Spring 2007 Natural Farmer

Spring, 2007 Vol. 2, No.
72 Publication of the Northeast Organic Farming Association 1077-2294

Inside This Issue
Features
The Future of Farming 12
Inside Organics: Push for Data Collection 13
Acres Report: Nutrient Dense Crops 33
Food Medicine for Diabetes 35
More on Jerusalem Artichokes 35
Coming to the Table: GE Alfalfa 39

Supplement on
Different Water User Facts & Figures 15
Water Problems at Brightside Farm 16
Water and Agriculture 19
Contamination from Factory Farms 20
Protecting Organic Farm Water Quality 21
Conserving Your Moisture 36
Departments
Letters 2
Editorial 2
NOFA Exchange 4
News Notes 7
NOFA News Page 14
Book Reviews 42
NOFA Contact People 46
Calendar 47
NOFA Membership Information 47
Bill McKibben
to Speak at
Summer
Conference
by Susan Lewis

Back in 1989, Bill McKibben wrote his frst
book, The End of Nature. In it, he addressed
the issues associated with global warming and
its effects on the planet and ourselves. Now,
18 years later, here we are with that issue hot
on our tongues and Bill McKibben will be our
Keynote Speaker for Friday evening, August
10
th
, at the 2007 NOFA Summer Conference.
His latest book just came out this month
(March), entitled Deep Economy: The Wealth
of Communities and the Durable Future. In
it, he is asking us to examine our choices of
more as better, and to take a deeper look at
our local communities for supplying all of our
choices for food production, fuel/energy, and
even our own culture and entertainment.

Last year, Bill helped organize a march to
Burlington, VT to bring awareness and address
the issue of global warming. About 1,000
marched on that day. But Bill noted that there
has been no national movement on this subject.
Now, he and several others are organizing a
National Day of Climate Action on April 14,
2007 to show Congress and our President that
we are serious about doing something about
global warming. It affects us all we cant miss
the signs. Their website is www. Stepitup2007.
org and will let people know if an event is
already being planned in their area or, if none
exists, encourage people across the country
to host a rally or event in their community.
Already, over 500 events are being planned.
Our voices, joined together, will be a rallying
cry for concrete steps to fnally be taken around
this issue. Please take a moment and stop and
think what you can do to add to this effect of
joined voices and action.
photo courtesy of Bill McKibbn
Bill McKibben
We are deeply honored to offer the opportunity
to hear Hazel Henderson speak on Saturday
evening at this years NOFA Summer Confer-
ence. Please note that she will be appearing
via satellite transmission and we will have the
unique opportunity to ask questions through this
manner. A frst at NOFA, she is keynoting this
way to avoid wasting fuel via airline transporta-
tion.
Hazel Henderson is a world renowned futurist,
evolutionary economist, a worldwide syndicat-
ed columnist, consultant on sustainable devel-
opment, and author of Beyond Globalization,
and seven other books. Her editorials appear in
27 languages and more than 400 newspapers
and her articles have appeared in over 250 jour-
nals, including (in USA) Harvard Business Re-
view, New York Times, and Christian Science
Monitor. She is the founder of Ethical Markets
Media, and the Series Creator and Co-Execu-
tive Producer of its TV series. She shared the
1996 Global Citizen Award with Nobelist A.
Perez Esquivel of Argentina.
Hazel Henderson Saturday Evening
Keynoter At Summer Conference
photo courtesy of Hazel Henderson
Hazel Henderson
Bill McKibben is a bestselling author of over
10 books on the environment and other related
topics, Scholar-in-Residence at Middlebury
College in VT, and environmental activist. He
has been Staff Writer for The New Yorker, and
has written numerous articles appearing in such
notable publications as the New York Review
of Books, Harpers, and The Atlantic. We are
honored and pleased to have Bill McKibben
speak and hope that you will join us at this
years Conference.

Want to Host a Mini-Conference?

On Friday, August 10th, 2007 the NOFA Sum-
mer Conference will be hosting mini-confer-
ences for other like-minded organizations. From
8am to noon, we will offer facility space to your
organization to hold a mini-conference or meet-
ing. Heres what we can offer:
Plenary meeting space for your group
l20 words on the front of the summer
conference registration form and 100 on
the back to explain your program (20,000
registration forms are printed and sent out).
A line on the registration form for people to
register
Two pages in the summer conference program
book
The charge per person will be $20 for adults
and $15 for teens and children. Programming
for teens and children will be provided by us,
the organization provides programming for
(continued on page 35)
Th e Nat ur al Far me r S p r i n g , 2 0 0 7 2
The Natural Farmer
Needs You!
The Natural Farmer is the newspaper of the Northeast
Organic Farming Association (NOFA). In most chapters,
regular members receive a subscription as part of their
dues, and others may subscribe for $10 (in the US or
$18 outside the US). It is published four times a year at
411 Sheldon Rd., Barre, MA 01005. The editors are Jack
Kittredge and Julie Rawson, but most of the material is
either written by members or summarized by us from
information people send us.
Upcoming Issue Topics - We plan a year in advance so
that folks who want to write on a topic can have a lot of
lead time. The next 3 issues will be:
Summer 2007 Organic Minor Fruit
Fall 2007 Global Warming and Agriculture
Winter 2007-08 Labor on Organic Farms
Moving or missed an issue? The Natural Farmer will not
be forwarded by the post offce, so you need to make
sure your address is up-to-date if you move. You get your
subscription to this paper in one of two ways. Direct
subscribers who send us $10 are put on our database here.
These folks should send address changes to us. Most of
you, however, get this paper as a NOFA member beneft
for paying your chapter dues. Each quarter every NOFA
chapter sends us address labels for their paid members,
which we use to mail out the issue. If you moved or
didnt get the paper, contact your state chapter, not us.
Every issue we print an updated list of NOFA Contact
People on the last page, for a handy reference to all the
chapter names and addresses.
As a membership paper, we count on you for articles, art
and graphics, news and interviews, photos on rural or
organic themes, ads, letters, etc. Almost everybody has a
special talent or knows someone who does. If you cant
write, fnd someone who can to interview you. Wed like
to keep the paper lively and interesting to members, and
we need your help to do it.
We appreciate a submission in any form, but are less
likely to make mistakes with something typed than hand-
written. To be a real gem, send it via electronic mail
(TNF@nofa.org.) Also, any graphics, photos, charts,
etc. you can provide will almost certainly make your
submission more readable and informative. If you have
any ideas or questions, one of us is usually near the
phone - (978) 355-2853, fax: (978) 355-4046. The NOFA
Interstate Council website is www.nofa.org.
ISSN 1077-2294
copyright 2007,
Northeast Organic Farming Association
Advertisements not only bring in TNF revenue, which
means less must come from membership dues, they also
make a paper interesting and helpful to those looking for
specifc goods or services. We carry 2 kinds of ads:
The NOFA Exchange - this is a free bulletin board service
(for subscribers or NOFA members who get the TNF) for
occasional needs or offerings. Send in up to 100 words
and well print it free in the next issue. Include a price (if
selling) and an address, E-mail or phone number so readers
can contact you directly. If you dont get the paper yourself
you can still send in an ad - just send $5 along too! Send
NOFA Exchange ads directly to The Natural Farmer, 411
Sheldon Rd., Barre, MA 01005 or (preferably) E-mail to
TNF@nofa.org.
