|
Elizabeth
Sarno University
of Nebraska Haskell Agricultural Laboratory |
Appointment:
50% Research project
coordinator; 50% Extension educator
Favorite
Links:
Local Nebraska Marketing
Project:
Direct
Marketing Nebraska Project: Nebraska Food Coop (NFC):
Year-round, on-line farmer’s market - NFC Mission: To foster a
local food community and promote a culture of stewardship by cultivating
farmer-consumer relationships, promoting the enjoyment of healthful
food, increasing food security through diversity, and enhancing overall
rural sustainability.
UNL Improving Organic Farming Systems across Nebraska Agroecoregions USDA Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service funded grant project.
UNL Organic Neb guides: How to get started farming organically: Is Organic Production Right for You? Organic Resources Guide.
UNL - Center for Applied Rural Innovation (CARI). To help create a rural community and agricultural structure that is economically viable, environmentally sound, socially acceptable and sustainable into the future. Our foci include leadership, sustainable agriculture, and economic and community development through education and research.
Organic
Resources:
USDA/National
Organic Program (NOP) Standards: This link
will give you information on introductions, definitions, applications,
production and handling, labeling, certification, accreditation and
administration.
Appropriate
Technology Transfer for Rural Areas (ATTRA). An excellent source
for more detailed information on organic certification and marketing
and is available for free. Call 1-800-346-9140 and request the Organic
Certification Information Package.
ATTRA Overview
of Cover Crops and Green Manures:
ATTRA
Transitioning to Organic Production:
Wild Farm Alliance: was
established by a national group of wild lands proponents and ecological
farming advocates who share a concern for the land and its wild and
human inhabitants. Our mission is to promote a healthy, viable agriculture
that helps protect and restore wild Nature.
To make our food systems sustainable in the 21st century, we envision
a world in which community-based, ecologically managed farms and ranches
are seamlessly integrated into landscapes that accommodate the full
range of native species and ecological processes.
Wild Farm Alliance Biodiversity Organic Guidebook helps organic farmers understand how to implement the NOP standards.
Research and Grant Lending Organizations:
Organic
Farming Research Foundation (OFRF). The Organic
Farming Research Foundation is a non-profit whose mission is to sponsor
research related to organic farming practices, to disseminate research
results to organic farmers and to growers interested in adopting organic
production systems, and to educate the public and decision-makers about
organic farming issues.
Organic Farming Research Foundation
PO Box 440
Santa Cruz, CA 95061
Phone: 408-426-6606
Organic Crop Improvement Association (OCIA) Research and Education: The mission of OCIA Research and Education is to support farmer driven research, on farm and at research institutions, including exploratory and demonstration projects. We facilitate connections among farmers, researchers, consumers and decision makers, and educate organic producers and local and global communities regarding organic farming and foods.
Contact: Stephanie
Newman
Executive Director
OCIA Research and Education, Inc.
6400 Cornhusker Hwy, Suite 125
Lincoln, NE 68507-3160 USA
Ph:402-477-2323
Fax: 402-477-4325
E-mail: snewman@ocia.org
North Central Region - Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program (SARE) – Farmer Rancher Grant Programs:
Nebraska contact:
James M. Peterson
UNL Extension Educator - Washington County
1718 Washington Street
Box 325
Blair , NE 68008-0325
Phone: 402-426-9455
Email: jpeterson2@unl.edu
SARE Resource Materials on sustainable agriculture.
The
Midwest Organic and Sustainable Education Service (MOSES):
“Our mission is to help agriculture make the transition to a sustainable
organic system of farming that is ecologically sound, economically viable
and socially just, through information, education, research and integrating
the broader community into this effort.”
P. O. Box 339
Spring Valley, WI 54767
715 -772-3153
Michael
Fields Agricultural Institute:
Our mission is to cultivate the ecological, social, economic, and spiritual
vitality of food and farming systems through education, research, policy
and market development. Providing a framework for positive change—in
food and farming systems, food policy, and food production.
W2493 County Road ES
East Troy, WI 53120
262- 642-3303
The Kerr Center for Sustainable
Agriculture:
For thirty-five years the name Kerr has been associated with progressive
ideas in agriculture. In line with this purpose, the Agricultural Division
of the Kerr Foundation was established to provide farmers and ranchers
in the area with free technical assistance and information on how to
improve their operations.
