Wednesday, February 24, 2010

Jerry DeWitt, NCR-SARE Administrative Council Member, Receives Award for Outstanding Achievement

Jerry DeWitt, NCR-SARE Administrative Council member, has been awarded the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences George Washington Carver Distinguished Service Award at Iowa State University.

Source: Iowa State University

AMES, Iowa - Iowa State University's College of Agriculture and Life Sciences presented awards on Oct. 16 at the annual Iowa State University Alumni Association Honors and Awards ceremony.

Dwight Hughes Jr., received the Floyd Andre Award, which recognizes alums who have made outstanding contributions to production agriculture, agricultural business or who have significantly influenced Iowa agriculture.

Hughes was honored for his innovations in the landscape nursery industry. He received his bachelor’s degree at Iowa State in horticulture in 1970 and owns Dwight Hughes Nursery in Cedar Rapids, which is part of the family business that was opened in 1908. He is past president of the American Nursery and Landscape Association. He also has published a book and video on landscape installation and nursery production.

David Wright, received the Henry A. Wallace Award, which was established in 1978 to honor an Iowa State University alumnus who has made an outstanding contribution to national or international agriculture in writing, teaching, research, or leadership

Wright was honored for his leadership in helping university researchers across the United States prioritize research to improve profitability for soybean producers. He received both his bachelor’s degree and master’s degree in 1982 and 1986 in agronomy at Iowa State, and a doctorate in agronomy from Kansas State University. He began working for the Iowa Soybean Association in 2001 and now serves as the director of contract research and strategic initiatives.

Jerry DeWitt and Charles Sukup received the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences George Washington Carver Distinguished Service Award. The award was established to honor Iowa State University alumni and friends for outstanding achievements in the agricultural, food, environmental, social and life sciences.

DeWitt, who has been an Iowa State faculty member since 1972, is a leader in sustainable agriculture at the state, regional and national levels. His 30-year commitment to sustainable agriculture research led to establishing the first tenured organic agriculture faculty position at Iowa State and at a land grant university. He has served as ISU Extension’s state sustainable agriculture coordinator since 1994. In 2005, he became the director of the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture at Iowa State University.

Sukup was honored for his contributions in the engineering of grain handling and storage equipment. His innovations have helped farmers become more productive and profitable. He received his bachelor’s degree in 1976 and his master’s degree in 1982 in agricultural engineering at Iowa State. Sukup lives on a farm near Sheffield and is president of Sukup Manufacturing Co. The company is the world’s largest family-owned manufacturer of grain handling and storage equipment.

Monday, February 22, 2010

Illinois On-farm Research Mini-grants Available

Source: Roseville Independent

University of Illinois Extension is looking for organic and sustainable farmers with weed problems to participate in on farm research.

“In 2009, 15 Illinois farmers participated in the project,” said Dan Anderson, University of Illinois Extension specialist. “We visited their farms, helped them identify weed-management issues and developed some strategies to help them solve the problem.”

Andersen hopes to have 20 participants this year.

Organic and sustainable farmers across the midwest report that managing perennial weeds without chemicals is one of their most difficult challenges Anderson said.

“We hope to help organic and sustainable ag farmers improve their skills and pratices in managing perennial weeds using integrated management approaches,” he said.

In order to participate, farmers must be currently farming in Illinois or in neighboring states within close proximity of the Illinois border.

“We are looking for sustainable and organic farmers interested in learning methods to cope effectively with perennial weeds in their grain or vegetable systems,” Anderson said. “We’ll be looking at an applicant’s farming system, farm location and how open they are to innovative approaches to managing perennial weeds.”

All applicants will receive a packet of material on a number of ideas for integrated management approaches to controlling perennial weeds in crop and vegetable farming systems. These might include cover crops, tillage, soil balance, flaming, scouting/early removal (by hand or tillage), rotations, mowing/fallow or hay rotation, livestock/rotation, sprays (organic), biological control (release of beneficiary, predatory insects or organisms) and optimizing competition from growing crop.

To apply, visit http://asap.sustainability.uiuc.edu/rg-ag/ scroll down and click on “2010 Mini-Grants! Apply Now” or contact Dan Anderson, 217-621-7974, aslan@illinois.edu.

The mini-grant program is supported by funding from NCR-SARE.

Friday, February 19, 2010

Learning about Local: A Resource Guide to Iowa Organizations and Programs Supporting Local and Regional Food Systems

The Leopold Center, in cooperation with Iowa State University Extension, has created a new directory called "Learning about Local: A Resource Guide to Iowa Organizations and Programs Supporting Local and Regional Food Systems."

