Virginia Biological Farming Conference and Trade Show

February 18-19, 2005

The Eagle Eyrie Conference Center
Lynchburg, VA

• What this Conference is About ...
• About our Speakers ...
• Program Schedule ...
• Youth Program ...

What this Conference is About ...

This years theme...

"Organic Farming in Virginia: Practical & Profitable Systems"

Two days of education and networking about:
producing field crops, horticultural crops and livestock in both organic and sustainable low-input systems
selling field crops, locally-grown fruit and vegetables and livestock products that are ecologically produced

Why in the world is the sixth annual Virginia Biological Farming Conference being held this year near Lynchburg? Are farmers in the Lynchburg area & Southside Virginia desperately seeking information about organic farming? Interest is growing but not so you would notice. Are consumers in the Lynchburg area & Southside Virginia demanding more & more certified organic foods? Local market demand is growing but not so you would notice, unless you were really delving into it.

The conference planners especially wanted to have the conference just north of Southside Virginia this year because of the upheaval in the tobacco industry. Organic vegetable production is certainly not going to replace all of the farm income lost from the decline of flue-cured tobacco sales in Franklin, Pittsylvania, Halifax, Charlotte, and other counties where tobacco is grown. Production of pastured poultry, organic beef, goat milk cheese and certified organic grain and hay crops will not replace all of that lost income either. The conference planners with the Virginia Association for Biological Farming and Virginia Cooperative Extension believe very strongly, however, that the organic farming opportunities discussed at this conference can easily replace some of that lost farm income.

The conference is not just intended for tobacco farmers in transition. All farmers and landowners are welcome but we really hope that some of the family farmers who have been raising tobacco will come to see what we are talking about.

Presentations will include organic certification, soil management, livestock management, agronomic production and biological controls. Marketing and financial information will be included, as well as farm policy, and preserving the family farm.

The thread that runs through the VABF Conference is community. The conference is an opportunity for collaboration among growers and consumers and wholesale buyers and suppliers and university researchers and government officials. We have an entire program for young people at this conference to make sure they know how much we need their help to keep agriculture alive in Virginia.

Who Should Attend?

Any interested farmer or farm manager
Livestock producers
Market gardeners
Extension educators and teachers
Government agricultural professionals
Homeowners interested in pesticide-free gardening
Youth who like to garden and learn about the environment

About Our Speakers

Jim Crawford owns and operates New Morning Farm, a certified organic vegetable farm near Hustontown, Pennsylvania. Raising 40+ varieties of vegetables on 25 acres, crops include arugula, basil, beans, celeriac, cucumbers, kale, lettuce, summer & winter squash, tomatoes and sorrel. He and his wife Moie founded a 20-member cooperative called Tuscarora Organic Growers (TOG). The co-op has a 5,000 square foot office & warehouse equipped with coolers & storage. The co-op makes two weekly deliveries to D.C. using 16-foot trucks. By wholesale marketing through their co-op, the farmers incur a lower marketing cost per unit. Jim knows his production costs & conducts financial analysis of his farm business regularly. He has a great interest in helping organic farmers learn the difference between farming and farming for profit. Jim and Moie’s farm offers internships & apprenticeships to create a larger community of trained, professional organic growers, who can help this sector of agriculture thrive. See newmorningfarm.com or read more in The New American Farmer at sare.org/publications/naf/crawford.htm.

Mark Schonbeck has been involved in sustainable agriculture over the past 18 years. Participating in research projects in cover cropping, mulching and organic soil management, he has experience in organic vegetable gardening, & has co-managed a Community Supported Agriculture program at Seven Springs Farm in Floyd County, VA. He participated in early experiments with organic no-till cover crops systems in 1988-90 at Cape Cod’s New Alchemy Institute. Mark is our VABF newsletter editor, a member of the VABF Board of Directors, and works with the Ag Policy Committee of the Southern Sustainable Agriculture Working Group.

Charley Maloney and his family operate 18-acre Day Spring Farm in Tidewater, VA near Williamsburg. Using organic practices, his primary market is a 120-member CSA in operation for 15 years. He also sells to restaurants. Charley is a member of the VABF Board of Directors and has led a number of CSA and direct marketing workshops.

Dr. Richard McDonald operates a consulting business, Symbiont Biological Pest Management, in North Carolina. He assists farmers in the development of habitat for beneficial predatory and parasitic insects that match the insect pests most common to their specific crops. “Dr. McBug” also provides guidance for farmers who want to use other biological controls in commercial crop production. His recommendations, based on scientific research, are focused on making biological control of insects practical.

