Weekly Events & Opportunities in Sustainable Farming & Foods!

Climate Change and Organic Agriculture

October 6. Online. Participate in this webinar in the Understanding Organic Agriculture series, presented by USDA NRCS Science and Technology, to learn about farming practices that can sequester carbon. Dr. Kris Nichols will discuss the Rodale Institute's white paper: Regenerative Organic Agriculture and Climate Change: A Down-to-Earth Solution to Global Warming. This paper discusses the positive impacts of organically managed soils on climate change. She will present data from farming systems and pasture trials around the world that show the carbon sequestration impact of organic management practices. The presentation will describe the farming practices that can be implemented to meet this objective. http://www.conservationwebinars.net/webinars/climate-change-and-organic-agriculture

The Climate Fight At Its Peak

October 6th. 7pm. Bill McKibben will provide an update on how the movement to slow global warming is progressing, both in the United States and around the world. He will share inspiring examples of grassroots climate-focused actions that have been launched by350.org members in more than 188 countries; then, he will turn his focus to his host state and highlight ways in which Nebraskans can become involved in advocating and campaigning on global environmental issues. This event is FREE and open to the public. More information is available at https://enthompson.unl.edu/

Raising guinea fowl

Tuesday, October 6 at 2:00 pm CDT. Guinea fowl are becoming popular for controlling ticks and other insects. If you are interested, or thinking about, raising guinea fowl, this is the webinar for you. Dr. Sam Nahashon from the University of Tennessee (http://www.tnstate.edu/agriculture/resumes/samuel_nahashon.aspx) will be discussing what is involved in raising guinea fowl.https://learn.extension.org/events/2034#.VXg8vkZ_CdA

Yields: More or Less

October 6. Online. This webinar is part of the monthly Revisiting Organic Agriculture series offered by the American Society of Agronomy. The speaker for this session is Kathleen Delate of Iowa State University. Online registration is available. https://www.agronomy.org/education/online-courses

Beekeeping Webinar: Honey Bee Foraging

Wednesday, October 7. 8am Central. Part of a free, monthly webinar series. Registration is not required. Access the live or recorded session on your computer, smart phone, or iPad. All webinars are recorded and archived at http://u.osu.edu/beelab/. This session features Doug Sponsler, The Ohio State University.

FSMA Is Here....Are You Ready?

October 7. Online. USDA Agricultural Marketing Service offers this opportunity to learn about the new requirements for your business to be in compliance with FDA's recently revised 'Current Good Manufacturing Practice, Hazard Analysis, and Risk-Based Preventive Controls for Human Foods.' The presentation will be led by Jenny Scott, Senior Advisor in the Office of Food Safety with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, where she leads the FDA teams on the Preventive Controls for Human Food rule and guidance. Leanne Skelton, Biological Scientist with the USDA, will be a co-presenter. Register here

Good Agricultural Practices Webinar Series

October 7 - October 28. Online. University of Illinois Extension presents this webinar series, held Wednesdays, October 7, 14, 21, and 28 from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. 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 the following: What is GAPs, Water quality and testing, Soil management, Record keeping, and Traceback. Each registered participant will be sent webinar instructions, handouts, and a GAPs manual prior to the first webinar and webinar instructions before each subsequent session. https://web.extension.illinois.edu/registration/?registrationid=12829

NOP Livestock Standards Webinar

October 8. Online. OEFFA will offer a 90-minute webinar introducing the National Organic Program's livestock standards. Gain a better understanding of the history and meaning of organic, the certification process, and the standards governing organic crop and livestock production. Come prepared to learn, having completed a brief, pre-course self-study assignment prior to the webinar. Be ready to engage in livestock discussion and examine real-world examples facing producers, veterinarians, and certifiers each day. The session is geared toward veterinarians, Extension educators, farmers, and other animal health professionals who work with certified organic livestock. There is no cost to attend the webinar, but pre-registration is required. http://www.oeffa.org/events.php

Opportunities

Trailer for Sale

I have a 2011 12' x 6' Dura-line Bumper Stock [livestock] Trailer for sale, like new, I can provide pictures upon request and am willing to deliver. Dan Hromas, Grand Island, 

4022172797

Solar Fencer for Sale

I have a Gallagher B100 fencer for sale.  Purchase 3.5 years ago, used 2 of the last 3.5 years. http://gallagherelectricfencing.com/collections/solar-powered-energizers/products/new-gallagher-b100-solar-powered-fence-charger-fencer-energizer-60acres-7miles.   

Survey seeks opinions of women livestock farmers

USDA Small Business Innovation Research grant to study the tool- and equipment-related needs of women livestock farmers. To assist Green Heron in designing better tools and equipment, women who raise or care for livestock of any kind are invited to complete a brief survey.   The survey will be open through September, and respondents who complete it will be entered into a drawing for a $100 Green Heron Tools gift certificate. Begun by two small-scale farmers with backgrounds in nursing and public health, Green Heron is the first company in the world to focus on scientifically designing agricultural tools and equipment that work well for women. For more information please visit www.greenherontools.com. Complete the survey at https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/greenherontools_women_livestock_farmers.

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".

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

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

Figuring Out Facebook Pages

Wednesday, October 14 at 11:00 am CDT. My goodness! A lot has changed since Facebook first offered free pages for business and organizations. Learn how to optimize and get the most out of your Facebook page. For more information:http://www.extension.umd.edu/womeninag/webinars. To register: http://www.eventbrite.com/e/wednesday-webinars-registration-11452674257