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Nominate a farmer or an educator for a Pedro Ilic Award
Calling all small-scale farmers and their supporters! Now is the season of awards and conferences in the agricultural world — and that goes for small-scale farmers too. At the moment, we are seeking nominations for the Pedro Ilic Awards, which honor dedication to small-scale farming.
Each year, the awards honor an educator and a farmer who embody characteristics that helped make Ilic a success.
Anyone can write a nomination. Take a look at the nomination form, which is now online. The deadline for nominations is February 4.
The awards will be presented at the California Small Farm Conference, March 10-12 in Fresno.
This conference, which rotates location each year, is the state's premier gathering of small farmers, agricultural students, farmers market managers and others involved in the small-farm industry. The three-day educational conference includes day-long short courses and on-farm tours; 25 focused workshops; keynote addresses and many networking opportunities.
Do you know an outstanding farmer or agricultural educator? Honor him or her with a nomination for the Pedro Ilic Award!
Scholarships available for the California Small Farm Conference
The California Small Farm Conference will grant nearly 100 scholarships to small scale farmers, agriculture students, family farmers, small farm employees and farmers’ market managers who may otherwise not have the finances to attend the California Small Farm Conference, March 10 to 12, 2013, in Fresno.
Scholarships are awarded based on financial need. Depending on need, scholarships may include conference registration, conference-hosted meals, a ticket to attend the tasting reception, travel and lodging costs, and a reduced field course rate.
Scholarship applications, which are available on the California Small Farm Conference website, will be accepted until Dec. 3, 2012. Bilingual scholarship advisors are available statewide to assist in the application process. Visit the website for a list of advisors and their contact information
Success in agriculture does not depend solely on a farmer’s ability to raise crops. Today’s successful agriculturists must also be expert business managers, marketers and stewards of the land. The California Small Farm Conference hosts the annual conference to offer diverse learning topics for small scale farmers and ranchers. The 2013 conference theme, Harvesting Knowledge: Growing Small Farms, reflects the goal of the California Small Farm Conference and its scholarship program.
“This organization exists to provide small scale farmers and those in the industry with access to relevant farming education,” said California Small Farm Conference President Casey Walsh Cady. “Our scholarship program ensures that access to farmers in California.
The California Small Farm Conference scholarship program is funded by grants from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, California Department of Food & Agriculture, and fund-raising activities offered at the conference.
Since its inception in 1982, more than 7, 500 farmers have benefited from the California Small Farm Conference. The conference is the state’s premier gathering for small scale farmers, farmers’ market managers, agriculture students and small farm industry professionals, which attracts about 500 attendees each year.
For further information, contact communications manager Ashley Bradley, abradley@californiafarmconference.com, (888) 712-4188.
Inspiration from Jay Ruskey, Santa Barbara coffee grower
Turns out coffee can grow, quite successfully in California. We're happy to share this post and video by Katherine Spiers about Jay Ruskey, a Santa Barbara coffee grower who received the Pedro Ilic award in 2010.
USDA Funds Available for Value-Added Producers - Application Deadline Is October 15
USDA Rural Development has published the Notice of Funds Availability (NOFA) for the Value Added Producer Grant (VAPG) program. The Application deadline is October 15th, 2012. In this program agricultural producers or producer groups may apply for either a feasibility study grant (maximum $100,000) or a working capital grant ($300,000 maximum). Eligible activities must be related to the processing and/or marketing of valued-added agricultural products.
There is a matching funds requirement of at least $1 for every $1 in grant funds provided by the Agency (matching funds plus grant funds must equal proposed total project costs.
Grants will be awarded competitively for either planning or working capital projects directly related to the processing and/or marketing of value-added products. Generating new products, creating and expanding marketing opportunities, and increasing producer income are the end goals. Applications that support aspects of regional strategic planning, cooperative development, sustainable farming, and local and regional food systems are encouraged. Proposals must demonstrate economic viability and sustainability in order to compete for funding.
For additional information and application procedures, visit the USDA website. http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/BCP_VAPG.html. The USDA Rural Development’s VAPG liaison for California is Karen Firestein; her office is in Davis and her contact information is: 530 792-5829, Karen.firestsein@ca.usda.gov.
Fresh edition of Small Farm News: Vol. 1, 2012
Welcome to the newest edition of Small Farm News, the newsletter of the UC Small Farm Program.
With this issue, we have completed our transition from a traditional print newsletter to this new, online-only format. We hope you find this new edition just as interesting and useful as our classic newsletter — and easier to share. You can read it all now or bookmark Vol. 1 2012 for later.
In this issue:
- Workshops to prepare growers for food safety
For producers, food safety comes in many shades of risk at many critical points in their business operations: water testing, worker hygiene, harvest techniques, postharvest cooling and storage, previous land use, wildlife and more. To help small-scale farmers better plan for food safety concerns, several UC Cooperative Extension farm advisors are being trained in food safety audits and are planning food safety workshops. Read more... - Building statewide support for California agritourism
At a recent statewide summit, California agritourism leaders overwhelmingly agreed that a statewide organization would be a major step toward improving agritourism support in the California. Read more...
- Selling wholesale at a farmers market
Though growers earn retail prices at farmers markets, the costs involved to do so, including transportation and staff time, can present a challenge to making a profit. But one farmers market has developed a way that farmers can consistently sell high volumes with one trip — by serving as a venue for sales to restaurants and wholesale distributors too. Read more... - Tips for growing, selling organic
California growers considering organic certification were able to hear about the value of doing so — and tips for getting started — from a farmer, buyer and agricultural economist at one workshop. “I had about a thousand customers per week at the farmers market, pulling up my carrots and saying, ‘Are these organic?’" Read more...
- CSA operators offer tips
With the growing popularity of community supported agriculture has come a proliferation of CSA models, with a wide variety of structure, goals, customer interactions and food products. Two different CSAs offered tips to farmers and workshop participants at the California Small Farm Conference. Read more... - How to identify 'snake-oil' products
The presenter twisted his mustache before grabbing hold of the podium. "You will double your production! And you will have no pests, no diseases," he said, emphatically promoting an unnamed agricultural product to the audience gathered. Read more...
- Pedro Ilic Award honors Paul Vossen
A farm advisor who has been instrumental in developing profitable niches for farmers was named "Outstanding Agricultural Educator" with a 2012 Pedro Ilic Award, for his dedication to small-scale farming. Read more...
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Thanks for reading!
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