P. O. Box 588
Poteau, OK 74953
Phone: 918- 647-9123
Land
Stewardship Project - Our Mission: The Land Stewardship Project (LSP):
A private, nonprofit organization founded in 1982 to foster an ethic
of stewardship for farmland, to promote sustainable agriculture and
to develop sustainable communities.
Twin Cities Office
2200 4th Street
White Bear Lake, MN 55110
Phone: 651-653-0618
Fax: 651-653-0589
Nebraska Sustainable and Organic Organizations:
Nebraska
Sustainable Agriculture Society (NSAS):
Our mission: To promote agriculture & food systems that build healthy
land, people, communities & quality of life, for present & future
generations.
Center
for Rural Affairs (CFRA):
Establish strong rural communities, social and economic justice, environmental
stewardship, and genuine opportunity for all while engaging people in
decisions that affect the quality of their lives and the future of their
communities.
CFRA Contacts: Wyatt
Fraas - wyattf@cfra.org
Martin Kleinschmit – martink@cfra.org
Rural Opportunities and Stewardship Program
Center for Rural Affairs
PO Box 736
Hartington, NE 68739
Phone: 402 254-6893
Fax: 402-254-6891
Buy
Fresh, Buy Local: An Outreach and Marketing Initiative for Local
Foods.
Increasing the accessibility, visibility and viability of a locally
based food system. Benefiting farmers, consumers and businesses with
higher quality foods and the retention of resources in the local economy.
Nebraska Contact:
Elaine Cranford
Buy Fresh, Buy Local Coordinator
Nebraska Cooperative Development Center
205A HC Filley Hall
UNL East Campus
Lincoln, NE 68583-0947
Phone: 402-472-1748
Fax: 402-472-3460
eklaege2@unl.edu
Organic Grassfed Beef
Coalition (OGBC):
This was recently assembled as a team of producers, researchers, educators,
and organic beef livestock specialists that bring together resources
used in the production and marketing of organic grassfed cattle in the
Northern Plains. Collaborating with organic producers, we promote research
and education for the further study and outreach of grassfed beef livestock
systems including the economic, human health, and environmental benefits.
Acting Executive
Director: Angela Jackson-Pridie
PO Box 125
Vermillion, SD 57069
605-638-0748
angela.jackson@usd.edu
Community
CROPS:
Combining, Resources, Opportunities & People for Sustainability
is a Lincoln, Nebraska organization, which works with local gardeners
and farmers to grow and market agriculture products. 2006 is our fourth
year growing in Lincoln at six community gardens and one community farm
site.
Nebraska Contact:
Ingrid Kirst
Director, Community CROPS
1551 S. 2nd St, Lincoln NE 68502
Office: (402) 474-9802
Mobile: (402) 730-2532
ingrid@communitycrops.org
Slow
Food/USA:
Oversees Slow Food activities in North America, including the support
and promotion of the activities of 140 local chapters, each called a
"convivium," that carry out the Slow Food mission on a local
level. Each convivium advocates sustainability and bio-diversity through
educational events and public outreach that promote the appreciation
and consumption of seasonal and local foods and the support of those
who produce them.
Nebraska Convivium Leader: Krista Dittman
branchedoakfarm2@earthlink.net
West
Plains – Specialty Grains
Erin Berryman
2809 S. 160th St.
Suite 309
Omaha, NE 68130
Phone: 402-829-5116
Fax: 402-829-5170
Corn, soybeans, wheat, barley
The
Scoular Company
Kevin Dvorak
kdvorak@scoular.com
2027 Dodge Street
Omaha, NE 68102
Phone: 800-488-3500
corn, soybeans, wheat
Heartland
Mills
Rt. 1 Box 2
Marienthal, KS 67863
Phone: 620-379-4472
Fax: 620-379-4459
Certified organic processor of oats, rye, sunflowers, cornmeal, stone-ground
whole wheat flours, white flours, feed grains
Grain Place Foods
Dave Vetter
1904 N. Hwy 14
Marquette, NE 68854
Phone: 402-854-3195
Fax: 402-854-2566
Email: davegpf@hamilton.net
Popcorn, corn, soybeans, wheat, and hull-less barley
Roberts Seed, Inc.