Display Ads - this is for those offering products or services
on a regular basis! You can get real attention with display
ads. Send camera ready copy to Dan Rosenberg, PO Box
40, Montague, MA 01351 (413) 863-9063 and enclose a
check for the appropriate size. The sizes and rates are:
Full page (15 tall by 10 wide) $300
Half page (7 1/2 tall by 10 wide) $155
One-third page (7 1/2 tall by 6 1/2 wide) $105
One-quarter page (7 1/2 tall by 4 7/8 wide) $80
One-sixth page (7 1/2 tall by 3 1/8 wide), or
(3 3/4 tall by 6 1/2 wide) $55
Business card size (1 1/2 tall by 3 1/8 wide) $15
Note: These prices are for camera ready copy. If you want
any changes we will be glad to make them - or to typeset a
display ad for you - for $10 extra. Just send us the text, any
graphics, and a sketch of how you want it to look. Include
a check for the space charge plus $10.
Advertise in or Sponsor The Natural Farmer
Frequency discounts: if you buy space in several
issues you can qualify for substantial discounts off
these rates. Pay for two consecutive issues and get 10%
off each, pay for 3 and get 20% off, or pay for 4 and
get 25% off. An ad in the NOFA Summer Conference
Program Book counts as a TNF ad for purposes of this
discount.
Deadlines: We need your ad copy one month before the
publication date of each issue. The deadlines are:
January 31 for the Spring issue (mails Mar. 1)
April 30 for the Summer issue (mails Jun. 1)
July 31 for the Fall issue (mails Sep. 1)
October 31 for the Winter issue (mails Dec. 1)
Disclaimer: Advertisers are helping support the paper
so please support them. We cannot investigate the
claims of advertisers, of course, so please exercise due
caution when considering any product or service. If you
learn of any misrepresentation in one of our ads please
inform us and we will take appropriate action. We dont
want ads that mislead.
Sponsorships: Individuals or organizations wishing to
sponsor The Natural Farmer may do so with a payment
of $200 for one year (4 issues). In return, we will thank
the sponsor in a special area of page 3 of each issue,
and feature the sponsors logo or other small insignia.
Contact for Display Ads or Sponsors: Send display
ads or sponsorships with payment to our advertising
manager Dan Rosenberg, PO Box 40, Montague, MA
01351. If you have questions, or want to reserve space,
contact Dan at (413) 863-9063 or dan@realpickles.com.
Letters to the Editor
Dear Jack and Julie,
I often dont take time to read The Natural Farmer
as thoroughly as Id like. However, this month
I found all of your stories totally captivating. I
especially enjoyed the refections on Terra Madre
written by Laura Sayre. Please extend my praise
to her for excellent coverage and perspective that
refects honest journalism. Keep up the good work.
You are both doing a great job.
Best, Ellen Ogden, Manchester, VT
Dear Ellen,
Thanks so much for your letter. As you know, when
you do something wrong you hear about it right
away. But when you are doing your job, people
dont usually bother to tell you. So although Julie
and I know we must be doing all right, we do
appreciate hearing that! I will pass your kind words
on to Laura, too.
Thanks again, Jack Kittredge
by Jack Kittredge
Water is as fundamental to agriculture as soil, seed
and sun. Rainfall that infltrates and remains in the
soil (green water) nourishes some 60 percent of the
worlds crops. Irrigation occurs on approximately
18 percent of the worlds cropland, but there it
produces the other 40 percent of our food. Irrigation
accounts for over 70 percent of world water use.
Water scarcity is becoming the biggest obstacle to
continued growth in world food production.
The Nile currently loses 90% of its water to
irrigation before it reaches the Mediterranean Sea.
Only a third of the river Jordan now reaches the
Dead Sea. Perhaps the most striking example of this
siphoning for irrigation is in central Asia. Fifty years
ago two rivers, the Ama Darya and the Syr Darya,
used to deliver 55 billion cubic meters of water
annually to the Aral Sea. In the 1960s, however, a
vast Soviet cotton-growing effort tapped those rivers
for irrigation water. Now the Aral Sea is drying
up. Fisheries, which supported 60,000 people,
have vanished. Two dozen native fsh species have
become extinct.
But water scarcity is not the only water problem
looming on the horizon. Water pollution is also
a reality, threatening our way of farming. The
downstream degradation of water quality by
runoff of salts, agrochemicals and toxic leachates
Water and Agriculture
is a serious problem. Aquaculture is leading to
eutrophication and ecosystem destruction in
freshwater, estuarine and coastal environments.
Nitrogen levels in the groundwater in parts of
Europe have exceeded safe limits for over 10% of
the population. In developing countries cholera,
typhoid, and many parasitic diseases arising from
water contamination are on the increase. In our
state of California, E. coli outbreaks from manure-
contaminated water have shut down spinach and
lettuce production just in the last few months.
We are going to have to use our water, just like
our energy, more sensibly. This issue is devoted
to raising such a concern among our readers. The
Northeastern United States is one of the most
favorably situated regions in the world as far as
water goes. We have as much as 48 inches of
precipitation per year, equally distributed throughout
the months. Yet even in this ideal environment,
issues of water access and water contamination are
affecting local farmers. Hopefully you can come
away from this issue with some useful ideas about
conserving and protecting the water supply you use.
A short consideration of the full water cycle rain,
soil infltration, crop uptake, harvest, consumption,
excretion, and evaporation to purify and deliver
again as rain puts one in awe of how vital and
taken for granted this Element is.
Graph of World Water Use 1900 - 2025
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Naturally
Aza-Direct's unique fornulalion resulls in lhe highesl
levels of bioaclive conponenls. This process conlribules
lo lowesl levels of inpurilies which naxinizes
effecliveness and nininizes unpleasanl odor.
OF lisled & approved for organic produclion
Sofl on Benefcial nsecls, effeclive on danaging pesls
EPA labeled for use on greenhouse & ouldoor food crops
nsecl populalion decline is evidenl 35 days
following nulliple applicalions
Apply al frsl sign of insecl aclivily, as innalure slages are nosl susceplible.
Adjusl spray lank waler lo 6.06.5 pH prior lo adding AzaDirecl. Cood spray
coverage is crilical rainfasl in 3 hours.
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Visil our web sile al www.azadirecl.con
Please help us thank these
Friends of Organic Farming
for their generous support!
Socially Responsible Investing
Douglas J. Calnan
Vice President-Investments
douglas.calnan@agedwards.com
(800) 543-8010 Norwell, MA
Member SIPC 2006 A.G. Edwards & Sons, Inc.
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NOFA
Exchange
Blow Your Own Horn!
