Iowa conference to address small farm issues
Nov 29, 2006 1:30 PM
The founder of Chipotle Mexican Grill, Steve Ells, along with Francis Thicke, owner, Radiance Dairy, Fairfield, are the keynote speakers for the 2007 Practical Farmers of Iowa (PFI) Annual Conference. The conference will be held Friday and Saturday, Jan. 12 and 13 at the Airport Holiday Inn in Des Moines.
This year's conference theme, "Paths to Prosperity," will explore various models PFI farmers are implementing to grow their profits and maintain their values. The keynote speakers have each traveled two very different paths, but each has led to prosperity.
Additionally, a variety of workshops, time for networking, delicious locally grown food, and entertainment, will all be featured at the conference. Workshops for Friday will include:
· Growing High Quality Forage: Risk Management for Volatile Weather
· Adding an Enterprise: Barriers and Opportunities for Growing Beyond Commodity Markets
· High-Tunnels for Lower Costs and Higher Profits
The workshops for Saturday will include:
· Paths to Prosperity: Roundtable discussion on the keynote addresses
· Eating Locally Year-round: Pie in the Sky or Easy as Pie?
· Avian Influenza: Preparing Your Small Flock
· Clusters of Grapes: A Virtual Farm Tour and Cluster Model of Farmer Networking
· Living Comfortably on Little Energy: A case study on slashing your electric bill
· Soil Building and Budgets in Organic and Extended Rotations
· Getting into Livestock: Do you have to leverage the farm?
· Livestock Farming: Ask a Colleague
· Transitioning to Organic Crops: What to Expect
· Conservation Security Program: Tale of Two Farms
· Who Will Run the Farm? Planning for Succession
For registration details or more information on workshops visit, www.practicalfarmers.org, or contact Cedar Johnson at 515-232-5661 or cedar@practicalfarmers.org.
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