will provide an overview on the plant, variety selection, field management, setting up a Hopyard, harvesting, and selling Hop cones to home brewers and microbreweries.  Grant McCarty, University of Illinois Extension Small Farms/Local Foods Educator. https://web.extension.illinois.edu/registration/?RegistrationID=10817

36th Annual NPSAS Winter Conference

January 22-24. Aberdeen, South Dakota. "Feeding Our Neighbors by Nourishing Our Soil" is the conference theme. The agenda includes speakers Dr. Don Huber, Alan Guebert, and Cody Holmes, plus workshops on livestock, planting trees for food, gardening, canning, small-farm dairy production, bee keeping, recycling, cover crops, local foods and more. There will also be exhibitors, youth workshops, and organic/local foods. http://www.npsas.org/news-events/winter-conference.html

National Good Food Network Webinar: Facilitating value chain development without costly new infrastructure

January 22. Online. Join the National Good Food Network for this expanded webinar diving deep into the approaches people across the country are taking to improve the food system without costly new infrastructure. "Value Chain Coordinators" are people who work to connect the dots in a value chain. They ensure the right people, goods and resources connect with each other. Most often value chain coordinators work outside day-to-day business operations, a vantage point that offers a unique perspective on the optimal solutions in a regional market. Presenters include Ann Karlen, Fair Food; Todd Erling, Hudson Valley AgriBusiness Development Corp.; Steve Warshawer, La Montanita Coop; Lauren Gwin, Niche Meat Processors Assistance Network; and Debra Tropp, USDA. https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/6258438140577286401

Cover Crop Economics Decision Support Tool

January 22. Online. This webinar is presented by the USDA NRCS East National Technology Support Center. Participate for a demonstration of how a conservation planner can use an Excel-based tool to answer a producer's questions: What does cover cropping cost? What are the economic benefits? How do the costs and benefits change over time? http://www.conservationwebinars.net/webinars/cover-crop-economics-decision-support-tool

Managing Bad Stink Bugs Using Good Stink Bugs

Thursday, January 22 at 1:00 pm. Join eOrganic for a webinar on managing stink bugs using the spined soldier bug, by Yong-Lak Park of West Virginia University. Brown marmorated stink bugs (BMSB) have caused considerable economic damage in the Mid-Atlantic states, and biological control agents against BMSB are not readily available for growers yet. In this webinar, the efficacy and utilization of the spined soldier bug as a native biological control agent will be presented and discussed.  The webinar will take place on Thursday, January 22, 2015 at 2PM Eastern Time (1PM Central, 12PM Mountain, 11AM Pacific Time). The webinar is free and open to the public, and advance registration is required. Attendees will be able to type in questions for the speaker. Register now at:http://www.extension.org/pages/71371

Applied Ecology Seminar

Global Climate Change, Drought & Breeding Phenology in a migrant songbird.  January 23.  2:00 pm.  UNL's Hardin Hall. Mary Bomberger Brown, research assistant professor, will present this free and public seminar.

Practical Farmers of Iowa Annual Conference

January 23-25. Ames, Iowa. The event attracts farmers of all sorts, sizes, systems, and enterprises. From pre-conference short courses that run the day before and morning of the conference to in-depth workshops, roundtables, breakfast meetings, and a rich array of sessions in several core tracks, those who attend are sure to come away with valuable working knowledge to improve their farms and enrich their lives. The 2015 Annual Conference will foster discussion on longer crop rotations, cover crops, pollinator habitat, weather resiliency, soil preservation, perennial crops, diverse crop mixes, and irrigation. It will also explore how to tackle low profit margins and volatile market prices, and how to chart a profitable future. Learn from discussions between beginning farmers navigating future farming careers, and experienced farmers helping them reach their destinations through farm succession, mentorship, and education. http://practicalfarmers.org/2015-annual-conference/




Opportunities

Hogs wanted

In Search of Bulk self feeder for Hogs. Please contact Andrew, hollisterrentals@gmail.com

Local Foods Survey

This survey is being conducted by graduate student, Megan McGuffey, from the University of Nebraska at Omaha who is working with the Local Foodshed Working Group. The goal of this survey is to help create a more accurate picture of how many farmers are participating in the Lincoln/Lancaster County local food market. We are asking you to help us to complete this survey so that we can better understand the complex, local food system that gets food to our plates. If you have any questions or concerns about the survey please contact Megan McGuffey at mmcguffey@unomaha.edu. Follow this link for the survey,  https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1wuvRR4EFNcvPiazbZ4F6Av-PjeuvXrtFgT54SW4Pl2o/viewform?c=0&w=1