Apiary Field Technician Internship for the 2007
season. We are a family-run beekeeping business
in Monmouth County, NJ who use chemical-free
beekeeping techniques and also breed our own
queens. We are looking for a motivated individual
who wishes to participate in a program to develop
a stronger, and chemical free, honeybee. We
will provide training and instruction. The Intern
will perform feld evaluations of beehives for
performance and production. The Internship runs
from April thru October. Monthly stipend $700;
room and board available. Call us at 732-542-6528
or email us at emgold.beekeepers@verizon.net.
Farmer Needed - New 4+ acre farm in
Dover Mass. Experience required. All equipment
present. Housing possible. Good pay. Position open
immediately. CSA/Farm Stand/Wholesale
contact Bryan at braustin@gmail.com or call 617-
784-4123
Assistant Growers and Interns wanted. The
Vegetable Ranch, a 56-acre diversifed organic
farm in south-central New Hampshire needs interns
and assistant growers for the spring, summer, and
fall 2007 seasons. Positions include all phases of
organic vegetable production from starting seedlings
to distribution and sale at farmers markets and
two multi-farm CSAs. Salary/stipend dependent
upon experience. Limited housing is available. If
interested, contact Larry Pletcher at (603) 456-3121
or e-mail, lpletcher@conknet.com.
Sheep and other farming opportunities available
for farming caretaker couple on 200 acre Private
Island. Mechanical ability, farming experience,
comfort with boats and solid references necessary.
Year round employment beginning spring 07
includes housing, salary and farm partnership. Send
personal info to studio404@adelphia.net. For more
info call 802 658-8056 or go to: www.savageisland.
net
Small farm for sale in North Amherst, Mass., 3.9
acres of prime stone-free vegetable soil (Belgrade
silt loam), barn, stream, 1915 farmhouse with two
porches, three bedrooms, two full baths (one new),
completely redone: new paint and varnish inside
and out, new roof, new Buderus gas-fred hot water
baseboard heating, complete new wiring, new
water heater and appliances, new septic system,
etc. Organically managed vegetables/roots/herbs
last two summers; existing CSAs in area have long
waitlists. Two miles from UMass and Amherst
village center; ten miles from Northampton.
$359,000. Call (516) 639 1033; (516) 459 8986;
(631) 765 5207; cutwater@earthlink.net or
lihildebrand@yahoo.com.
We buy certifed organic and other alternatively
grown produce in caselots of 10-60+ cases. If you
can deliver, great; otherwise, we may be able to
work out trucking. Please contact Janit at Purple
Dragon Co-op, janit@verizon.net, (973) 429-0391.
Let us know what you plan to grow; also call us if
you have things almost ready to harvest. Walk-in
for sale, 3-phase, 15 x 23x10H, thick baked-on
enamel walls, exc. cond., $7000 or best offer; will
consider trade.
So. NH Farm For Sale by Owner - Pelham, NH
(just over MA border,) 13 fenced, level acres of
felds & trees, spring-fed swimming pond, four
barns, orchard, greenhouse, garden, and a nice
house: (2-story white Cape, 3 bedrm, 3 bath, 2500
sq ft.). Borders town conservation land with
trails. Great access to markets: 35 miles to Boston,
10 minutes to Hwy 93 (major commuter route).
Locally famous for direct-marketed meat & milk,
kids Sheep Camp. So why are we leaving? To
farm in PA. Full details at www.owensfarm.com.
$595,000. (603) 635-8553, daowens@erols.com.
Rusty Plough Farm, NOFA-NY certifed organic,
seeks intern for all aspects of small farm. Two
acres in vegetables, berries, and fowers, plus four
acres wild blueberries. Ulster County, NY. One
intern: early May through mid-October somewhat
fexible. Weekly stipend plus housing and meals.
Call Nadia or Oleh 845-647-6911, rustyplough@
earthlink.net. Come join our family for the season!
Farmstand Manager for Organic Farm -
Enthusiastic, dynamic and creative person wanted
to manage retail farmstand, CSA and coffee shop.
Were a 50 acre farm selling produce and fowers
through the farmstand and a 140 member CSA in
East Central Vermont. Farmstand manager oversees
the marketing of farmstand products, creating
fresh displays, coordinating harvest to retail with
greenhouse and feld managers, and supervising
staff. Qualifcations include retail experience,
ability to work well with others, enthusiastic
endorsement for local, organic farming, and desire
to be part of a great team. Seasonal, mid-April
through mid-November. Pay commensurate with
experience. Send resume to kduester@igc.org.
Learn To Farm: Three apprenticeships available
on certifed organic vegetable farm in western CT
for 2007 season, April through mid November.
Help plant, cultivate, harvest, and market produce
through a 300 share CSA and farmers market.
Opportunity to learn the agricultural and business
skills you will need to run your own farm.
Compensation includes private room in apprentice
house, farm produce, $800 monthly stipend plus
scheduled raise and year end bonus. Send letter
and resume to Paul Bucciaglia, Fort Hill Farm,
18 Fort Hill Rd., New Milford, CT 06776, www.
forthillfarm.com.
Opportunities Available for 2007 Season on 130+
Family CSA Farm in Sullivan NH. (15 miles from
Keene) We are in our 8th year of diversifed organic
vegetable production and looking for hardworking
enthusiastic, self-motivated individuals who enjoy
working with others. Internship: Work and learn
alongside 29 year-old seasoned woman farmer with
planting, weeding, harvesting, washing and packing.
Get hands-on experience farming while receiving
college credit. Assistant Manager: Experience
necessary, call for details. Working shares available
as well as CSA shares delivered to your door.
Tracie, 603-209-1851. www.traciesfarm.com.
Organic Farm Managers: Experienced,
responsible couple needed to operate certifed
organic farm near Susquehanna in NE PA for
owners present part-time. We produce and market
many types of vegetables, herbs, fowers, and eggs
through on-farm, farmers markets, restaurant,
and health store sales; exploring a CSA and other
ideas for business expansion. The job also entails
caring for horses, heritage chickens, other animals;
maintaining grounds, buildings, equipment.
Salary, farmhouse, utilities, other benefts to start;
possibility of long-term land lease with business
transfer to the next generation. For details, please
send resumes and cover letter to Shary and Gary
Skoloff, sskoloff@comcast.net
Two apprentices or employees sought.
Anchor Run CSA in Wrightstown, PA seeks two
apprentices/employees for the 2007 farming season.
You will work alongside the farmers in all aspects
of farming and have the opportunity to participate in
a monthly regional apprentice educational program.
Anchor Run CSA grows produce for 160 shares.
We are less than an hours drive from Philadelphia.