The guide lists more than 60 organizations that can offer assistance for those interested in local and regional food systems including: programs, funders, and consultants that offer assistance to Iowa producers, processors, food retailers, and communities. The directory provides contact information, type of assistance offered, program examples, and audiences targeted by each group, program or organization, including information about NCR-SARE.

http://www.leopold.iastate.edu/resources/guide/guide.pdf

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

Will Allen Participates in Michelle Obama's Talk About Childhood Obesity

Will Allen, a Milwaukee urban farmer, NCR-SARE grant recipient, and 2008 MacAthur Fellow, participated in a program with Michelle Obama at the White House in February 2010 for the launch of her new program which aims to combat childhood obesity.



Founded by Will Allen, Growing Power is a farm, food distribution hub, and training center. Growing Power has received and been involved in several NCR-SARE projects, and has collaborated with SARE in presenting workshops such as "Growing Community from the Ground Up."

Presented in conjunction with the USDA’s Risk Management Agency and SARE, From the Ground Up! Workshops are intensive, hands-on trainings offering diverse groups the opportunity to learn, plan, develop, operate, and sustain community food projects. Project participants leave the workshop with improved skills that they can take back into their communities and pass on to others. These workshops are for both rural and urban projects.

Additionally, Growing Power's National-International Urban & Small Farm Conference will take place September 10-12, 2010. This conference aims to teach participants how to plan, develop, and grow small farming productions in urban and rural areas.

To read more about Allen's grant work with SARE, visit the SARE online reporting site here and here.

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Building Soils for Better Crops


Beltsville, MD –Throughout the 2006-2007 droughts, a West Virginia beef and crop farmer maintained yields and produced quality vegetables on his 1,900-acre operation. His secret: using no-till and other ecologically based soil management methods.

A small-grain and vegetable farmer in Oregon’s Willamette Valley used an intensive, carefully timed cover cropping program for 20 years. The result: little to no soil erosion from his farm into the Willamette River, and significant fuel savings from reducing tillage.

A Lancaster County, Penn. farmer used no-till, rotations and cover crops on his 215-acre farm to reverse the severe erosion on his sloping terrain. Today his farm is a nationally recognized showcase for successful farming using ecologically based soil-building techniques.

These are just a few of the thousands of American farmers and ranchers—large-and small acreage—using ecologically based soil management methods to build soil quality while leaving a lighter footprint on the land.

And now—with the release of the third edition of Building Soils for Better Crops—there is a state-of-the-art, comprehensive, practical guide to help others build soil health on their farm or ranch.
The 308-page third edition of the landmark handbook Building Soils for Better Crops is now in full color, expanded and updated. It contains case studies, including the examples above, background information from a what-is-soil crash course to the importance of organic matter, and step-by-step guidance on soil-improving techniques.

Written in easily accessible language, it’s a perfect addition to any farm library, university course syllabus, or ag training manual—a must-read for farmers, ranchers, educators and students alike.

Download Building Soils for Better Crops for free at www.sare.org/publications. To order print copies ($20.95 plus $5.95 s/h) visit www.sare.org/WebStore, call 301/374-9696 or send check or money order to SARE Outreach, PO Box 753, Waldorf, Maryland 20604-0753. (Please specify title and amount requested when ordering by mail.) Discounts are available on orders of 10 or more. Allow 3-4 weeks for delivery. Call 301/374-9696 for more information on bulk, rush or international shipments.

Editors: Contact Sean McGovern or visit www.sare.org/press to request review copies or download cover or profile images.

Published by the SARE Outreach office of the Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) program. SARE’s mission is to advance—to the whole of American agriculture— innovations that improve profitability, stewardship and quality of life by investing in groundbreaking research and education. SARE is supported by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, USDA. SARE Outreach operates under cooperative agreements with the University of Maryland and the University of Vermont to develop and disseminate information about sustainable agriculture. For more information visit www.sare.org.

Land and Power: Sustainable Agriculture and African Americans


College Park, MD – Black American agricultural experiences are grounded in unique cultural, historical and ecological experiences. They range from the agronomic traditions brought from Africa and the experience of slavery to sharecropping, tenant farming and the story of migration to the industrial North, to contemporary concerns about foodsystems issues. To understand these forces is to better understand the values, challenges and opportunities shared by America’s black farmers today.

Land and Power: Sustainable Agriculture and African Americans, a new collection of essays published by SARE, places the cultural traditions and historical circumstances of African American farmers squarely in the forefront of today’s sustainable agriculture movement. The works collected in Land and Power arise from a spirited 2007 conference at Tuskegee University, where more than 100 researchers, educators and activists gathered to share their insights and opinions on the black American agricultural experience.

