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in this section: special programming exclusively for extension agents, NRCS and other ag professionals, workshop and tour for beginning farmer technical assistance providers
INFORMATION FOR EXTENSION AGENT, NRCS and OTHER
AG PROFESSIONALS
***We're sorry - All scholarships have been awarded for the 2011 conference.***
If you are an Extension Agent, CEFS or NRCS employee interested in attending, please do not register on line or by mail using the registration form. Instead, please contact the appropriate party below to receive the scholarship and be registered for special programming designed exclusively for you!
In North Carolina, contact:
Carol Moore
NC SARE PDP Assistant
Email
919 273 6322
In South Carolina, contact:
Geoff Zehnder
Clemson University
Email
864-656-6644
- SOLD OUT
Friday, Nov. 11
9AM-4:30PM
This tour will kick-off with a trip to award-winning Chapel Hill Creamery. Here you will see Jersey cows grazing in the lush pastures and low-stress environment provided by owners Portia McKnight and Flo Hawley. You will tour their farmstead cheese making facility and learn about their value-added products. The tour will next stop at Fickle Creek Farm, where owners Ben Bergmann and Noah Ranells use their 61-acre farm to raise free-range laying hens, a flock of sheep and lamb, cattle and pigs. The farm features livestock dogs and a B&B, as well as a 4-acre market garden and several small woodlots. After the tour, we will eat a delicious boxed lunch at the farm before heading on to Dancing Pines Farm, five minutes away. Owners Bill and Joanna Lelekacs grow vegetables, fruits and flowers on a small chemical-free family farm. The farm sells at farmers markets, restaurants and co-ops, and participates in the Piedmont Grown label. Hoophouses are used for season extension. The final stop will be the newly-opened Piedmont Food and Agricultural Processing Center. This incubator for local entrepreneurs and farmers features commercial-scale equipment to meet a variety of food business needs. This tour has it all: livestock, horticulture and processing, and showcases the best of Orange County’s famous food and small farm scene. Lunch is included.
Get ready to help beginning farmers – the future of agriculture!
Friday, Nov. 11
9:00 am to 12:00 pm
Presenters: Staff of National Center for Appropriate Technology, Karen McSwain, CFSA and other noted small farm resource experts
There has never been a more important time to boost our beginning farmers. Demand for local sustainable food is high and who is going to grow it? This workshop, paired with an optional afternoon tour, will prepare you to be a great resource to beginning and aspiring farmers, positioning you and your organization well. The workshop will help you learn who these farmers are and what motivates them. How are their needs different and what technical, financial and marketing obstacles do they face? What resources are available for them? The second half of the class will be done in small groups and look at case examples of young farmers, providing an opportunity for collaborative work and dialog. The class will be led by outstanding resource experts -- with major input from the participants.Certificates to all who complete the class and tour.
FRIDAY, NOV. 11
1:00 PM TO 5:15 PM
This tour is designed for resource providers and professional staff. It will showcase the issues facing beginning farmers and highlight resources available to them. The tour will start at Ever Laughter Farm, a new farm operated by young farmers Will Cramer and Sam Hummel. This small, diversified farm uses permaculture methods to grow a wide variety of vegetables and livestock. The tour will continue to Bluebird Meadows. Owners Alice & Stuart White are early in their farming careers, with 15 cleared acres for vegetable and flower production. For three years they have been using natural practices like composting, cover-cropping, crop rotations, and mulching to keep their soil chemical-free and productive. The tour will conclude at the PLANT Farm Enterprise Incubator at the Breeze Farm. The farm incubator is situated on 269 acres and includes plots for beginning farmers. It is managed through a collaboration of NCSU, cooperative extension and regional agricultural economic development professionals. Come join other resource providers and learn new ways to help beginning farmers, the future of agriculture. Funding by NIFA – USDA.
Note: This is a continuation of the morning session on the same topic; you do not need to attend the morning session to take the tour, although it is encouraged.)