Positions open from mid-April through mid-
November. For more information: visit our website,
www.anchorrunfarm.com. To apply contact Tali at
215-598-1519, talyon@juno.com
D Acres of NH is celebrating our 10th year with a
focus on the Northern Forest. We are an established
organic farm & educational homestead. Offering
experiential learning and workshops throughout the
season. We host farm breakfasts 1st Sunday of each
month, community potlucks dinners and volunteer
days. Please check our website for ongoing
activities. www.dacres.org Currently seeking a
kitchen specialist. info@dacres.org
Organic Farm, Restaurant, B&B & 20 acre
Garden, near Ogdensburg, NY, needing partner/
manager. 90ft. greenhouse, 150 acres cropland,
50 acres woodlot. Barns, shops, and equipment
to operate available. Historic B&B, full service
restaurant, antique and gift shop may be leased
separately. Farm is located on the St. Lawrence
River with additional income from boat rental,
dockage, and cabins. Call the President of CARI
315-323-1905 or email mahlonclements@aol.com.
Web site Cariorganic.org.
Nestled in the
hills of western
Massachusetts
near the cultural
resources of the Five
College Consortium,
CSLD is accredited
by the New England
Assn. of Schools and
Colleges
332 S. Deerfield Rd.
PO Box 179
Conway, MA
01341-0179
413-369-4044
info@csld.edu
www.csld.edu
Master of Arts in Landscape Design
The Conway School of Landscape Design teaches the application
of ecological principles to the design and management of land and
resources. By planning and designing projects for residential, municipal,
and non-profit clients, students learn a constellation of skills including
design graphics, practical problem-solving, ability to communicate design
solutions, and ecological advocacy.
Founded in 1972, CSLDs ten-month program stresses self-direction
and team learning, and prepares graduates for a rich and diverse range
of jobs in such fields as community planning, conservation, site design,
land stewardship, and site management.
Conway School of Landscape Design
Graduate Program in Landscape Planning, Design, and Management
Landscape Designer sought for Fairfeld, CT
landscape company at the forefront of organic/
ecological design, installation and maintenance.
Must have experience developing base maps, plot
plans, and master plans, plant and material sourcing/
pricing, possess an excellent knowledge of native
plants and be frmly committed to developing
sustainable landscapes. Great opportunity to utilize
your environmental design skills and learn from
leaders in the feld. Work on a contractual basis.
Hours fexible. Compensation to be discussed.
Knowledge of organics a plus. Please send cover
letter and resume to Plantscapes, Inc. by e-mail
(plantscapes@snet.net) or fax (203-382-0777). No
calls please.
Business Manager sought for organic
landscaping company in Fairfeld, CT.
Responsibilities include sourcing and pricing
materials, inventory, measuring and analyzing
jobsites, drafting complex work proposals,
interacting with clients, contractors, designers and
feld supervisors. Also research, payroll, invoicing,
fnance reports, sales, and customer relations. Must
possess excellent computer skills; be profcient in
Excel, Word, and Quickbooks Pro. Ideal candidate
must be good with numbers and enthusiastic to
learn all about, and be able to sell, organic land
care and ecological landscape design. Landscape
design experience a plus. Good salary and benefts.
Flexible schedule. Please send resume and cover
letter to dina@healwithnature.com.
Interns sought by organic landscaping company
in Fairfeld, CT. We are looking for able-bodied
folk, willing to work hard and learn a lot through
on-site, hands-on training. Co. president is a
founding member of the Organic Land Care
program. Learn about organic landscaping, native
and ecological design, wetland restoration, lawn
replacement and compost tea. Looking for all or
part of the 2007 growing season, Mar. through Oct.,
3 days or more / week, 8 hours + / day, $8/hour,
uniforms provided. A resume-building experience.
Please send cover letter and resume to plantscapes@
snet.net or fax (203) 382-0777. No calls please.
Experienced Grower Position - Be the principle
farmer of three acres of mixed vegetables, herbs
& fowers for a CSA project, on farm and Farmers
Market sales. Work on vegetable production,
harvesting, and marketing under the general
supervison of the owner. There is some connection
with other activities of the farm greenhouse work,
poultry, young fruit production, and campground
related hospitality. Some supervision of part-time/
short term apprentices. Three years of farming
experience required. Housing, meals and salary
are included. Beautiful central Vermont location.
Contact Jinny at FourSpringsFarm, Royalton, VT.
(802) 763-7296
Apprentices needed for 2007 growing season!
Denison Farm grows organic vegetables for
our 200+ member CSA, farmers markets, and
wholesale markets. We have a beautiful 164 acres in
Schaghticoke, NY, with woodlands, hills, marsh,
streams and cropland. Apprentices will do
greenhouse work, transplant, hoe/weed, harvest,
wash/pack, and distribute/market vegetables. For
those with limited farm experience, we offer a $700/
month stipend plus housing and vegetables/fruit.
Experienced folks are paid more. To learn more
about who we are and what we do, please look at
our website: www.denisonfarm.com Please email
(den_farm@yahoo.com) or telephone us, Justine
and Brian Denison at 518-664-2510.
Apprentice/Intern sought for June, July, August
2007 at Gypsy Meadows Farm. We are a small
certifed organic farm with 2 acres of vegetables
in the Connecticut River Valley. We are looking
for a self-motivated, physically active person with
a solid work ethic who is interested in learning
all aspects organic vegetable growing. The intern
will work alongside the owners seeding, planting,
cultivating, harvesting, packing and record keeping.
Plainfeld is a small rural village near Hanover,
NH, an Appalachian Trail stopover and home of
Dartmouth College. Housing, meals, plus $100
weekly stipend included. Call 603-675-2840 or
email mlebsmith@earthlink.net
Interns and farm workers needed for 2007 season
at George Hall Farm in Simsbury, CT. 60 acres of
organic vegetables, 100 laying hens, two oxen, three
alpacas, 250,000 honeybees and one Ogre who
runs it all. Plenty of work available in the felds and
at several farmers markets. Housing available for
interns (trailer, cabin, or room), plus produce and
$700 month stipend. Help needed April through
November. Call George or Jesse @ 860-658-9297.
www.georgehallfarm.com
Lindentree Farm in Lincoln Ma, a 12 acre certifed
organic farm with a 200 member CSA, is looking
for two apprentices for the 2007 season. Learn
all aspects of vegetable growing and CSA and
Farmers Market sales. Participate in the CRAFT
farm intern program. We are seeking hard working
individuals who are seriously interested in farming,
and would enjoy working with a diverse group
of people. Some growing experience is helpful.
Compensation includes a monthly stipend, a
private room on the Farm from April- October,
and a farm share. Contact Ari at 781-259-1259 or
Lindentreefarm@att.net.
Available: 20 Great Grassfed Cows, mostly black
baldies of old fashioned Angus, mostly cow/calf
pairs, mostly bred back AI to British White or Red
Devon or Murray Grey ($1,200 to $1,500). Also
steers, yearling and bred heifers. Fox Hill Farm,
Ancramdale, NY, located in Hudson Valley NY,
near MA/CT border. For more info and to set up
a weekend visit, contact Tracy at 518/692-8242 or
Larry at 518/329-2405.
We have had two highly successful free harvest
suppers of local food on the site of the Greenfeld
farmers market. Now plans are being made for a
week of winter fare in January 2008. An indoor
farmers market will be the Saturday before the
week. Interested farmers and producers of value
added items made mostly with local produce
should contact Ferdene@usa.com. We are also
looking for storage space. Home gardeners are
encouraged to grow storage crops and to preserve
others by canning, freezing, drying. Also call Juanita
Nelson 413-773-5188.