Land and Power features a selection of the presentations, posters, discussions, and performances that made up this extraordinary, joyous event. The papers in this volume are like eclectic, diversified family members: The authors covered a wide range of topics, including George Washington Carver’s environmental vision, African American women and urban conservation, and trends in the preservation of rural property. Taken together, these essays are a starting point for ongoing dialogue on some of the forces shaping American agriculture.

Download Land and Power: Sustainable Agriculture and African Americans for free at http://sare.org/publications/landandpower.htm. To order print copies ($10.00 plus $5.95 s/h) visit www.sare.org/WebStore, call 301/374-9696 or send check or money order to SARE Outreach, PO Box 753, Waldorf, Maryland 20604-0753. (Please specify title requested when ordering by mail.) Discounts are available on orders of 10 or more. Allow 3-4 weeks for delivery. Call 301/374-9696 for more information on bulk, rush or international shipments.

Editors: Contact Sean McGovern or visit www.sare.org/press to request review copies or download cover or profile images.

Published by SARE Outreach for the Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) program and features work supported by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), USDA. SARE’s mission is to advance - to the whole of American agriculture - innovations that improve profitability, stewardship and quality of life by investing in groundbreaking research and education. SARE Outreach operates under cooperative agreements with the University of Maryland and the University of Vermont to develop and disseminate information about sustainable agriculture. For more information visit www.sare.org.

FamilyFarmed.org Presents Wholesale Success for the Agricultural Professional Webinar

Source: Illinois Small Farm News

In 2008, FamilyFarmed.org created and published Wholesale Success: A Farmer’s Guide to Selling, Post Harvest Handling, and Packing Produce. The manual gives detailed and easy to read information for a farmer audience on topics such as Characteristics of Wholesale Growers, Pricing, Building Relationships with Buyers, and Calculating Return on Investment. In addition, it collects state of the art information on critical topics such as post harvest handling, packing produce, and food safety, and it presents these topics in a very readable and compelling format. The manual is now the basis for Wholesale Success training performed by FamilyFarmed.org for a producer audience.

To multiply the impact of this program, FamilyFarmed.org has designed and will dedicate an entire workshop to train Agricultural Professionals. Professionals will then be empowered to relay technical information to farmers who either express interest in the topic or who might be a good candidate for the information. This could take the form of answering questions, developing new contacts and partners for work, incorporating new ideas and information into regular programming, developing special programming on the topic, and/or using the information in newsletters or other media.

With support from the NCR-SARE Professional Development Program and the University of Illinois Extension, the Wholesale Success for the Agricultural Professional webinar is FREE to the first 40 who register. Participants will receive the newly revised 255 page manual, Wholesale Success: A Farmer's Guide to Selling, Postharvest Handling, and Packing Produce, a $50 value.

Please call Keighty at 708.763.9920 or email her at keighty@familyfarmed.org to register. You will need a phone line and internet connection to participate.

Iowa State University's Small Meat Processors' Working Group Produces Consumer Guide to Whole Animal Buying

Source: Illinois Small Farm News

A new publication is available for consumers and producers who are interested in learning more about buying and marketing local beef or pork, bringing together useful information into a single resource.

Created by the Iowa State University's Small Meat Processors' Working Group, "Beef and Pork Whole Animal Buying Guide" explains buying whole animals or portions buying pork and beef from local producers.

The publication explains both pork and beef cuts, livestock and meat marketing terminology, storage, processing, aging, meat handling and preparation, and meat inspection. It includes color photos of common retail beef and pork cuts.

Hardcopies are available in color ($6.50) and B&W ($1) online. To download a free pdf or order a print copy, visit https://www.extension.iastate.edu/store/ItemDetail.aspx?ProductID=13056.

Support for the production of this guide has been provided, in part, by SARE.

To read more about the NCR-SARE Graduate Student Grant project associated with this publication, visit SARE's online reporting site at: http://www.sare.org/MySare/ProjectReport.aspx?do=viewProj&pn=GNC07-085

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Steven Schwen Shares Thermal Banking Technology via Video with Cooking Up A Story

Source: Cooking Up a Story

The thermal banking technology that Steven Schwen uses in his innovative greenhouse (see Sustainable Energy: Thermal Banking Greenhouse Design) applies not only to conservation of heat, but to cold storage and refrigeration. In this short companion video, Schwen discusses his plans for an ice house at his farm in Minnesota, and how this project is a logical extension of his energy conservation strategy. When completed, the ice house will provide cold storage and a comfortable place for packing his produce during warm summer months.