Joe and Leisha Roberts
982 22 Road
Axtell, NE 68924
Phone: 308-743-2565
Fax: 308-743-2048
Email: robertsseed@gtmc.net
Corn, soybeans, oats, wheat, any grains, soybean meal and custom processing.
Grain
Millers Specialty Products
9531 West 78 Street, Suite 400
Eden Prairie, MN 55344
Phone: 800-328-5188
Fax: 952-942-9649
Contact: Paul Drake
Email: paul.drake@grainmillers.com
Corn, soybeans and wheat
Clarkson
Grain Company, Inc.
PO Box 80
320 East South Street
Cerro Gordo, IL 61818
Tel: 217 763-2861
Tel: 800 252-1638
info@clarksongrain.com
soybeans, sunflower, com, wheat, buckwheat, spelt, beans, popcorn, milo
Eden
Foods
701 Tecumseh Rd
Clinton, MI 49236
Phone: 888-441-EDEN (3336)
Fax: 517-456-6075
all grains and beans
Organic
Grassfed Beef Coalition
Angela Jackson-Pridie
PO Box 125
Vermillion, SD 57069
605-638-0748
angela.jackson@usd.edu
Natural
Meats:
Family Farms and Ranches Meat Cooperative:
Hog and cattle marketing cooperative limited to 'family farmers and
ranchers', marketing whole animals, currently to 'natural' meat companies.
Memberships available in Iowa, Nebraska, South Dakota.
Contact Gary Cwach, Board Chair.
gcwach@svtv.com
Niman
Ranch
1025 E. 12th St.
Oakland, CA 94606
T: (866) 808-0340
F: (510) 808-0339
Email: info@nimanranch.com
Nebraska Contact:
Klint Stewart
Niman Ranch Pork Company
P.O. Box 393
1001 10th Street
Stanton, NE 68779
Phone: 402-439-5044
Mobile : 402-841-4637
Fax: 402-439-5041
Email: klints@nimanranch.com
Organic Valley Family of Farms
CROPP Cooperative
LaFarge, WI 54639
Phone: 888-444-6455
Fax: 608-625-3025
Email: organic@organicvalley.com
Matthew Provost
Regional Sales Manager:
Rocky Mountains, Plains and Texas
Phone: 303 / 823-0319
Fax: 608 / 625-3046
Mobile: 303 / 589-8741
matthew.provost@organicvalley.coop
Vegetable
and Egg Buyer:
Whole Foods/Nebraska
Lori Tatreau
Local Liaison
Whole Foods Market Regency
10020 Regency Circle
Omaha, NE 68114
402.393.1200, ext. 115
fax: 402.393.1221
Omaha Wild Oats Natural
Marketplace
Local Contact: Kay Young, Marketing Manager
7831 Dodge Street
Omaha, NE 68114-3411
Hours: Monday-Sunday: 8 a.m. - 10 p.m.
Phone: 402-397-5047
Fax: 402-397-5057
Email: kyoung@wildoats.com
Call Kay about Wild Oats Wednesday evening and Saturday morning. Farmer's
Market Opportunities at their Dodge Street location.
Accessing Local Foods:
Nebraska Food
Cooperative
Slow Food/USA
Local Harvest
Eatwild
Whole Foods Market, Omaha, NE: Lori
Tatreau, Local Liaison, 402-393-1200, ext. 115
Wild Oats Market, Omaha - Liz Soto,
Regional Marketing Manager, 303-396-6729
Nebraska
Farmers' Markets Directory
Village Pointe (West Omaha) Farmer's
Market
Buy Fresh, Buy Local
Good,
Fresh, Local - UNL Dining Commons Project
Eat Well Guide
Top 10 Reasons
to Eat Local
Nebraska MarketMaker
UNL Food Processing Center
Woodbury
County, IA - Rural Economic Development
Nebraska Sustainable Agriculture
Society
Rockbrook Village Farmers Market at the Rockbrook Village Shopping Center,
108th and West Center Road, Omaha. Contact Charlie Galvan at 402-391-4745,
Saturday market from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Old Cheney Road Farmers' Market at Old Cheney Center, 55th and Old Cheney
Road, Omaha. Contact Billene Nemec at 402-613-0088, Sundays 10:00 a.m.
to 2:00 p.m.
