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Michigan Organic Listserv News
News you can USE
Center for Regional Food Systems @
Michigan State University
Desk of Vicki Morrone ([log in to unmask])
March 3, 2015
Organic Reporting Session-March 13 Job and internship Opportunities
Agriculture
and Natural Resource Week This
week is known as Agriculture and Natural Resource Week at Michigan State University. It offers a week of programs that address many aspects of agriculture and the environment. We at the Center for Regional Food Systems are proud to sponsor three of the events;
Michigan
Organic Reporting Session, Organic
Intensives
and
Michigan Farmers Market Association Conference. We hope you will join us for any or all of these events- E3 Educational, Engaging and Extremely useful for you and your farm business!!
Weed management research with practical approaches Friday, March 13, 2015 8:30- 4:00 Located at: Room 136 Brody Hall, Michigan State University Address: 241 Brody Service Rd East Lansing, MI 48823
Visit
www.MichiganOrganic.msu.edu to register
Cost is $25 for Farmers and students and $30 for others (all inclusive)
The day will offer :Research presentations on weed biology and tillage systems
·
Dr. Erin Hill [MSU Crops, Soil & Microbiology] will present:
“From seeds to weeds: Factors influencing organic weed management throughout the lifecycle”
·
Dan Kane [MSU Crops, Soil & Microbiology] will present: “Ridge tillage improves synchrony of soil organic nitrogen turnover and plant demand”
·
Farmers’ panel of what works and what doesn’t on their farm for weed management and building soil health
·
Discussions and priority setting session of research needs for organic
weed management and soil health.
·
Small –group teamwork to establish possible on-farm research grants, selecting from available national grant programs.
Taste of Michigan Reception
This program will focus on organic production systems, appropriate for all types of farming. Lunch and materials
are included.
The Taste of Michigan Mingle will offer light refreshments and a chance to catch up with old friends and make
new. .
Thursday, March 12, 2015
We invite you to join us for a one-day in-depth learning session designed to provide an enlightening experience with immediate impact for your investment. Organic Intensives are an opportunity to acquire practical, detailed information
from experts and practitioners over the course of a day with fellow Michigan farmers and gardeners.
At the end of the day, we will gather for a relaxing social hour to share ideas and stories. Our first-ever event of this kind offers farmers and serious gardeners an intensive foray into one of three topics:
Compost, Cut Flowers, or Edible Landscaping.
Compost, Vermicompost,
& Compost Extracts/Teas
Compost is at the foundation and cutting edge of soil health.
Presenters Dane Terrill, John Biernbaum, Brooke Comer and Donny Comer will provide a mix of on-farm and research experience and recent developments that are sure to increase the quality and productivity of your transplants and
crops.
Topics include purchased and on-farm compost, compost site planning, analysis to amend composts for transplants and tunnels, and the latest on methods for food scraps, vermicomposting
and teas to increase the impact of limited high quality compost
Cut Flowers for Profit and Diversification
Flowers contribute wonderfully to the ecological and economic diversity of the farm. Lynn Byczynski, author of The Flower Farmer and editor of Growing For Market, with
Michigan flower farmers Pooh Stevenson of Owosso Organics and Jen Tutlis of Meadowlark Farm, will discuss seed starting field and high tunnel production, physiological considerations, harvesting and post-harvest handling, top
ten flowers for each season, new varieties, marketing, bouquets and arrangements and more! A unique opportunity to learn from truly experienced flower farmers.
Edible Landscaping &
Permaculture Design
We can build the long-term resiliency of our local food supply by using limited space to provide a reliable harvest through the effective integration
of annual and perennial crops in the farmscape and in the home landscape.
Permaculture principles focus on soil, water, sunlight, ecology and efficiency. Join Michigan's Mark Angelini, Trevor Newman, and Linda Jackson Torony to discuss foundational principles and practices as well as some front yard
examples of crops and methods that will make you the envy of your neighborhood.
The event will take place at Brody Hall on the MSU campus in East Lansing as part of Agriculture and Natural Resources
Week.
The day begins with registration at 8:30am and sessions end at 5:00pm.
That evening, we'll gather to share knowledge and experiences in a social setting. Stick around for the Organic Reporting Session on Friday.
The registration fee includes six hours of learning, all-you-can-eat lunch, continental breaktast in the morning, printed materials, and a social gathering on the evening of March 12th.
Rooms have been reserved at the Kellogg Center for the evenings of March 11 111 and 12tb. To take advantage of the special discount rate tor this event, you must reserve your room with the Kellogg Center at 800-875-5090 or kelloggcenter.com
and mention MOFFA when you calL
For more detailed information and to register, please visit www.moffa.net/01-2015.html or give us a call at 248-262-6826.