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To read more about Schwen's NCR-SARE Farmer Rancher grant project, visit the SARE online reporting website here.

Thursday, February 4, 2010

Profitability and Environmental Sustainability in the Dairy Industry Conference

Source: Jeanne Carpenter, Dairy Business Innovation Center

February 9-10, 2010
Monona Terrace, Madison, WI

The Dairy Business Innovation Center, the UW-Madison College of Agriculture and Life Sciences and the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection are partnering with a national organization, the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE), to host a conference about energy efficiency and sustainability in agriculture in February 2010. 

This will be the third annual ACEEE Forum on Energy Efficiency in Agriculture, but the first to be held in Wisconsin. The conference will spend one entire day day exploring Profitability and Environmental Sustainability in the Dairy Industry. We will kick off with a Wisconsin cheese reception at the Monona Terrace on the evening of Feb 9, 2010, and then commence with an all-day series of speakers, workshops and trade show exhibits on Feb. 10.

Attend and learn about how you can achieve greater profitability by implementing environmentally sustainable practices on your farm or in your processing plant. Also hear what others are doing around the country to improve energy efficiency, enhance sustainability and help reduce dairy’s greenhouse gases. 

Click here to see the program for more information about topics and speakers for the Feb. 10 conference day. Register on-line or onsite the day of the conference. Registration fee (including the evening reception at the Monona Terrace on Feb. 9) is $100. Sponsored in part by NCR-SARE.

University of Minnesota Study Seeking Producers to Participate

In 2008, University of Minnesota was received a North Central Region-Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (NCR-SARE) grant on “Antibiotic Uptake by Vegetable Crops from Manure-Applied Soils”. One aspect of this grant is to compare vegetable produce for presence of antibiotics between certified organic and non-certified organic producers, where both producers use animal manure as their primary plant nutrient source.

The principal investigators are looking for vegetable producers who use manure on their land, grow vegetables, and are willing to participate in their study. Producers will be compensated for their time in collecting samples.

Interested parties may contact Satish Gupta for more information about the study at 612-625-1241 or send an e-mail to sgupta@umn.edu

Wednesday, February 3, 2010

Program Aims to Help Organic Farmers Better Control Weeds

Source: Prairie Farmer
compiled by Staff

University of Illinois Extension is looking for organic and sustainable farmers with weed problems to participate in on-farm research.

Last year, 15 Illinois farmers participated in the project. "We visited their farms, helped them identify weed-management issues, and developed some strategies to help solve the problem," explains Dan Anderson, U of I Extension specialist.

This year Anderson hopes to have a total of 20 participants in the program. Across the Midwest organic and sustainable farmers report that managing perennial weeds without chemicals is one of their most difficult challenges. "We hope to help organic and sustainable ag farmers improve their skills and practices in managing perennial weeds using integrated management approaches," he adds.

In order to participate in the program, farmers must be currently farming in Illinois or in neighboring states within close proximity of the Illinois border.

"We are looking for sustainable and organic farmers interested in learning methods to cope effectively with perennial weeds in their grain or vegetable systems," Anderson says. "We'll be looking at an applicant's farming system, farm location, and how open they are to innovative approaches to managing perennial weeds."

All applicants will receive a packet of material on a number of ideas for integrated management approaches to controlling perennial weeds in crop and vegetable farming systems. These might include, cover crops, tillage, soil balance, flaming, scouting/early removal (by hand or tillage), rotations, mowing/fallow or hay rotation, livestock/rotation, sprays (organic), biological control (release of beneficial, predatory insects or organisms), and optimizing competition from growing crop.

Participating farmers will be chosen from the applicant pool. Those chosen will be contacted by the on-farm research coordinator to develop and finalize plans for their on-farm project.

Anderson stresses that these on-farm research projects are a win-win situation. "The participants will each receive $500 per year of participation, but more important, they will benefit from getting the latest research-based info on managing perennial weeds without chemicals and one-on-one assistance in developing a viable on-farm research project."

To apply, visit asap.sustainability.uiuc.edu/org-ag, scroll down and click on "2010 Mini-Grants! Apply NOW," or contact Dan Anderson (217-621-7974; aslan@illinois.edu).

The mini-grant program is supported by funding from the North Central Region – Sustainable Agriculture Research Education Program.

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To read more about SARE in Illinois, visit the Illinois SARE page at http://sare.org/ncrsare/il.htm or http://web.extension.illinois.edu/smallfarm/sare/