WOOSTER, Ohio -- Ohio State University’s Organic Food and Farming Education and Research (OFFER) program is inviting farmers, scientists, and anyone else interested in organic food and farming to attend its autumn symposium titled “Future Directions for Organic Agriculture Research.”
The event is from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., Nov. 1, at the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center’s Shisler Conference Center, 1680 Madison Ave., in Wooster. Registration is free. Lunch will be provided.
Ohio State scientist Larry Phelan, the event’s lead organizer, calls the symposium “a summit for stakeholders and researchers to discuss the future of organic farming and how we can anticipate research and education needs to help producers and processors be successful.”
Future market trends, consumer demand, policy and regulatory issues, production and processing challenges, and the proposed Organic Research and Promotion Program will be among the topics. Future research and funding opportunities in those areas will be discussed.
Speaking at the symposium will be:
- Laura Batcha, executive vice president, Organic Trade Association.
- Maureen Wilmot, executive director, Organic Farming Research Foundation.
- Mike Anderson, sustainable agriculture educator, Ohio Ecological Food and Farm Association.
- Deb Stinner, panel manager, U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Organic Agriculture Research and Extension Initiative and retired former head of OFFER.
To reserve a place in the symposium, participants should register online in advance at http://oardc.osu.edu/offer/registration.asp. Space is limited.
For more information, call 330-202-3528 or e-mail bielek.4@osu.edu.
OFFER is part of OARDC, which is the research arm of Ohio State’s College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences.
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