Call for the location of your
nearest wholsale distributor
Depot Street
Bradford, VT 05033
Ph. 802.222.4277
Fax 802.222.9661
info@norganics.com
www.norganics.com
Fertilizers:
Azomite
Cheep Cheep 4-3-3
Greensand
Greensand Plus 0-0-17
Kelp Meal
Chilean Nitrate 16-0-0
Natural Sulphate of Potash 0-0-51
Organic Gem 3-3-.3
Phosphate Rock 0-3-0
Phosphate Rock and Greensand Mix
Pro-Gro 5-3-4
Pro-Start 2-3-3
Stress-X Powder
Livestock Nutritionals:
Redmond Trace Mineral Conditioner, Salt
Blocks & Granular Salt
*
Pest Controls:
PowderGard
Pyganic
Seacide
Surround
*
*Many of our products that are not OMRI listed may be allowed for use on a
certifed organic farm. Check with your certifcation representative to be sure.
Garden Apprentice, April October. Manage
planting, maintenance, facilitate learning
experiences in Drumlin Farms Learning Garden.
Work with visitors, schools, groups of all ages,
design activities for the garden that stimulate
learning about plants, insects, food, sustainable
agriculture. Work with crops staff one day per
week in felds. BS/BA degree or candidacy in
environmental science, education, or related feld.
Experience gardening or working at an educational
farm a plus. Experience working with children
required. $200-225/week plus board. Housing
provided at $25/week. Send resume and references
to tpinney@massaudubon.org or Tia Pinney,
Drumlin Farm, 208 South Great Road, Lincoln, MA
01773.
Old Style Lifeskills Workshops in Cornwall, CT
for the whole family: Wool Gathering -March 10,
Get Your Goat - April 14, Herb Walk - May 12,
Eggs-perience Chickens- June 9, Keeping A Family
Cow - May 5, June 2, July 14, August 4, Sept. 1,
Canning Foods - August 11, Lacto-fermentation
Pickles - Oct. 13, Sausage Making - Nov. 10,
Making Bread - Dec. 8. For more info contact Debra
(860) 672-0229 or lifeskills@motherhouse.us.
Many Hands Organic Farm will be holding a Spring
Vegetable and Fruit Growing workshop on April
27. The workshop will run from 9 AM to 3 PM, $40.
Bring a contribution for a pot luck lunch. Register
at www.mhof.net or call (978) 355-2853 or email
julie@mhof.net for a registration form.

Learn to Bake Handmade Naturally Leavened
Breads. Learn to bake in a wood-fred oven
designed by renowned oven builder Alan Scott.
These one-day workshops are geared for all baking
enthusiasts. Discuss, taste and savor freshly baked,
naturally leavened Artisan breads straight out of
the wood-fred oven. The workshops are hands-
on. Learn the fundamentals of sourdough starters,
mixing, scaling, and hand shaping. Space limited
to 10. Workshop fee is $75; includes lunch. Come
spend the day in the refected light of the wood-
fred oven! For reservations - call Naga Bakehouse
at (802) 235-1282 or e-mail at nagabake@
vermontel.net.
An organic farm and an organic cattle operation
in mountains of SW Montana, are both seeking
assistance for the summer. The farm and ranch are
very near each other, but are different businesses
with different needs. The farm produces organic
vegetables and pastured poultry, while the ranch
produces, hay and beef. Housing is provided
and the ranch supplies a $350 per week stipend,
but needs someone for the season. The farm will
provide a stipend depending on time commitments
and experience. We are located in Livingston.
Call Mark at 406-222-7886 or email omnimore@
eathlink.net for more information.
Many Hands Organic Farm is now accepting CSA
members and orders for our certifed organic
chicken, pork and lard. Call or email for a catalog
at (978) 355-2853, julie@mhof.net or download
forms at www.mhof.net.

Mountain Dell Farm seeks apprentice for 2006
season, mid-May through November. Private
cabin, board, plus good stipend. Must know how to
work hard and be teenager friendly. Duties include
picking, packing, weeding and transplanting fve
acres of vegetables. We have been making our
living as organic farmers since 1990. We live in a
beautiful land in the foothills of the Catskills. Other
interests include yoga, medicinal herbs, politics,
swimming in the pond, rafting the Delaware River,
and rural parties. Mark Dunau or Lisa Wujnovich,
Mountain Dell Farm, 2386 Roods Creek Rd.,
Hancock, NY 13783. 607-467-4034. e-mail at
mldunau@ny.tds.net
The Trustees of Reservations, a conservation non-
proft, seeks a tenant for approximately 40 acres
of Hilltop Farm at 21 Highland Road in Lakeville,
Massachusetts. About 16 acres of felds are suitable
for hay or pasture and 12 for crops. The 1920s
farmstead includes a 10-room house, horse barn,
cow barn, sheds and outbuildings, all suffering
from deferred maintenance. The Trustees will lease
the farm to a long-term tenant to run an active
agricultural operation and commit to negotiable
phased rehabilitation of most structures. Contact
Wayne Beitler, 396 Moose Hill Street, Sharon MA
02067, Tel: 781-784-0567 ext. 7015, for details.
Free to a good home. 93 Toyota Tacoma pick-
up with extended cab and cap. Great on-farm
vehicle. Didnt pass inspection due to signifcant
rust. Needs a home soon. Leslie Chaison/Sam
Stegeman, Conway, MA 413-369-4020.
Experienced, all organic, vegetable gardener,
Roxbury, CT estate. Mondays and Thursdays, April
- October. Fax resume 860-354-5902.
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30--

News
Notes
USDA Violated Law in GE Alfalfa Case,
Judge Rules - A federal judge has ruled that the
Agriculture Department failed to adequately assess
possible environmental impacts before approving
Monsantos genetically engineered alfalfa. Judge
Charles R. Breyer of Federal District Court in San
Francisco said the agency had been cavalier in
deciding that a full environmental impact statement
was not needed because the potential environmental
and economic effects of the crop were not
signifcant.
A federal judge in Washington said last
week that the Agriculture Department had not
done adequate assessments before approving
feld trials of genetically engineered bentgrass.
And last August a federal judge in Hawaii, in a
case involving feld trials of crops engineered to
produce pharmaceuticals, ruled that the Agriculture
Department had not adequately assessed the
possible impact on endangered species. The
Roundup Ready alfalfa was deregulated by the
Agriculture Department in June 2005, meaning
it could be grown outside of feld trials. It was
the frst approval in years of a new genetically
engineered crop. Because alfalfa is the fourth most
widely planted crop in the United States, the action
presented a big opportunity for Monsanto.