Certifying Agencies
by State:
Nebraska
Integrity Certified International
1308 S. Fort Crook Rd., Ste. 8
Bellevue, NE 68005
Contact: Bob Yazowski
Phone: 800-815-7852
Email: ryazowski@aol.com
Scope: crop, livestock, wild crop, handling
Accredited: 4/29/2002
OneCert
2811 Tennyson Street
Lincoln, NE 68516
Contact: Samuel K. Welsch
Phone: 402-420-6080
Email: sam@onecert.net
Scope: crop, livestock, wild crop, handling
Accredited: 4/22/2003
Organic Crop Improvement Association
6400 Cornhusker, Suite 125
Lincoln, NE 68507
Contact: Jeff See
Phone: 402-477-2323
Email: JSee@ocia.org
Scope: crop, livestock, wild crop, handling
Accredited: 4/29/2002
Tami Highstreet
Program Director, Nebraska Chapter #1
Phone: 402-474-0113
Email: tamih_events@yahoo.com
Marva Holt
Program Director, Nebraska Chapter #2
Phone: 308-377-2272
FAX: 308-377-2121
Email: organics@sktdalton.net
Iowa
Certified Organic,
Inc.
500 1st Street
Keosauqua, IA 52565
Contact: Nanette Rambo
Phone: 866-581-6428
Email: certifiedorg@netins.net
Scope: crop, livestock, wild crop, handling
Accredited: 11/12/2002
Iowa
Department of Agriculture
Organic Program
502 East 9th Street
Des Moines, IA 50319
Contact: Maury Wills
Phone: 515-281-5783
Email: maury.wills@idals.state.ia.us
Scope: crop, livestock, wild crop, handling
Accredited: 4/29/2002
Colorado
Colorado Department of Agriculture
Division of Plant Industry
700 Kipling Street, Suite 4000
Lakewood, CO 80215-8000
Contact: Don Gallegos
Phone: 303-239-4149
Email: Don.Gallegos@ag.state.co.us
Scope: crop, livestock, wild crop, handling
Accredited: 10/16/2002
Wyoming
Maharishi Vedic Organic Agriculture
Institute
1431 S. Pennsylvania Ave., Suite 3
Casper, WY 82609
Contact: John Konhaus
Phone: 307-237-1055
Fax: 307-237-5547
Email: vedicagriculture@maharishi.net
Scope: crop, livestock, wild crop, handling
Accredited: 4/29/2002
Wisconsin
American Food Safety Institute
(AFSI)
705 Bay Street
Chippewa Falls, WI 54729
Contact: Karl G. Kolb, Ph.D.
Phone: 715-723-4915
Email: info@goafsi.com
Scope: crop, handling
Accredited: 2/10/2003
Midwest Organic Services Association, Inc. (MOSA)
P.O. Box 821, 122 West Jefferson Street
Viroqua, WI 54665
Contact: Bonnie Wideman, Executive Director
Steve Walker, Certification Manager
Phone: 608-637-2526
FAX: 608-637-7032
Email: mosa@mosaorganic.org
Accredited: 4/29/2002
Ohio
Global Organic Alliance, Inc.
P.O. Box 530
Bellefontaine, OH 43311
Contact: Betty J. Kananen
Phone: 937-593-1232
Email: kananen@logan.net
Scope: crop, livestock, wild crop, handling
Accredited: 4/29/2002
Ohio Ecological Food and Farm Administration
9665 Kline Rd.
West Salem, OH 44287-9562
Contact: Stephen F. Sears
Phone: 419-853-4060
Email: organic@oeffa.com
Scope: crop, livestock, wild crop, handling
Accredited: 4/29/2002
North Dakota
International Certification
Services, Inc.
(dba, Farm Verified Organic and ICS-US)
301 5th Avenue, SE
Medina, ND 58467
Contact: Annie Kirschenmann
Phone: 701-486-3578
Email: info@ics-intl.com
Scope: crop, livestock, wild crop, handling
Accredited: 4/29/2002
Suggested Reading:
University of Nebraska Book Press: http://www.nebraskapress.unl.edu/press/thePress.jsp
BOOKS
Cloth
1994. xviii, 159 pp. Illus., maps.
