Weekly Events & Opportunities in Sustainable Farming & Foods!

Farmers Night Out!

July 1st. 6pm. Branched Oak Farm North. A unique farm near Raymond, North Farm houses many ag enterprises.  North Farmers each have their own farm projects. North Farmers work for and with Branched Oak Farm Dairy, helping with cattle care and cheese-making, in exchange for the land and encouragement to start their own enterprises.   http://healthyfarmsnebraska.blogspot.com/2015/06/2015-farmers-night-out-schedule.html

Soil Health Field Day

June 29 & 30, 2015: Soil Health Field Day– Scott Gonnerman’s Farm in Waco, NE. Presentors are Dr. Will Brinton (Woods End Lab/Solvita), Ray Ward (Ward Laboratories) and Lance Gunderson (Ward Laboratories). Demonstrations and presentations on the importance of healthy soils. See more at: http://solvita.com/soil/upcoming-events#sthash.qOcXYKt0.dpuf

Webinar on Local Food

June 30, 10:30am – 11:30am. A look at the services provided by the USDA Agricultural Manufacturing Service (AMS) – topics expected to cover include, focus on grants for farmer markets and other local food efforts, and facilities design, and how the food landscape is changing.  We will also be hearing about how other places are using their services to develop and expand local foods in their area. https://rurdev.webex.com/rurdev/k2/j.php?MTID=tb1041d8c4add5fafcafe8d56439b8d21 

Live Avian Flu Twitter Chat

July 1, 9am – 10am. Learn new details on how avian influenza is affecting the US and North American poultry industry on WATTAgNet’s Twitter feed @WATTPoultry during WATT Global Media’s first-ever Animal Agriculture Twitter Chat on Wednesday, July 1, at 9 a.m. CT. Egg Industry Editor, Terrence O’Keefe, will host and answer avian flu questions during this live tweet chat. Submit your questions to WATTAgNet’s Twitter account @WATTPoultry and use the hashtag #Wattchat.

Opportunities

Dual Purpose, Grass-fed Shorthorn/Devon Herd for sale

We're looking to sell some/all of our wonderful Shorthorn/Devon herd. They have not been given any antibiotics, hormones, vaccinations or grain in the 4+ years we have owned them. We do not baby these cows and they do very well. They are dual purpose. Which means they work very well in our grass-fed beef operation but they also produce a lot of milk. I was told that the older cows had been milked at least once by the previous owners but we haven't actually milked any. We're more interested in developing our beef herd so some of the younger ones will have more of a beef influence.  We have 15 cows/heifers total that are available. Two of those have a strong Longhorn influence, though. About half are going to be in the 7-9 year old range. From there it goes to 5 year-olds and on down. We've been culling about 2-3 cows a year and adding 2-3 replacement heifers. We can be flexible on the timing. They are almost done calving so you can buy them as pairs or we can wait until the calves can be weaned and the cows are re-bred. My intent is to base the pricing on the Huss Livestock Market in Kearney. Ultimately, the pricing will depend on how many you want and how/when you want them (bred cows or pairs). The cattle are located in south-central/eastern Nebraska, in Thayer County, near Reynolds. Delivery is possible. Jon Yoachim, 402-309-4088, jkyoachim@gmail.com

Farm Family Placement Opportunity

'We are a family of four (with two kids), we are looking for any possibility that can lead us to live in the country (no more than one hour and a half driving from the farm to the city of Lincoln). We are specially looking for a farm/ house with a piece of land that is organic oriented .  Please do not hesitate to contact us for any queries (Cell phone; 402-4059195). rllasaca@gmail.com. Thanks. Troy Van Horn".

For Sale by Owner

Tekamah. (40+/- Acre farm with house & buildings). 

We have decided that we must downsize and are going to sell the farm. Please share with anyone you may know who is 

interested.  Northwest of Tekamah, Nebraska. Includes 5 

bedroom/3.5 bath raised ranch with walk-out basement house, Has two kitchens, oversized shower and whirlpool tub in 

master bath, plus walk-in closet. Property has been farmed organically for over 9 years, includes Morton machine shed, 

Butler livestock building and other small buildings. This farm has been ran to be self sufficient for several years. Farm 

does have underground wiring and a battery shed for solar power, solar panels do not go with farm, but all the 

underground wiring and permanent solar infrastructure stays. 

Call Rebecka Fleischman at 402-687-4149 for more information. 

More pictures available upon request. Schedule your tour today.

Looking for Mentorship in Shelton/Grand Island/Kearney Area.

My family and I are returning to Shelton, NE in order to re-establish her family's farm. It is 160 acres but hasn't been used in nearly 30 years. We are going to be establishing a Joel Salatin Polyface Farm type farm. Where we will raise a multi specie critical and threatened heritage breed livestock as determined by the Livestock Conservancy Organization. All livestock will be pastured raised. We are also going to establish seasonal vegetable gardens. Looking for mentorship opportunities in the Shelton/Grand Island/Kearney area that would be willing to help us learn the does and don'ts of pasture based all natural farming. Michael Peña, Michael.A.Pena@uscg.mil

2014 Farm Bill - Conservation Compliance Changes | NRCS

The 2014 Farm Bill re-established the applicability of the Highly Erodible Land Conservation and Wetland Conservation provisions to crop insurance subsidies, but the Farm Bill did not change how these were implemented in conservation programs. USDA is seeking comments on an Interim Final Rule, which would make official this change to conservation compliance provisions. Submit comments on regulations.gov.