Research on Midwestern organic farmers at the Leopold Center

The Qualtrics questionnaire is being administered as part of study by the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture at Iowa State University so that we can better understand motivations of organic farmers in the Midwest to create social, environmental and economic value.  The results of this study will help create awareness of the role of Midwestern organic farmers as green/environmental entrepreneurs in promoting sustainable development.  Little is known about the link between organic farmer motivation and economic, social and environmental value.  This research is designed to be supportive of the global organic farming movement. The questionnaire, which can be accessed through the Qualtrics link below, will take 15 minutes or less to complete. Follow this link to the Survey: https://iastate.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_9vLLOPATgF7bV3L  Your answers will be strictly confidential.  Only summary results will be examined.  We will ensure that those who have returned the questionnaire are not contacted again. We have also attached a word copy of the questionnaire for your reference. We will send you a copy of the results if you are interested.  We would like to express our appreciation for your assistance with this study.  Feel free to contact us directly if you have any questions. Dr Priyanka Jayashankar (Leopold Center & College of Business, Iowa State University): priyanka@iastate.edu515-294-8110


Upcoming


Heritage and Ancient Wheat: Varietal Performance and Management Webinar

January 27. Join eOrganic for a webinar on Heritage and Ancient Wheat: Varietal Performance and Management with Steve Zwinger, North Dakota State University Carrington Research Extension Center. Team members of the NIFA OREI-funded Value-added Grains for Local and Regional Food Systems project will present information derived from three years of experimentation at multiple sites on varietal performance, including yield potential, standability, disease tolerance, and grain quality, and growing practices, including planting rate and nitrogen fertility application. Farmer experience with and recommendations on growing these crops will also be featured. The webinar is free and open to the public. Advance registration is required. http://www.extension.org/pages/72265/heritage-and-ancient-wheat:-varietal-performance-and-management-webinar

Conservation Biological Control: Habitat Management to Control Pests

January 27. Online. Learn to enhance habitat for native beneficial insects that help control crop pests. This webianr will focus on the ecology of native beneficial insects and how to increase their numbers on your farm through simple conservation strategies. Lady beetles, syrphid flies, lacewings, and other beneficial insects prey upon crop pests, reducing or eliminating the need for pesticides. Learn how to recognize these insects and their habitat, and how to evaluate, design, and improve habitat for them. This webinar is presented by USDA NRCS Science and Technology. http://www.conservationwebinars.net/webinars/conservation-biological-control-habitat-management-to-control-pests

Conservation Planning for Diverse Vegetable Rotations: Tools and Issues

January 28. Online. Participants will learn the various steps for completing a conservation plan on a diverse vegetable rotation. Learn how diverse rotations are created and the challenges that vegetable producers face when using them. Steps in the conservation planning process will be reviewed and participants will learn how to use these steps to develop rotations with vegetable producers. Various tools and resources will be presented to assist the planner when working with vegetable producers on these rotations. This webinar is presented by the USDA NRCS East National Technology Support Center, with presenter Steve Boetger, Agronomist.http://www.conservationwebinars.net/webinars/conservation-planning-for-diverse-vegetable-rotations-tools-and-issues

Small Farm Webinar Series: Potato Production

January 29. Online. The University of Illinois Extension presents a weekly educational series for the small farm community, providing practical knowledge on emerging topics which advance local food production in Illinois. Webinars will be held from 1:00 - 2:30 pm on Thursdays and are free. This presentation will discuss the basic concepts and production practices for potato production, along with variety selection. https://web.extension.illinois.edu/registration/?RegistrationID=10817

Water, Soil, & Toil: The Ways We Farm

Thursday, February 5. Lecture + Panel Discussion. Free and Open to the Public. Nebraska's Farmers & Ranchers make tough decisions every day in their farming and ranching practice. Recently proposed policy expansion and calls for increased consideration of animal welfare have pressured farmers, ranchers, and the organizations that represent them to take positions. Where are the farmers’ and ranchers’ voices? Event 1, What: Lecture + Panel Discussion, ”Water, Soil, Toil: The Ways We Farm”. When: Afternoon, Thursday, February 5. @ UNO’s Weitz Community Engagement Center, 6401 Dodge St. Omaha. Event 2, What: Keynote Address, NSAS Healthy Farms Conference. When: Morning, Friday, February 6. @ MCC’s Swanson Conference Center: 5300 N 30th St. Omaha. Details:http://nebsusag.org/conference.shtml. For EVENT 1 RSVP, comments, and questions, contact Adele Phillips: (402) 687-2103 x 1009adelep@cfra.org.

