Purdue Extension sets 3rd annual Small Farm Conference

December 22, 2014  


WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Purdue Extension's third annual Indiana Small Farm Conference in March will provide information to help owners of small farms better manage their operations and market their products. 

The conference will be held March 5-7 at the Hendricks County Fairgrounds, 1900 E. Main St., Danville. The first day is an optional preconference with daylong sessions on how to make a small farm profitable, the growing hops industry and tours of food production operations.

The conference will provide education, a trade show, presentations on various topics relevant to small farms, and lunches made with food grown in Indiana, said Emily Toner, Purdue Extension urban agriculture educator in Marion County, an organizer of the meeting.

"The conference, most importantly, provides an amazing opportunity for Indiana small farmers, beginning farmers, those interested in farming, local food business owners, and passionate supporters of small farms and local food production to come together and network," she said.

There will be sessions on cover crops and soil health, managing pollinator habitat, composting, new poultry regulations, liability issues, preventing and dealing with livestock death, realizing the value of woodlands, grant writing and food safety planning, among many others.  

Keynote speaker is John Ikerd, professor emeritus of the University of Missouri and an advocate for small farms. Small farms, considered operations generating less than
$250,000 in sales of products annually, comprise 85 percent of the farms in Indiana, according to the 2012 Census of Agriculture.

Tammy Hanlin, who raises her family's approximately 100 head of Angus beef cattle near Portland in eastern Indiana, attended the 2014 conference and learned more about how to work with processors and use social media in marketing.

"Through the beef marketing class, I really learned a lot about the actual processing and how to better talk and work with the local processor so we can do a much better job of marketing our beef product," Hanlin said. "We also have started to market directly to consumers, at least to a small degree. We wouldn't have been able to do that without the knowledge I gained from sitting in on those sessions."

Hanlin liked the conference so much that she registered for the 2015 conference at the first opportunity.

Participants have the option of attending one of three preconference sessions March 5:

* "Making Your Market Farm Work for You," Hendricks County Fairgrounds. Chris Blanchard of Flying Rutabaga Works will explain how to make a farm profitable through weed control, irrigation, post-harvest handling, marketing, and management of employees and finances.

* "Growing Hops," Hendricks County Fairgrounds. Lori Hoagland and Natasha Cerruti of Purdue University's Department of Horticulture will discuss supplies needed to establish a hopyard, how to manage pests that attack hops, and marketing strategies. The workshop will feature national speakers with experience in developing hop industries on the East Coast and in growing and breeding hops in the Pacific Northwest.

* "Local Food and Farms Tour." Participants will tour three food production sites in Hancock and Henry counties: Tyner Pond Farm, with pasture-raised meat, Redbud Farm and Caprini Creamery, with milk goats and cheese-making; and Engleking's Country Beef Shop.

Registration to attend one of the three workshops is separate from the two-day conference. Lunch is included. Participants do not have to register for the two-day conference to attend a preconference program.

  Registration and a complete schedule of workshops for both the two-day conference and the preconference are available online at http://bit.ly/1zxe3PH.

The Baymont Inn and Suites Plainfield/Indianapolis Airport Area is providing a special rate of $69 per night for conference attendees. Reservations can be made by calling the hotel at 317-837-9000 and mentioning the Small Farm Conference. 

Writer: Keith Robinson, 765-494-2722, robins89@purdue.edu  

Sources: Emily Toner, 317-275-9269, eegglest@purdue.edu 

Kathleen Sprouse, 765-641-9514, ksprouse@purdue.edu 

Ag Communications: (765) 494-2722;
Keith Robinson, robins89@purdue.edu
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