Judge Breyer, in his 20-page opinion, said
that the agency had not adequately considered the
possibility that the gene could be transferred by
pollen to organic or conventional alfalfa, hurting
sales of organic farmers or exports to countries like
Japan that did not want the genetically engineered
variety. An action which potentially eliminates
or at least greatly reduces the availability of a
particular plant - here, non-engineered alfalfa - has
a signifcant effect on the human environment, he
wrote.
The judge also said that the Agriculture
Department had too easily dismissed the possibility
that planting Roundup-resistant alfalfa would
lead to wider use of Roundup, which in turn
would contribute to resistance to the popular
herbicide. One would expect that some federal
agency is considering whether there is some risk
to engineering all of Americas crops to include
the gene that confers resistance to glyphosate, he
wrote.
source: N. Y. Times, February 14, 2007
Hard Plastic Linked to Breast Cancer -- A new
Tufts University School of Medicine study fnds
evidence that widespread environmental exposure
to Bisphenol A during fetal life causes breast cancer
in adult women. Bisphenol A is a chemical found
in hard plastics like Nalgene water bottles and
food can liners. The new research has found that
the chemical, even at vanishingly small doses, is
able to cause precancerous and cancerous lesions
in the offspring of pregnant laboratory rats. If the
results also apply to humans, it would mean some
women may be at risk of breast cancer because
their mothers were exposed while pregnant to the
chemical, used in increasing amounts in consumer
products since the 1960s.
One of the researchers who conducted the study
said early life exposures to the chemical could be a
critical factor in understanding why so many women
without known risk factors are developing the
cancer. Only about 10 per cent of those with breast
cancer have a genetic predisposition to the disease,
and about half of those afficted have no currently
understood risk factor. Rates of breast cancer
have risen sharply in the past few decades, from a
lifetime risk of about one in 12 in the mid 1970s,
to about one in nine currently. Human genetics
cannot account for such a rapid change, leading
many researchers to look for possible environmental
factors, such as exposures to new chemicals.
source: Chemical and Engineering News -
December 6, 2006, http://pubs.acs.org/cen/news/84/
i50/8450bisphenol.html
Farmers Markets Thriving According to USDA
fgures, the number of farmers markets increased
more than 7 percent between 2005 and 2006. The
department lists 4,385 farmers markets currently
operating in the US, grown from 4,093 in 2005.
Total sales volumes are estimated at about $1
billion for 2005. Average sales at individual farmers
markets in 2005 totaled about $245,000; average
annual sales per vendor totaled $7,108. Twenty-fve
percent of vendors from surveyed farmers markets
relied on these markets as their sole source of farm-
based income.
source: http://www.ams.usda.gov/farmersmarkets/
map.htm.
Even Premium Chickens Harbor Dangerous
Bacteria A Consumer Reports analysis of fresh,
whole broilers bought nationwide revealed that
83 percent harbored campylobacter or salmonella,
the leading bacterial causes of foodborne disease.
Think premium brands are safer? Overall, chickens
labeled as organic or raised without antibiotics
and costing $3 to $5 per pound were more likely
to harbor salmonella than were conventionally
produced broilers that cost more like $1 per pound.
The organization tested 525 fresh, whole broilers
bought at supermarkets, mass merchandisers,
gourmet shops, and natural-food stores in 23 states
last spring. (ed: None were bought on-farm!)
Represented in the tests were four leading brands
(Foster Farms, Perdue, Pilgrims Pride, and Tyson)
and 10 organic and 12 nonorganic no-antibiotics
brands.
source: Consumer Reports, January, 2007
USDA Stacks Organics Board with Business
Reps - In December the US Department of
Agriculture (USDA) announced the appointment
of four new members to the National Organic
Standards Board. The Board assists the USDA
in determining what substances offcially qualify
as organic. The USDA tapped individuals who
represent Campbell Soup Company, General Mills,
Phillips Mushroom Farms, and Stahlbush Island
Farms to join the ffteen-member panel. While all of
the new appointees come from the business world,
three of them are designated to fll seats reserved
for an environmentalist, a consumer advocate and a
scientist.
Phillips Mushroom Farms is the largest grower
of specialty mushrooms in the United States. Out
of ffteen cultivated mushroom varieties sold by
Phillips, fve are listed as organic. Tina Ellor, the
USDAs choice to fll an environmentalist slot on
the Board, is the technical director at Phillips. Ellor
will replace outgoing member Nancy M. Ostiguy,
from the Department of Entomology at Penn State.
Ostiguy did not have any listed ties to industry.
Stahlbush Island Farms is a 4,000-acre farm
in Oregon. While the farms website says it uses
sustainable farming practices, these appear to
include the use of herbicides, fungicides and
insecticides in growing some crops. The site
says, If chemicals are necessary, we look to the
organically approved chemical list frst. Tracy
Miedema, national sales and marketing manager
of Stahlbush Farms, was appointed to represent
consumer- and public-interest groups on the Board.
Both Campbell and General Mills manufacture
food with genetically modifed ingredients, though
the companies also offer organic food. The USDA
appointed Steve DeMuri, a senior manager at
Campbell and technical expert of the companys
organic production, to fll an organic food handler/
processor position on the Board. Meanwhile,
Katrina Heinze, who manages global regulatory
affairs for General Mills, was tapped as a scientist
member of the Board. She holds a PhD in chemistry,
but she will replace a scientist with no listed
industry ties.
Craig Minowa, an environmental scientist with
the Organic Consumers Association, said Americans
should be concerned with the appointees industry
ties because the National Organic Standards
Board is in a powerful position to help weaken or
strengthen national organic standards. A [National
Organic Standards Board] that makes decisions in
favor of big business will undoubtedly hurt organic
family farmers and consumers as the organic
standards are weakened by those that are simply
proft motivated, he said. With the new appointees,
at least twelve of the Boards ffteen seats will be
held by members with clear industry interests.
source: The New Standard, USA, Dec. 20, 2006
Cloned Animals Deemed Safe to Eat - The US
government has released a draft proposal declaring
that food from cloned cattle, pigs and goats is
likely to be as safe as food from their non-cloned
counterparts. The draft arrives more than fve years
after the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
requested a voluntary moratorium on the use of
cloned animals or their offspring for food until their
safety could be assessed. The proposal is now open
to a 90-day public comment period, after which the
FDA is widely expected to offcially approve food
from some cloned animals for human consumption
(for sheep, they say, there is still not enough data);
the draft states that the FDA has few concerns about
the health of cloned animals or the food that they
produce.
FDA approval is unlikely to unleash a food
of food from cloned animals cloning is still too
expensive to be used regularly for food production.
Instead, the technique will initially be used
primarily to clone elite animals for breeding. The
offspring of those clones will probably be the frst to
arrive at the dinner table, although a few clones may
wend their way directly into the food supply when
they are no longer useful for breeding.
A 2006 survey conducted by the Pew Initiative
on Food and Biotechnology found that 64% of
Americans are uncomfortable with the notion of
animal cloning, raising concerns that allowing
products from such animals into the food supply
could hurt US dairy and meat industries. Concerns
have also worked their way to the US Congress.