Class size is limited so register today to reserve your space, and to take advantage of the early reservation fee of $75 for MOFFA members and $85 for non-members.
The fee will increase to $95 for everyone after February 28. A limited number of registration fee scholarships are available; see the website for more information.
Michigan Farmers Market Conference to Offer SNAP Training EAST LANSING, MI – The Michigan Farmers Markets Association (MIFMA) is hosting the Michigan Farmers Market Conference on March 10 and 11, 2015 on the campus of Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan.
Register now at www.mifma.org.
The 2015 conference will feature a unique opportunity for farmers market managers and direct marketing farmers to learn more about accepting Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, distributed
via the Michigan EBT Bridge Card, and take the first step toward being able to accept these benefits in exchange for fresh, locally grown products.
In partnership with the United State Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) and the National Association of Farmers Market Nutrition Program’s MarketLink program, MIFMA is offering
SNAP training and on-site sign-up at the conference on Tuesday, March 10 from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. EST.
“Michigan’s farmers are instrumental in providing fresh fruits and vegetables and other healthy foods throughout the State”, said Tim English, Regional Administrator for USDA Food and Nutrition Service. “We
are striving to expand access to healthy food an to those participating in SNAP. We encourage direct marketing farmers and farmer's markets who are not currently participating in the SNAP Program to attend this special sign-up event. The ability to accept
SNAP benefits helps farmers expand their customer base and economically support their local community.”
MIFMA will provide step-by-step instructions for completing the USDA FNS online application to accept SNAP benefits and USDA FNS staff will be on-site to review applications.
To take advantage of this on-site SNAP authorization opportunity, register to attend the Michigan Farmers Market
Conference and bring with you to the event: 1. A laptop or tablet for completing the online application (wifi and a limited number of devices will be available) 2. Picture ID (driver’s license or passport) for responsible individual 3. Social Security Card (or other official document with your name and SSN) for business owners and/or a responsible party for farmers markets NOT managed by a nonprofit or a municipality. 4. Copy of voided check for bank account you will use to deposit funds into
Throughout the day on Wednesday, March 11, one-on-one appointments will also be available for on-site USDA FNS application review and assistance signing up to receive point-of-sale devices through the MarketLink
program.
“MIFMA has helped grow the number of farmers markets in Michigan accepting SNAP from just three in 2006, to over 150 in 2014. We are proud to be hosting this sign-up opportunity in addition to the other training
and technical assistance programs we offer farmers market managers across the state,” explains MIFMA Director, Dru Montri.
In addition, the Michigan Farmers Market Conference will also feature three educational tracks with 15 different break-out sessions, roundtable discussions, exhibitors, keynote speaker Richard McCarthy of
Slow Food USA, MIFMA’s annual meeting, a silent auction fundraiser and ample networking opportunities. Conference registration closes Thursday, March 5, 2015. To register for the conference or for more information on other programs and MIFMA membership opportunities,
visit www.mifma.org or call 517-432-3381.
Program Contact: Amanda Shreve, 517-432-3381
[log in to unmask] Media Contact: Samantha Collins, 517-432-3381
[log in to unmask]
Students
explore organic farming, sustainable agriculture in new GVSU program By
Brian McVicar | [log in to unmask]
February 19, 2015 at 11:23 AM,http://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2015/02/students_explore_urban_farming.html
ALLENDALE, MI - Students in a new certificate program at Grand Valley State University will learn the ins and outs of the local food movement, sustainable farming, and what it takes to successfully market organic produce.
The 15-credit
Sustainable Food Systems Certificate is geared toward students who
want to work in agriculture or the restaurant industry and focus on organic and locally grown food, said Jim Penn, a professor in the university's Department of Geography and Planning who designed the program.
"There's a lot of students that want to get involved with an operation, especially a restaurant or business that works in organic and locally grown food," he said. "There's a lot of interest there, and there's a lot of job satisfaction
in those jobs."
Students pursuing the certificate have a host of courses to pick from, ranging from global agricultural sustainability, principles of soil science and the sociology of food, to name a few.
All must take introduction to environmental studies and sustainability, as well as a course in sustainable agriculture, in which students will grow, harvest, clean and market organically grown produce, Penn said. The course will
be taught this summer at GVSU's
Sustainable Agriculture Project, a hands-on farming space, south of the university's Allendale campus.
"Somebody coming in who really wants to do their own organic farming, they're going to find out right away a lot of what you're going to have to do, whether you like it or not," he said.