Highly Erodible Land Conservation (HELC) and Wetland Conservation (WC) provisions aim to reduce soil loss on erosion-prone lands and to protect wetlands for the multiple benefits they provide. HELC and WC provisions apply to all land that is considered highly erodible or a wetland, and that is owned or farmed by persons voluntarily participating in USDA programs, unless USDA determines an exemption applies. 

Producers, and any affiliated individuals or entities who participate in most programs administered by the Farm Service Agency (FSA), the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), and the Risk Management Agency (RMA) are required to comply with these provisions. Farmers seeking federal crop insurance premium subsidies for the 2016 reinsurance year must comply by June 1 by filing form AD-1026. The 2016 reinsurance year runs from July 1, 2015 to June 30, 2016.

http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/detailfull/national/programs/farmbill/?cid=stelprdb1257899

Whole-Farm Revenue Protection Survey 

The National Center for Appropriate Technology (NCAT) is working with the Rural Advancement Foundation International-USA (RAFI) to better understand experiences with crop insurance and with a new crop insurance product called Whole-Farm Revenue Protection. Whole-Farm Revenue Protection is a pilot crop insurance policy available for the 2015 crop insurance year. The policy provides crop insurance coverage based on a farm’s 5-year revenue history, and it enables a farm to insure more than one crop with one policy. The link to the survey is https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/rafiwfrpsurvey. Questions about this survey can be directed to James Robinson at 919-542-1396 ext. 209 or james@rafiusa.org.

Upcoming

Managing and Monitoring Hypocalcemia in Dairy Cows

July 6. Online. Join OEFFA and Veterinary Extension at The Ohio State University to learn how to manage organic dairy herd health during this webinar. During the webinar, Ohio State University Associate Professor and Extension Veterinarian Dr. Gustavo Schuenemann will provide information on best transition cow management practices to avoid a drop in dry matter intake, prevent hypocalcemia and ketosis, and maintain a strong immune system for animals under certified organic management. There is no cost to attend the webinar, but pre-registration is required.  http://www.oeffa.org/events.php

Good Agricultural Practices (GAPS) - Webinar Series

July 6, 6pm – 8pm. Online. The webinar is designed to provide information to growers on how to keep produce safe from production to the market. Topics of this webinar will include: What is GAP's; Water quality and testing; Soil management; Record keeping; Traceback, etc. The webinar series will be held Mondays, July 6, 13, 20 and 27 from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Click herehttp://web.extension.illinois.edu/units/event.cfm?UnitID=629&EventID=69076 for more information and to register. 

Revisiting Organic Agriculture Webinar Series: Definitions and Regulatory Requirements

July 7. Online. American Society of Agronomy is offering this monthly series of webinars that will examine several issues associated with organic production and management. Cost for each individual webinar is $25 for members and certified professionals and $40 for non-members. Cost for the series is $113 for members and certified professionals and $180 for non-members.https://www.agronomy.org/education/online-courses

Understanding Organic Labeling Requirements and Label Claims

July 7. Online. This webinar from Oregon Tilth and the Natural Resource Conservation Service will address labeling requirements under the National Organic Program as well as other labeling claims such as non-GMO, natural, and more. Join OTCO staff and other guest speakers in this free, one-hour webinar to learn about the intricacies of various label claims and how to ensure that your labels are compliant. The webinar begins at noon PDT.  http://tilth.org/event/organic-labeling-webinar/

Forage Management for Livestock Production

July 8th. Online. This free, one-hour webinar is presented by the USDA NRCS Central National Technology Support Center. This webinar is a refresher course on the basics of conservation planning on pastureland. Participants will learn how to balance forage supply with animal demand. http://www.conservationwebinars.net/documents/planned-conservation-webinars

Adaptive High Stock Density Grazing

July 10th. Online. This free webinar is part of a monthly series for grazing specialists, land managers, or grazing educators, hosted by Green Lands Blue Waters and The Pasture Project. The series presents topics important to grazing, with perspectives from scientists, experts, and producers. The webinar begins at 9 a.m. Central Time. http://greenlandsbluewaters.net/Perennial_Forage/grz_ed_webnr_AHSD.html

2015 Grain Place Foods Annual Farm Tour

July 11th. Tours of the organic Farm and Plant will start around 8:30am, with refreshments and networking in between and are free to all. Lunch is to follow around noon, catered by Chef Fayne Petersen of Creative Cuisine Catering. The cost is $15 and RSVP's are required for the meal. (tickets can be purchased at our website www.grainplacefoods.com or paid for day of, or e-mailinfo@grainplacefoods.com  or call 402-854-3195).