In an 11 December letter to the US Department of
Health and Human Services, Senator Patrick Leahy
of Vermont a state that has a large dairy industry
and six other senators urged caution and cited
concerns about consumer acceptance of products
from cloned animals. Clearly, consumers are
not clamoring for this new food technology, the
senators wrote.
source: News@Nature.com, 29 December 2006
USDA Says Farm Income to Drop 20% in 2006
-- Net farm income in the United States is expected
to total $58.9 billion in 2006, a 20% drop from last
year, according to the Department of Agriculture.
A $4.7 billion drop in the value of livestock
production, including a decline in the price for
milk, are responsible, according to the updated
forecast from the USDA. The report, Agricultural
Income and Finance Outlook, also cites lower direct
government payments and higher farm costs as
reasons for the drop. Total direct payments from the
government are expected to fall to $16.5 billion, 4%
below the fve-year average, from $24.3 billion in
2005.
source: MarketWatch, November 30, 2006
USDA Approves Illegal GE Rice --The U.S.
Department of Agriculture (USDA) has approved
the genetically engineered rice variety that illegally
contaminated the U.S. food supply and shipments
to export customers. The approval allowed the
company responsible for producing the rice, Bayer
CropScience, to bypass a stringent safety review
process, thereby encouraging more contamination
incidents in the future. When the contamination was
discovered last August, Europe closed its borders to
U.S. rice, and hundreds of rice farmers brought class
action lawsuits against Bayer. The USDAs decision
goes against more than 15,000 comments from the
public opposing the post-hoc approval (compared to
only 350 comments favoring the approval).
source: Food & Environment Electronic
Digest, December 2006
Ethanol Boom Cheers Grain Farmers, Pinches
Food Makers -- The surge in corn prices ignited by
the ethanol boom is rippling through the nations
economy, from the Farm Belt to Wall Street to the
offce soda machine. The price of corn, the nations
No. 1 crop in total production, has doubled since
this time last year despite an abundant harvest, and
is inching toward the rarely breached $4-a-bushel
mark. Driving the run-up is an unprecedented
demand for ethanol, a biofuel typically made from
corn that many policy makers are counting on to
help wean the nation away from foreign oil. The
new demand has much of the agricultural economy
humming. As corn rallies, farmers, emboldened
by the higher prices are planning to switch to corn
or expand their acreage. Meanwhile, big food
companies are feeling the pinch.
The increased demand for corn is also driving
up sales of nitrogen fertilizer, which corn requires
in heavy doses. Corns rally has been a headache
for the livestock industry, which consumes nearly
60% of the U.S. corn crop. Pork-production costs
have increased 25% from last year, and Tyson Foods
Chief Executive Richard Bond has warned that
higher corn costs will eventually mean higher meat
prices at the grocery store.
With petroleum prices down to $52.24 a barrel,
the lowest level since May of last year, rising corn
prices are eating into ethanol makers margins.
Every $1 increase in a bushel of corn adds about
36 cents a gallon to the production cost of ethanol.
For ethanol producers to become unproftable, corn
would have to reach $4.80 a bushel while ethanol
prices would have to drop to $1.60 a gallon. Ethanol
now is about $1.93 a gallon.
source: Wall Street Journal, January 18, 2007
US Organic Acreage Grows More than 1 million
new acres were devoted to organic production
in 2005, bringing the total to 4.0 million acres,
according to the USDA. In addition, for the frst
time all 50 states reported some certifed organic
farmland.
source: Organic Processing, January-March, 2007
Produce Contamination Concerns Mount -- Over
the past three months, fresh produce spinach, then
tomatoes, now possibly green onions --has been the
culprit in one episode of food-borne illness after
another. The number of produce-related outbreaks
of food-borne illness has increased from about 40
in 1999 to 86 in 2004, according to the Center for
Science in the Public Interest. Americans are now
more likely to get sick from eating contaminated
produce than from any other food item. Several
factors have contributed to the rise in outbreaks:
greater consumption of fresh produce, especially cut
fruits and vegetables; wider distribution; improved
electronic reporting of outbreaks; and an aging
population more susceptible to food-borne illness.
Consumer advocates think that tougher
mandatory food safety standards and stepped-up
enforcement are required. The countrys largest
food distributors and restaurants are pursuing self-
regulation, arguing that government rules can take
years to put in place. Produce growers and packers
have suggested a voluntary system with elements
of mandatory oversight. Although meat and dairy
products are regulated by the Department of
Agriculture, the safety of fruits and vegetables is the
responsibility of the Food and Drug Administration
and the states. But they have jurisdiction only over
processing plants. Food safety at the farm level is
still largely self-regulated. source: Washington Post,
December 11, 2006
Farms may cut habitat renewal over E. coli
fears -- The recent scares over deadly bacteria in
California produce may hurt farm programs aimed
at restoring wildlife habitat and cutting water
pollution. Such environmental programs could be
at odds with clean farming techniques promoted
by food processors. Those techniques encourage
growers to remove grassy areas that are planted to
reduce erosion and trap pesticides before they reach
waterways. The practices also discourage habitat
zones that might attract animals that carry bacteria
like E. coli or salmonella.
Some farmers say they must opt out of wildlife
habitat and water-quality programs: If they dont
follow processor guidelines, they wont be able
to sell their crops. Right now, the trend mainly
has implications for produce growers in Central
California -- where E. coli is the worry -- and for
the almond industry in the Central Valley, where
concerns over salmonella contamination are high.
The Almond Board of California promotes
farming techniques that encourage clean, bare
earth in and around almond orchards. A pamphlet
on good agricultural practices from the Almond
Board is specifc about contamination concerns:
All animals, wild and domestic, including
mammals, birds, reptiles and insects, are potential
sources of contamination. ... It is important to
minimize attraction, harborage and potential for
contamination. A farmer reading those words
comes away with one message: Rip out anything
that can attract wild creatures.
source: San Francisco Chronicle December 19,
2006
Food Biz Considers Nuclear Option - Two high-
profle E. coli outbreaks this year have some in the
food business wondering - once again - whether
its time to go nuclear. For decades, many food
safety experts have argued that irradiation - zapping
food with high-energy rays to kill microorganisms
- could avert hundreds of deaths and perhaps
millions of illnesses each year. But for just as
long, federal regulators and food retailers have
been leery of bringing the technology to market.
Despite exhaustive reviews by federal scientists and
endorsements by public health and medical groups
around the world, irradiation by its very name
conjures up images that are anything but wholesome
--- nuclear fallout, for one. That imagery, combined
with some lingering uncertainties about irradiations
effects on food, has helped grass-roots activists
make a potent case against it.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has
approved irradiation as a disinfectant for a limited
range of foods, including spices and ground beef.
But a food industry petition to greatly expand that
approval to include many ready-to-eat products
- fresh bagged greens, for instance - has been
awaiting review by the agency for more than seven
years. Jeff Barach, vice president of the Food
Products Association, the trade group that brought
the 1999 irradiation petition, said he had for months
been unable to get an audience with FDA offcials
- until Septembers outbreak of E. coli in spinach
from Salinas Valley, Calif. We all of a sudden got
a meeting with the head of the department that is
evaluating the petition, Barach said.