Monday, January 12, 2015

Weekly Events & Opportunities in Sustainable Farming & Foods


The Science Behind Healthy Soil: NRCS' Soil Health Literature Review Project

January 13. Online. 
Join the webinar for an overview of the USDA NRCS Soil Health Literature Review Project and its accompanying public website and USDA employee SharePoint that provide access to a searchable database of journal references related to physical and chemical soil health properties and conservation practices. Link: http://www.conservationwebinars.net/webinars/the-science-behind-healthy-soil-nrcs-soil-health-literature-review-project



Systems Organic Management Suppresses Cabbageworm Outbreaks: Evidence from 4 Long-term Organic Farms


Tuesday, January 13 at 1:00 pm. Join eOrganic for a webinar on cabbageworm management on long-term organic farms. The webinar will take place on January 13, 2015 at 2PM Eastern Time, 1PM Central, 12PM Mountain, 11AM Pacific Time. The webinar is free and open to the public and advance registration is required. Register now at: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/3747017242941297665


“Whole Farm Revenue Protection”

January 13th. 7pm. Whole Farm Revenue Protection (WFRP) is a new type of crop insurance product being piloted by the USDA Risk Management Agency. WFRP will provide higher levels of coverage and lower premium costs than the previous whole farm crop insurance products. Agricultural economist Jeff Schahczenski, with the National Center for Appropriate Technology (NCAT), will review WFRP, outlining its benefits and its more challenging aspects, and beginning farmer Tony Thompson will provide farmer questions and insights. http://www.practicalfarmers.org/farminar

Specialty Crop Producer Workshops – Farmer Training

January 13, 14, 15, 16: GAPs (Good Agricultural Practices) Level 1: GAPs are production and farm level approaches to ensure the safety of fresh produce for human consumption. GAPs Level 1 will cover education training in preparation for a self-audit and on farm food safety plan.  A USB Drive will be provided with the materials needed for the training. Our Farmer Training series will consist of training in 5 Nebraska Cities: Grand Island, Norfolk, Lincoln, Scottsbluff (Via Video Conference) and Omaha.  We will be using local producers as well as national trainers to offer a unique farmer training program that is unlike anything NeFU has done before.  Our goal is to help producers move to the next level of production by providing the skills necessary to increase efficiency and profitability.  These trainings are open to any speciality crops producers, beginning or experienced,  that are producing for markets. http://Nebraskafarmersunion.org/farmertraining 


Quality of eggs from different production systems


Wednesday, January 14 at 10:00 am. When it comes to buying eggs for your family there are many different types to chose from - conventional, brown, white, green, free-range, cage-free, omega-3 enriched, pasture-raised. What are the differences between these eggs? Why do some cost more than others? Which type of eggs would you like to produce for sale. Dr. Jacquie Jacob from the University of Kentucky will be discussing this nutritious topic. Dr. Jacob is a poultry extension project manager with a heavy focus on small and backyard poultry flocks.  https://connect.extension.iastate.edu/poultry


Developing a Farm Strategy Webinar


Wednesday, January 14 at 8:00 am. Creating a Farm Strategy Developing an overall farm strategy is a part of a farm business plan. This strategy includes a number of steps focused on market segments, characteristics of those segments, and forming a plan around the needs of each segment. The purpose of the process is to develop a plan for your business to achieve your personal goals. For more information and to register: http://www.eventbrite.com/e/wednesday-webinars-registration-11452674257

Grazing Guides for Dairy Systems Webinar Series: Collecting a Forage Sample and Interpreting the Analysis

January 14. Online. This webinar presented by Mat Haan, PSU Extension, will discuss how to collect a representative forage sample and how to interpret the analysis. This session is part of a monthly webinar series that will cover current research and basic management issues of interest to experienced, novice, conventional and/or organic, dairy grazers and industry representatives that support them. http://extension.psu.edu/animals/dairy/events/grazing-guides-for-dairy-systems-webinar-series-collecting-a-forage-sample-and-interpreting-the-analysis