Penn said the program is being added now, because more people are expressing an
interest in the local food movement, in which customers strive to buy food that is grown organically and close to home, as opposed to being shipped from another part of the country or the world.
A lot of students, if they have the option, will "go to a farmers market or a restaurant that's organic and uses local produce," he said.
Kelly Parker, director of Environmental Studies, agreed, saying, "You can see this increasing interest in new restaurants that serve locally grown produce, the construction of the Grand Rapids Downtown Market and the popularity
of farmers markets."
The program is open to current GVSU students, but officials say the certificate could also appeal to older, non-traditional students who want to brush up on their skills in sustainable agriculture, but not earn a full degree.
Because the program just started, enrollment figures weren't available, but Penn said he expects 30 to 40 students per year to earn the certificate.
"We think it's going to be popular, based on the research we did," he said.
USDA Offers Renewal Option for Expiring Conservation Stewardship Program Contracts, Extends Deadline for General Sign-up Applications http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/detail/national/newsroom/releases/?cid=NRCSEPRD322416
EAST LANSING, Feb. 24, 2015 – Natural Resources Conservation Service Chief Jason Weller announced that the U.S. Department of Agriculture is offering a renewal
option through Tuesday, March 31, 2015 for eligible agricultural producers and forest landowners with expiring Conservation Stewardship Program contracts. These producers must be willing to adopt additional conservation activities aimed at helping them achieve
higher levels of conservation on their farms, forests and ranches.
USDA will also extend the deadline for general sign-up CSP applications until Friday, March 13, 2015 providing farmers, ranchers, and private forest managers
two additional weeks to apply for this funding round of $100 million. “CSP producers are established conservation leaders who work hard at enhancing natural resources on private lands,” Weller said. “This contract renewal period
will provide greater opportunities for these conservation stewards to voluntarily do even more to improve water, air and soil quality and enhance wildlife habitat on their operations. By extending the deadline for general sign-up applications, we are ensuring
that landowners will be able to take advantage of a program that will enroll up to 7.7 million acres this year.”
Changes in the 2014 Farm Bill will allow CSP participants with expiring contracts to renew them by exceeding stewardship thresholds for two or more existing
natural resource concerns specified by the Natural Resources Conservation Service or by meeting stewardship thresholds for at least two new natural resource concerns such as improving water quality or soil health. About 9,300 contracts covering more than 12.2 million acres are nearing the end of their five- year term and can be renewed for an additional five years.
The agricultural producer or forest landowner must complete all conservation activities contained in the initial contract before a renewal can be granted. The renewal process is optional but benefits CSP participants with expiring contracts because it is non-competitive. In order to renew, an agricultural producer
or forest landowner must meet the minimum criteria established by NRCS. Contract renewal also offers these agricultural producers and forest landowners an opportunity to add new conservation activities to meet their conservation goals and protect the natural
resources on their farms, forests or ranches. The 2014 Farm Bill includes an expanded conservation activity list that offers producers more options to address natural resource challenges. New conservation activities include cover crops, intensive rotational
grazing and wildlife-friendly fencing. USDA’s largest conservation program by acreage, CSP pays participants for conservation performance — the better the performance, the higher the payment. Nearly
70 million acres have been enrolled in the program since its launch in 2009. Along with the renewal option announced today,
USDA announced last month that it will make available $100 million this year through the CSP in 2015. Although CSP applications are accepted all year, farmers, ranchers and forest landowners should submit applications
by the funding deadline, extended to Friday, March 13, to ensure they are considered for this year’s funding. Applications should be submitted to local NRCS offices, and as part of the CSP application process, applicants will work with NRCS field personnel
to complete a resource inventory of their land, which will help determine the conservation performance for existing and new conservation activities. The applicant's conservation performance will be used to determine eligibility, ranking and payments. USDA offers financial and technical assistance to agricultural producers or forest landowners for the active management and maintenance of existing conservation
activities and for carrying out new conservation activities on working agricultural land. Eligible lands include cropland, grassland, prairie land, improved pastureland, rangeland, non-industrial private forestland and tribal agricultural land. Applicants
must have control of the land for the 5-year term of the contract. Agricultural producers or forest landowners with existing contracts scheduled to expire this calendar year and who wish to renew for an additional five-year
term must submit an application indicating their intent to renew to their local NRCS office prior to the national application deadline of March 31, 2015. To learn more about CSP contract renewals, visit your
local NRCS office. Visit the
Conservation Stewardship Program page for more information about this program |
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FSA Announces Financial Assistance for Producers of Non-insurable Crops
http://www.tunicatimes.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=4757:fsa-announces-2015-noninsured-crop-disaster-assistance-program-for-2015&Itemid=22 |
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The Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program (NAP) provides financial assistance to producers of noninsurable crops to protect against natural disasters that result in lower yields or crop losses, or prevent crop planting.