0-8032-1233-X
$45.00 $22.50
50% off
Future Harvest
Pesticide-free Farming
By Jim Bender
From his own farming experience in Weeping Water, Nebraska, Jim Bender
addresses in Future Harvest the crucial issues involved in developing
a viable commercial pesticide-free farm with emphasis upon soil and
water conservation. He examines the context of contemporary alternative
agriculture, provides a rationale for the goal of complete freedom from
pesticides, and offers a detailed description of practical steps for
farmers wishing to do the same.
Bender's comparative analysis of alternative and conventional farming
systems focuses on convenience, management, conservation, productivity,
and economic performance. He also identifies and responds to several
central arguments against pesticide-free farming. A central objective
throughout the book is to demonstrate both the practical and the conceptual
plausibility of pesticide-free farming.
The author also addresses the crucial role of livestock in pesticide-free
farming. The discussion combines practical and theoretical topics, such
as whether alternative farming would require too much livestock.
Jim Bender has organized his farm to combine comprehensive soil and
water conservation and organic methods. The farm has been free of insecticides
and herbicides since 1980 and free of synthetic fertilizers since 1987.
He is the author of numerous articles on alternative agriculture and
is a recent president of the Wallace Institute of Alternative Agriculture.
Paper
2005. xii, 251 pp. Illus., map.
0-8032-6648-0
$21.95
Good Growing
Why Organic Farming Works
By Leslie A. Duram
“Organic farming has gone from ‘crunchy’ to ‘corporate’
because it’s a win-win for consumers, family farmers, and the
environment. Strict new standards and a strong labeling law have helped
define the organic standard, and consumers are buying more organic products
than ever before. It is the fastest growing sector of agriculture, and
as consumers choose organics, they are investing in the future of our
nation’s family farms. Good Growing will help the reader understand
the value of organic farming.”—U.S. Senator Patrick Leahy.
“Plant this book in the hands of students and in the minds of
consumers. The yield will surprise everyone.”—Bob Scowcroft,
Organic Farming Research Foundation.
“The book is littered with interesting portraits of organic farmers
discussing the realities of their way of life, and backed up with an
extensive directory of organizations across the world for people interested
in learning more or lending support.”--Sarah McCarthy, Ecologist
“The pragmatic use of . . . real-life examples increases the relevance
and realism of the findings and enhances the credibility of the conclusion
that organic production is a viable alternative.”--Lorna Holland,
Experimental Agriculture
"Altogether, Duram makes an excellent case for this rural ideal.
Her work should be of interest to those looking for a resource that
brings together much of the existing organic farming research, and to
those who find individual narratives valuable for uncovering the reality
of organic farming. At the same time, Duram raises several questions
that point out the gaps in our knowledge and the need for further research
and a better understanding of the different types of agriculture that
currently exist." -- Lisa M. B. Harrington, Agriculture and Human
Values
Over the past decade, organic products have become the fastest growing
sector of agriculture, with an annual increase of at least 20 percent.
This book explains why organic production and consumption have seen
such phenomenal growth in recent years—and, even more important,
why they should. A clear-eyed, close-up look at the compelling reasons
for organic farming and the methods that make it work, Good Growing
begins with a frank account of the problems with conventional industrial
agriculture—the pesticide use, pollution, and corporate control
that have undermined public health and devastated rural towns and family
farms.
In-depth interviews with working organic farmers from across the country
bring to life the facts and figures that Leslie Duram sets out in her
extensive overview of the realities of organic farming today. Farmers
with very different operations in California, Colorado, Illinois, Florida,
and upstate New York give us an intimate understanding of the ecological,
social, economic, and personal factors that shape their farming experiences.
We also learn firsthand about the attractions and pleasures as well
as the problems and concerns that accompany organic farming.
With its comprehensive view of the status of farming and its compelling
portraits of organic farmers, Good Growing is, finally, a work of scientific
advocacy describing a course of action, based on the best research available,
to improve the health of agriculture in our day.
Leslie A. Duram is an associate professor and chair of the Department
of Geography and Environmental Resources at Southern Illinois University–Carbondale.
Listen to an MP3 Audio recording (25 MB) from UNP's 2006 Literary Salon
on Good Growing.