Vicki Dunaway has been involved in sustainable agriculture since – well, since before it was called that. Her interests have followed a long & delightful garden path from organic vegetables to small-scale dairying. Working as a cheese maker, she edits two small dairy related publications, CreamLine (for small-scale commercial dairies) and The Home Dairy News. She lives in the Virginia mountains with her husband Charley, tending hens, meat birds, hogs, ducks & a rare breed dairy cow.

Ken Newman owns & operates Royal Oak Farm in Evington, VA in Bedford County. Ken, his wife, and two sons maintain four enterprises on the 115-acre farm. They raise 1000 hogs in five hoop barns using a deep litter system. These hogs are slurry fed milk, wheat middlings and other food processing waste. He operates a ten-acre composting/recycling operation with 300’ compost windrows. With a self-propelled compost turner, Ken makes up to 200,000 cubic yards of compost annually; it is sold to nurseries, landscapers, & the Army Corps of Engineers for bioremediation. Ken also produces & sells livestock feeds and operates a trucking business. Conference attendees are invited to tour this progressive farm Friday, Feb 18 from 9:00 am to 11:00 am. Directions may be found under Pre-Conference Options.

Don Bixby, Executive Director of the American Livestock Breeds Conservancy, spearheads efforts concerned with the devastating effects on threatened & endangered livestock breeds. ALBC, of Pittsboro, NC collects semen from minor breeds & houses an active gene bank in case the U.S. suffers a disease outbreak. Don hopes to collect 50-100 semen samples from each of ten distinct & unrelated genetic lines of each minor breed. Don is also an apple & citrus expert.

Kathy Lawrence provides overall leadership, management and vision for the National Campaign for Sustainable Agriculture, a network of groups whose mission is to shape national policies to foster a sustainable food and agricultural system – one that is economically viable, environmentally sound, socially just and humane. Kathy was founder and Executive Director of Just Food, a NYC-based non-profit dedicated to creating a just & sustainable food system in the New York region. She initiated the Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) in NYC program and The City Farms urban agriculture and food access program. Prior to founding Just Food in ‘95, Kathy coordinated public information, outreach and education for both the New York and Northeast Sustainable Agriculture Working Groups (SAWG) & was a citizen advocate at the United Nations on sustainable agriculture & food security issues.

Dr. Greg Eaton is an Assistant Professor & Nursery & Landscape Extension Specialist in the Department of Horticulture at Virginia Tech. With a background in Horticulture & Ecology, he works on sustainability and soil & water quality issues in ornamental and other crop systems and landscape management. Focus is on utilization of organic waste in horticulture, such as biological properties of composts, and characteristics of wastewater, that influence plant growth; he also focuses on the influence of landscape & nursery practices on water quality.

Dr. Joe Tritschler is the Small Ruminant Extension Specialist at Virginia State University. With a focus on control of internal parasites, he has conducted extensive research in herd management practices for meat goats and sheep. Dr. Tritschler has assisted Virginia farmers in establishing small ruminants as a new farm enterprise. He has worked in Latin America, and is project director for an international volunteer assistance project in East Africa.

Patrick Robinette owns and operates Harris Acres Farm, a 70-acre beef cattle operation in Pinetops, North Carolina, between Rocky Mount & Greensboro. With 61 Senepol cattle, Patrick has contracted with two local farmers to raise Senepol calves for his expanding grass-fed beef market; he is successful with marketing to restaurants. Harris Acres Farm is a biodynamic operation, committed to raising grass-fed beef free of pesticides, hormones and genetically modified feedstuff. Senepol cattle are naturally resistant to flies and internal parasites. He will discuss organic pasture management, natural herd health & marketing.

J. D. Hutcheson is an Agriculture Management Agent with the Small Farm Outreach Program at Virginia State University, serving Amelia, Buckingham, Hanover & Buckingham Counties. Before coming to VSU, J.D. worked for 25 years as Farm Management Extension Agent with Virginia Cooperative Extension in the Tidewater region. J. D. has many years of experience in agriculture tax management.

Samuel Johnson owns & operates Hickory Hill Farm near Keezletown, Virginia in Shenandoah County where he and his wife Margaret have been growing small fruit for over 25 years. They have 3 ½ acres of blueberries & 1/3 acre of table grapes. Samuel suffered nerve damage from pesticide exposure some years ago. Since then, they manage their fruit crops organically. Grateful for the beneficial insect populations that control damaging insect pests on his farm, Samuel will speak about planting & management of the blueberries, grapes and vegetables.

Jeff Moyer has been working The Rodale Institute Farm for over 27 years, and as Farm Manager, he knows every nook and cranny of the 333-acre Eastern PA research farm. Known for his expertise in crop rotation systems & cover cropping, the farm rotates 270 acres of corn, small grains, hay, & edible soy for the Japanese market. With 1,000+ organic apple trees and a 3-acre CSA, there are also 25 experimental acres used to test soil & compare yield, soil health & environmental impact of organic and conventional systems for the last 22 years. Concerned about long-term exposure to ag chemicals in food & water, he believes many health issues have been evidenced by this exposure. He writes a monthly column, One Farm to Another for The New Farm magazine.
(www.newfarm.org).