To obtain coverage, producers must sign up in their FSA county office prior to the application closing date, which varies by crop.
Producers interested in NAP coverage for organic crops should contact their local FSA county office. The application deadline for many annually planted crops is March 15, 2015.
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http://vegetablegrowersnews.com/index.php/magazine/article/organic-growers-face-challenges-and-opportunities
By: Gary Pullano
David Coveyou, owner of Scenic Farm in Petoskey, Michigan, who works with farm manager Laura Judge, discussed how they “cultivated farm resiliency and transitioned to organic production” during a presentation
at the 2014 Great Lakes Fruit, Vegetable and Farm Market EXPO in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Coveyou Scenic Farm is a 140-year-old family farm just outside Petoskey, in the far northern portion of Michigan’s Lower Peninsula. The farm, which sits on 330 acres today, has been agriculturally focused
for more than five generations.
“The farm has gone through a number of transitions over the decades and has had an ability to adapt and continually transform,” Coveyou said. “The farm still plays a key role in the local community, with
organic vegetable production a major part of our diversified crops and a major contributor to our diversified sales channels.”
Coveyou uses the word “resiliency” to describe a farm. “Most people speak about farms these days as wanting them to be ‘sustainable. ‘ But what that means can be very different to the person hearing the word,”
he said. “To some people it refers to the growing practices used on the farm and how ecologically aligned they are. To others it refers to the desire to maintain the open spaces and rural views for the larger community. Many farmers may view the word to imply
the ability to make enough money to keep going while others may look to it to mean how to keep the farm in agriculture generation after generation. Sustainable may mean something else entirely to you.
“I think of resiliency most when I think of weeds,” he said. “Some weeds can handle really poor soil, drought conditions and someone uprooting them only for them to keep growing. That’s resiliency: the ability
to withstand or recover quickly from difficult conditions.
“It’s that ability to adapt, to transform one’s operation that keeps the farm a farm,” Coveyou said. “We can plan for the known – and even the likely – but it’s the threats of the unforeseen and how we structure
our mindsets as well as our farm business that allows us to stay the course.”
Coveyou outlined how the farm, originally homesteaded in 1874, had its roots in the logging trade, with a sawmill operation being its winter focus. A diversified crop and livestock operation was also in place
in the summer.
Honey production had its day through the 1920s as one of the Coveyou brothers, Elias, created an entire business around his apiary focus.
“This northern Michigan region grew a lot of potatoes from the 1930s through the 1960s, with our farm evolving to be one of the larger growers in the local area,” Coveyou said. “My father’s design and construction
of a potato digger that self loaded into trailers at a time when that was all very new eliminated the need to hand pick up potatoes from the ground, saving enormous amounts of labor and allowing increased scale.”
Market economics and disease led to the end of the potato era by 1964. Seed grain production remained the focus up through the early 1990s, but with many of the local farmers going out of business in the
1980s and ’90s, this business model didn’t have staying power.
“In the late 1990s I was faced with the opportunity to transform the farm once again or let it go out of agriculture on my watch,” Coveyou said. “We have some unique challenges and opportunities with where
we are located. Above the 45th parallel our seasons are short – but that also increases the desire for something fresh and local.”
He said the farm chose to move away from the farmer-to-farmer and farmer-to-processor arrangements of the past and move into the farmer-to consumer model.
“Additionally, to reduce our vulnerability we planned to diversify our growing to minimize risks with four main thrusts: spring and fall potted flowers, organically grown produce, seasonal decorations (Halloween
and Christmas) and an on-farm retail store.
“Diversification of what we grow and sell helps minimize risks but also increases our work load and management challenges,” Coveyou said. “Organically grown produce is our anchor, but the spring flowers,
fall mums and pumpkins and Christmas wreaths allow us to be selling to local consumers over a larger period of the year.”
He said the farm uses a number of different sales channels to increase its revenue stream, but also mitigate the risks of selling to a single customer.
“We don’t have any customers that account for more than 10 percent of our sales. We sell our produce and flowers directly to customers from our on-farm market, four farmers’ markets, restaurants, retail food
co-ops and stores, institutions and through a CSA and open market membership programs.
“The open market program is similar to a CSA with one set fee, but in this case a customer can come to the farm any day of the week, as often as they want and take all the produce their household can consume,”
he said. “This large number of sales channels is more than we desire but is needed to help us generate enough scale in our small community.”