Troubleshooting Design-Based Cow Comfort Issues


Wednesday, January 14 at 12:00 pm. The space a dairy cow lives in can have a significant influence on her health and performance. This webinar will investigate dairy housing features that can influence cow comfort, methods to evaluate critical areas, and suggestions for improving those areas. https://connect.extension.iastate.edu/dairexnetwebinar/

Vegetable and Small Fruit Production Webinars: Current Issues in Strawberry Pest Management

January 14. Online. Cornell Cooperative Extension and Penn State Extension are teaming up to present a series of webinars to keep fruit and vegetable growers informed on critical production issues. The series provides convenient access to timely updates incommercial vegetable and small fruit production for extension educators, producers, and industry representatives in Pennsylvania, New York, and surrounding state. http://bit.ly/1yhHcha

No-Till Culture for Peppers and Tomatoes

January 15th. This session will describe a no-till tomato and pepper system currently being investigated in which sowing of a cereal grain in the fall (rye) is followed by desiccating the rye with a roller/crimper the following Spring and no-till planting crops into the cover crop residue.  In addition, the use of black fabric mesh to enhance weed control is incorporated. Dr. Kyle Cecil, University of Illinois Extension Small Farms/Local Foods Educator. https://web.extension.illinois.edu/registration/?RegistrationID=10817

Managing Risks on an Urban Farm

Thursday, Jan 15, 2015 11:00 AM. Urban farmers face many risks in producing safe and affordable food. Some of the risks are common to all types of farming; however, many are unique to the urban setting, including zoning regulations, access to water, and managing contaminated soils. While many cities in the U.S. are working to address some of the needs of urban farmers, profitability remains a challenge. This webinar will focus on the risk management strategies of two urban farms and how they have overcome several of the barriers facing urban farmers today. 


Opportunities

Hogs wanted

In Search of Bulk self feeder for Hogs. Please contact Andrew, hollisterrentals@gmail.com

Raise the Roots

January 18th. Raise the Roots hosts quarterly events to nurture conversation and build community around sustainability initiatives in the Omaha area. While celebrating with live music, local bites and multi-media experiences, Raise the Roots audiences learn about local food, clean energy, and other sustainable initiatives in our region. The January 18th event is friendly for all ages, featuring onsite dining options from local chef Colin Duggan of Kitchen Table, hands-on kids’ activities, guest speakers, and live music from DJ Brent Crampton, musician Matt Cronin and Pancho and the Contraband. A number of community organizations will host information booths, including the Nebraska Sustainable Agriculture Society, Big Muddy Urban Farm, Omaha Biofuels COOP, the Nebraska Food COOP and others. Tickets are $7, free for children under 12.  https://www.facebook.com/events/1529414710645436/?sid_reminder=9100736177794711552

Buy Fresh Buy Local Nebraska Potluck

Help Buy Fresh Buy Local® Nebraska Set the Table for 2015! With a Pot Luck Kick-Off Event. Saturday, January 17, 2015. Prairie Plate Restaurant, Waverley. 1:00 – 3:30 pm. This event is open to everyone who enjoys growing, eating and supporting locally grown and good tasting food! You are invited to come mingle, network, learn, share and connect with Nebraska growers, fellow food enthusiast and supporters. Please bring your favorite pot luck dish to share, we’ll supply the tableware. There is a suggested donation of $1.50 per person. Reserve your place by January 15, 2015: Contact: Billene 402-472-5273
bnemec2@unl.edu or Linda (between the hours of 8:00 and noon) 472-3401, ltesch1@unl.edu.

Producers Choice Chef Award: Farmer Hosts Needed

The Producers Choice Chef Award committee of the Nebraska Sustainable Agriculture Society is looking for 25 farmers to participatein 2015 Chef Award Dinner.  This offer is exclusively for farmers! You are being offered one or two tickets at $50 each (instead of the $125 public price) and the opportunity to sponsor a table at the event.  The event is 5:30-9pm on Sunday January 25th, but you may be asked to arrive earlier for photo ops. For the $50 (or $100 for 2)  ticket price you will  1. eat a delicious meal prepared by six of the top chefs from Lincoln, Omaha,and Hastings and each receive two complimentary drink tickets.  2. Your farm and names will be on the table that evening as well as listed in the event program that evening.  We are doing extensive promotion for this event so  3. we will promote you and your farms during the weeks leading up to the event. For more information please contact, chefaward@gmail.com. Details about the event can be found here, http://nebsusag.org/chef.html


