Scholarships Available for the 2012 Small Farms Conference

Register for the Small Farms Conference by Feb 15th for the Best Deal!

On February 25th farmers, beginning and experienced alike, will have an opportunity to increase knowledge and skills in everything from marketing to production methods at the annual Oregon Small Farms Conference in Corvallis. The event, one of the flagship educational offerings of the OSU Extension Service's Small Farms Program, is geared toward farmers, agriculture professionals, food policy advocates and managers of farmers markets. This year, there is also extra support for farmers who want to attend. OSU is offering some scholarships for the special poultry slaughter workshop. Oregon Rural Action is organizing carpool to the conference and also has six small scholarships to help with tuition travel and lodging available on a first-come-first served basis. Current members of Oregon Rural Action have first priority. The ORA scholarships are made possible by a grant from the Meyer Memorial Trust.

The 2012 conference features 21 workshop topics and speakers will including farmers, OSU faculty and representatives from the Oregon Department of Agriculture and the Oregon Farmers' Markets Association. The keynote speaker, Kristin Kimball, will open the daylong event with a talk about Essex Farm, which she and her husband run in northeastern New York. She'll discuss the evolution of their farm, the advantages and disadvantages of scaling up and the importance of holding on to a clear vision in the face of rapid change. Kimball, a graduate of Harvard University, is the author of "The Dirty Life," a memoir about her first year farming after abandoning a career as a writer in New York City.

The conference workshops topics include:

• Marketing meat products

• Selling products to schools and healthcare facilities

• Legislation affecting the sale of jams, jellies and pickles at farmers markets (ORA as part of the Oregon Grows Partnership pushed for these changes to be made in the 2011 legislature)

• Extending the growing season into winter

• Developing a farm business plan

• Resources for financing farms 

• Attracting customers to farmers markets

• Harvesting rainwater

• Writing about farming

• Using permaculture on farms

• Grafting vegetables to reduce soil-borne diseases and improve vigor and yield

• Organizing dinner events on farms

• Advocacy plans for reforming Oregon's land-use policies to favor agricultural producers

The cost for the all-day event, which includes lunch, is $45 per person or $80 for two people from the same farm or organization through Feb. 15. It rises to $50 per individual on Feb. 16, and will be $55 at the door. The conference will take place at the LaSells Stewart Center on campus. To register or see a conference schedule go to http://smallfarms.oregonstate.edu/2012SFC. 

A special hands-on workshop on poultry slaughter and marketing will take place on Feb. 26 from 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. It aims to help poultry producers comply with the requirements of a state law that exempts businesses that slaughter up to 1,000 birds per year from certain licensing requirements. Oregon Rural Action also pushed for this change in the 2011 legislature as part of the Oregon Grows Partnership. The class requires an additional registration and is limited to 25 people. The cost is $100. To register, go to https://secure.oregonstate.edu/smallfarms-events/register/5. To inquire about scholarships for the poultry session, contact Linda Brewer at linda.brewer@oregonstate.edu.

For more information about carpooling or the limited Oregon Rural Action scholarships call 541-975-2411.