Harvey Christie, AKA “Chef Harv” is president and CEO of Gourmet Central (Diversified Nature Associates, Inc.) in Romney, West Virginia. He & his wife, Cristy, have produced value-added specialty foods such as jams, preserves, vinegars, dressings, sauces, dips, mixes & salsas since 1989. Producing & selling over 150 products, they manufacture gourmet food items for resorts and businesses throughout the country including The Greenbrier, and The Lodge of Four Seasons in Lake of the Ozarks, MO. In '03, Gourmet Central won two coveted international food competition Scovie Awards for hot pepper jellies. In ‘02, their hot sauce & BBQ sauce won first places at DC’s National Capital Barbeque Battle! Specializing in co-packing and labeling of gourmet foods, they help small farmers get into marketing value-added products. Growers bring fresh fruits or vegetables to the Christie’s commercial kitchen in Romney for processing. Produce is made into specific recipes using FDA guidelines & put into bottles or jars with custom labels. Growers take their value-added products home & sell them at Farmers’ Markets or to local stores & restaurants. Harvey Christie would be glad to extend this co-packing service to any fruit and vegetable growers in Virginia who need it.

Catherine Cash lives on a mountain farm near Montebello, Virginia and with 20 years practical farm & livestock experience, she is an independent organic certification inspector for several agencies including QCS, GOA, & ICO. Katherine will speak about the organic certification application process, costs, inspection procedures and regulations, as well as the 75% cost share certification program offered by the VA Department of Ag. She helped start & operate a 14-farm co-op selling to Virginia chefs.

Paul Estabrook and his wife YoungSuk own the Virginia Gold Orchards. Together with their two children, they started an Asian pear orchard from scratch in 1990, growing it to an internationally known orchard featured by Gourmet Magazine in 2001. Not only are their Asian pears unique, they are certified organic and meet “Virginia’s Finest” standards. The 20-acre orchard features 4,000 trees from 16 pear varieties. They have a testing area, containing 25+ different named varieties & several original hybrids bred by YoungSuk. Sold out for the ’04 season, they ship worldwide.
See www.virginiagoldorchard.com.

Mary Heinricht heads Virginia-based, Ag Prospects, supporting local governments, farming & forestry interests in strategy development to retain an economically viable ag sector. Assistance includes development of rural land use plans, ag easement programs, business & conservation tax credit programs, and ag economic development initiatives. Mary developed recommendations that helped establish the Virginia Agricultural Vitality Program & the Office of Farmland Preservation. Past director of American Farmland Trust, she also was primary author of the Virginia Beach Agricultural Reserve Program (1995), the state’s first local purchase of development rights (PDR) program.

Liane Young & Tom Young own and operate Kush-Hara Organic Farm, a 100-acre organic farm in Orange County, VA. In addition to growing & selling farm produce, they raise Nigerian Dwarf goats, sheep, llamas, & chickens. While building their farm, Tom milked dairy sheep at a neighboring farm, and assisted making sheep cheese sold nationally. Retiring from public affairs with the Office of Naval Research, Liane works with Tom to make their farm sustainable and a 12-month income producer. Research using Nigerian goats for value-added dairy products was supported by a SARE grant.

Rachel Bynum & Eric Plaksin are full-time farmers who run Waterpenny Farm in Sperryville, VA. With 10 acres of non-certified organic vegetables and flowers, they sell at two farmers' markets, through a 100-share CSA, and off their farm. In their sixth season, they have entered into a 40-year lease on 30 acres of the 800-acre farm where they live. This will keep them occupied until they're each 71!

Amy Johnson operates Johnson’s Produce Patch from her 45-acre farm near Lynchburg. Amy loves the CSA model and customer interaction with deliveries to 20 families and one restaurant May-Nov. Amy is a VABF board member.

Jean Mills is co-owner/operator of the Tuscaloosa, Alabama CSA, producing vegetables and blueberries for 100 + families. In the 15th year, it is one of the oldest CSAs in the U.S. Jean also coordinates the Southern Sustainable Agriculture Working Group (SAWG) conference, and other farmer-oriented projects. She is coordinating a project to help farmers make better use of internet marketing. A "non-techie," Jean is taking advantage of one of the best and cheapest marketing tools available. Jean will discuss: getting listed on free electronic directories, creating e-mail distribution lists, creating a farm website, and selling on-line.
See www.tuscaloosacsa.com.