“There is a difference between making a profit and making a living, and that has to do with scale,” Coveyou said. “We don’t have jobs off the farm and we need to be able to generate enough profit dollars
to cover our farm overhead, production costs and capital investments, as well as live. Structuring how we do things around systems that are scalable helps us expand without needing to change the methods we use.”
He said the farm’s organic vegetable seeding, transplanting, irrigation and processing/packing area are “all scalable as we grow.”
“In addition to scale, we have focused on trying to put into place systems that help reduce our production or operating costs. Our on-farm market is repurposing an old wooden livestock/hay barn. This structure
adds a lot of character to our market but also provides significant retail space.
“When we added our walk-in coolers and produce washing/packing area in the basement of the barn, we chose to invest in the lowest operating cost cooling system available and designed a geothermal run system.
Similarly, we chose to put in a solar PV array that now provides all the electrical needs for the farm.
“Our movement to a variable speed drive irrigation pump was driven by the desire to decrease our operating costs,” Coveyou said. “Our vegetable transplant and flower greenhouses are heated by wood pellet
furnaces that run at a fraction of the cost of fossil fuel-based systems. Implementing some of these newer technologies adds to the farm’s resiliency by giving it an advantage of running at lower operating costs.
“As we reinvent the farm once more, we constantly look for ways to keep our production and operating costs low,” he said. “Our transition to selling directly to consumers evolved to embrace growing produce
without synthetic pesticides or fertilizers. It’s how we desire to eat and aligns well with our values.
“Our passion for improving the food system in itself adds to the resiliency of the farm,” he said. “When it’s more than a job but a passion, then we have a stronger will to see success.”
He said the farm became certified organic in 2014.
“Most of our markets did not require us to be certified. Our relationships with our customers and the confidence they appeared to have in us allowed us to grow and sell at market prices that were similar
to certified organic,” he said. “We came to the point of believing that since we grow organically and that we have many of the systems required for organic certification in place, that it would not be a big step to become certified.
“We feel the biggest challenge was working with the fact that our transitional acreage requires us to document and store produce with a little more effort,” Coveyou said. “We have now put in place more detailed
field maps and have implemented changes to how we store produce in the walk-in cooler and better product labeling, but our planting records and harvest log have been changed only minimally.
“We only hear very positive feedback from new and old customers and our sales continue to climb year over year. We have been able to add a local organic co-op account due to our being certified, but in reality
most other channels (restaurants, institutions) did not change their purchasing patterns and still prefer fresh and local over certification.
“We were not able to raise our prices with certification, but still feel that we gained a strength and respect in the marketplace for endeavoring to obtain the certification,” Coveyou said. “We hope our attempts
at structuring our farm results in a resiliency that allows us to quickly adapt to the unforeseen.”
http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/detail/mi/newsroom/releases/?cid=STELPRDB1268848
$100 million Expected to Attract Enrollment of 7.7 Million Acres for Conservation
EAST LANSING, Jan. 27, 2015 –The U.S. Department of Agriculture will make $100 million available this year through the Conservation Stewardship Program for farmers, ranchers and forest landowners to maintain
and improve their conservation efforts. Producers should submit applications by Feb. 27, 2015 to ensure they are considered for this year’s funding.
“CSP is a way to encourage farmers, ranchers, and private forest managers who maintain a high level of conservation on their land to adopt even higher levels of stewardship,” said State Conservationist Garry
Lee of USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service. “By focusing on multiple resource concerns, landowners are able to achieve a sustainable landscape and maintain or increase the productivity of their operations.”
Through CSP, participants take additional conservation steps to improve the resource conditions on their land, including soil, air and habitat quality, water quality and quantity, and energy conservation. NRCS
accepts applications for the program on a continuous basis but only applications submitted before the deadline will be considered for 2015 funding.
The 2014 Farm Bill brought changes to CSP including an expanded conservation activity list that will offer participants greater options to meet their conservation needs and protect the natural resources on
their land. These conservation activities, called enhancements, include cover crops, intensive rotational grazing and wildlife friendly fencing.
Applications should be submitted to local NRCS offices. As part of the CSP application process, applicants will work with NRCS field personnel to complete a resource inventory of their land, which will help
determine the conservation performance for existing and new conservation activities. The applicant's conservation performance will be used to determine eligibility, ranking and payments.
A CSP
self-screening checklist is available to help producers determine if the program is suitable for their operation. The checklist highlights basic information about CSP eligibility requirements,
stewardship threshold requirements and payment types.
For more on technical and financial assistance available through conservation programs,
visit www.nrcs.usda.gov/GetStarted
or a local USDA service center.
End of part 1#