Local Foods Survey

This survey is being conducted by graduate student, Megan McGuffey, from the University of Nebraska at Omaha who is working with the Local Foodshed Working Group. The goal of this survey is to help create a more accurate picture of how many farmers are participating in the Lincoln/Lancaster County local food market. We are asking you to help us to complete this survey so that we can better understand the complex, local food system that gets food to our plates. If you have any questions or concerns about the survey please contact Megan McGuffey at mmcguffey@unomaha.edu. Follow this link for the survey,  https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1wuvRR4EFNcvPiazbZ4F6Av-PjeuvXrtFgT54SW4Pl2o/viewform?c=0&w=1


Upcoming


Farmland Leases Built to Last: Content and Legal Context

Monday, January, 19. 12:00 pm. Leasing farmland is so commonplace farmers may not think twice about the lease itself… until things go wrong. Don’t let misunderstandings with landowners hinder your farm. Prevent problems with a strong lease that addresses water usage, equipment access, payment strategies, dispute resolution procedures, long-term concerns, and termination processes, plus more. Negotiating tactics and various laws affecting farmland leases will be on the agenda. This webinar is funded by USDA Risk Management Agency. http://farmcommons.org/farmland-leases-built-last-content-and-legal-context


Marketing Your Products - Turning Samples into Sales

Tuesday, January 20 at 11:00 am. Providing product samples is a great way to help increase sales at your farmers market booth or farm stand.  However, it is also important to do it in a way that does not give away all your product (and therefore profits!) and that also will provide a safe product that meets regulatory requirements. In this webinar, you'll learn how to choose which products to sample, how to control costs in sampling, and generally how to make the most of sampling. Lorin Fahrmeier, whose family sells a large amount of produce and other products through their farm stand and at farmers markets will provide insight from her extensive personal experience on how to turn sampling into sales. Londa Nwadike will also present some practical ideas on how to do sampling safely and also meet regulatory requirements. Lorin is the Farm to Institution Program Coordinator for the University of Missouri Extension and Londa is the State Extension Food Safety Specialist for both the University of Missouri and Kansas State University.https://connect.extension.iastate.edu/womeninag


Rotational No-Till, Mulching and Conservation Tillage for Organic Vegetable Farms Webinar

Tuesday, January 20 at 1:00 pm. Join eOrganic for a webinar on no-till, high-residue mulching and conservation tillage on organic vegetable farms, by German farmer Jan-Hendrik Cropp. The webinar will take place on January 20, 2015 at 2PM Eastern Time, 1PM Central, 12PM Mountain, 11AM Pacific Time. The webinar is free and open to the public and advance registration is required. Register now at http://www.extension.org/pages/71822

Health concerns with backyard poultry flocks

Tuesday, January 20 at 2:00 pm. The summer of 2014 saw many cases of Salmonellosis traced back to backyard poultry flocks - see CDC website: http://www.cdc.gov/salmonella/live-poultry-05-14/index.html. Dr. Colin Basler of the Center for Disease Control and Prevention will be speaking about health concerns related to maintaining a backyard poultry flock. This event was originally scheduled for January 13, but due to circumstances beyond our control, it had to be re-scheduled for January 20. https://connect.extension.iastate.edu/poultry

Food Safety Liability And Regulations For The Farm

Tuesday, January, 20. 12:00 pm. We’ve been hearing all about the upcoming regulations under the Food Safety Modernization Act. But, as important as it is, farm liability for food safety goes beyond this new law. A food safety incident has potentially disastrous implications for any direct-to-consumer farmer. We’ll talk about how a food safety incident plays out, from lawsuits to recalls and contract breaches. Most importantly, we’ll talk about ways to protect farmers. This webinar is funded by USDA Risk Management Agency. http://farmcommons.org/food-safety-liability-and-regulations-farm

Managing Bad Stink Bugs Using Good Stink Bugs

Thursday, January 22 at 1:00 pm. Join eOrganic for a webinar on managing stink bugs using the spined soldier bug, by Yong-Lak Park of West Virginia University. Brown marmorated stink bugs (BMSB) have caused considerable economic damage in the Mid-Atlantic states, and biological control agents against BMSB are not readily available for growers yet. In this webinar, the efficacy and utilization of the spined soldier bug as a native biological control agent will be presented and discussed.  The webinar will take place on Thursday, January 22, 2015 at 2PM Eastern Time (1PM Central, 12PM Mountain, 11AM Pacific Time). The webinar is free and open to the public, and advance registration is required. Attendees will be able to type in questions for the speaker. Register now at:http://www.extension.org/pages/71371