In 1999, when the USDA was considering
whether to allow irradiation and genetic engineering
in certifed organic foods, a strong opposition
that included 300,000 public comments kept both
technologies out of the production of organic
foods. Michael Pollan, an infuential writer on food
and agriculture, raises an objection: If a costly
food safety technology like irradiation becomes a
standard step in food processing, small producers
are likely be hurt more than large ones, who are
in a better position to absorb major expenses.
Thats particularly galling, Pollan said, because the
national-scale outbreaks of foodborne illness that
tend to prompt the use of such technologies are
usually linked to big operations.
source: The Sacramento Bee, December 19, 2006
California Asks Greens Growers to Sign Food
Safety Pact The California Department of Food
and Agriculture has drafted a marketing agreement
that spells out safe handling practices leafy greens
growers agree to follow. In return, they will receive
a certifcate of safe handling and be able to display a
safe handling mark on their packages. The industry
is struggling to recover after spinach and lettuce
contamination problems last fall. According to a
Harris survey, 67% of Americans who follow alerts
stop eating the product until learning it is safe to do
so again.
source: Organic Business News, January, 2007
An Organic Recipe for Development -- Organic
agriculture is a potent tool to reduce emissions of
greenhouse gases, but also to alleviate poverty and
improve food security in developing countries,
many experts now believe. Its use of compost
and crop diversity means it will be able to better
withstand the higher temperatures and more variable
rainfall expected with global warming. Because
compost is used rather than chemical fertilizers,
organic soils contain much more humus and organic
carbon -- which in turn retains much more water.
They can also absorb more water faster -- which
means they are less likely to food.
Rising levels of carbon dioxide in the
atmosphere from the burning of fossil fuels is the
principal cause of global warming. Plants absorb
carbon dioxide from the air and can put it more
or less permanently into the soil under the right
conditions. In a 23-year side-by-side comparison,
the carbon levels of organic soils increased 15 to
28 percent while there was little change in the non-
organic systems, according to the Rodale Institute
Farming Systems Trials conducted in the U.S. If just
10,000 medium-sized farms in the U.S. converted
to organic production, they would store so much
carbon in the soil that it would be equivalent to
taking 1,174,400 cars off the road, Rodale reported
in 2003.
Studies done by the International Fund for
Agricultural Development (IFAD), a U.N. agency
set up to assist the rural poor to overcome poverty,
have shown that organic agriculture reduced
poverty. In almost all of the countries where the
IFAD evaluations were carried out, small farmers
needed only marginal improvements to their
technologies to make the shift to organic production.
source: Inter Press Service, December 18, 2006,
http://ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=35883
New Land Trusts Elects Offcers -- New
York Agricultural Land Trust (NYALT), a new
organization dedicated to protecting land for the
future of farming in New York, recently elected
its initial offcers and directors. The new board
of directors includes farmers, representatives
of agribusiness, and others associated with
conservation and farm organizations. The
President of NYALT is Maureen Knapp, who owns
Cobblestone Valley Farm in Preble. Maureen and
her husband, Paul, operate a diversifed organic
farm that produces pastured meats. NYALT is
based in Central New York, and was created by
farmers to assist landowners in identifying the best
options for conveying agricultural conservation
easements to permanently protect their property
from development.
source: NYALT press release, January 25, 2007
Federal Court Orders Unprecedented Halt
to GMO Field Trials -- In a decision broadly
affecting feld trials of genetically engineered
crops, a federal district judge ruled yesterday that
the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) must
halt approval of all new feld trials until more
rigorous environmental reviews are conducted.
Citing potential threats to the environment, Judge
Harold Kennedy found in favor of the Center for
Food Safety that USDAs past approvals of feld
trials of herbicide tolerant, genetically engineered
bentgrass were illegal. This is a signifcant victory.
The decision requires far more thorough oversight
of the environmental impact of these crops, stated
Joseph Mendelson, legal director of the Center for
Food Safety. The Court was clearly concerned
that the agency has put our nations environment
at risk by exempting many of these feld trials
from environmental review. Thats why the judge
made the decision broadly apply to all future feld
trials of genetically engineered crops. Mendelson
continued.
In seminal studies concerning environmental
contamination from genetically engineered creeping
bentgrass, the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency found multiple instances of the pollen from
engineered bentgrass traveling several miles and
transferring its traits to native grasses. Last year,
EPA researchers found that the engineered grasses
had escaped from feld trials to contaminate a
national grassland. The courts decision is available
at www.centerforfoodsafety.org
source: CFS press release, February 6, 2007
Homeopathy, a Solution for Calf Diarrhoea -
Diarrhoea during weaning is a problem for many
calves. Double blind research into homeopathy
for the prevention of it has shown a signifcant
difference between calves receiving a preventive
homeopathic remedy and ones receiving a placebo.
The use of homeopathic remedies with calf
diarrhoea results in a shorter duration of diarrhoea
and so is recommended when it appears. The full
report is at www.hpathy.com/research/bioveem-calf-
diarrhoea1.asp.
source: Hpathy Ezine, December, 2006
US Organic Distribution This map created by the
Organic Farming Research Foundation shows the
distribution of certifed organic producers as black
dots. You can view this in full color at http://ofrf.
org/community/community.html
source: The Organic Broadcaster, January-
February, 2007
Mystery Illness Killing U.S. Honeybees by
the Thousands -- A mysterious illness is killing
tens of thousands of honeybee colonies across
the country, threatening honey production, the
livelihood of beekeepers and possibly crops
that need bees for pollination. Researchers are
scrambling to fnd the cause of the ailment, called
Colony Collapse Disorder. Reports of unusual
colony deaths have come from at least 22 states.
Some affected commercial beekeepers who often
keep thousands of colonies have reported losing
more than 50 percent of their bees. A colony can
have roughly 20,000 bees in the winter, and up to
60,000 in the summer. The countrys bee population
has already been shocked in recent years by a tiny,
parasitic bug called the varroa mite, which has
destroyed more than half of some beekeepers hives
and devastated most wild honeybee populations.
From the outside, a stricken colony may appear
normal, with bees leaving and entering. But when
beekeepers look inside the hive box, they fnd few
mature bees taking care of the younger, developing
bees. Normally, a weakened bee colony would be
immediately overrun by bees from other colonies
or by pests going after the hives honey. Thats not
the case with the stricken colonies, which might
not be touched for at least two weeks, said Diana
Cox-Foster, a Penn State entomology professor
investigating the problem. She said an analysis of
dissected bees turned up an alarmingly high number
of foreign fungi, bacteria and other organisms
and weakened immune systems. In the meantime,
beekeepers are wondering if bee deaths over the last
couple of years that had been blamed on mites or
poor management might actually have resulted from
the mystery ailment.
source: Associated Press, Sunday, February 11, 2007
Nebraska Factory Farm Ban Appeal Upheld
- Nebraskas 1982-passed Iniative 300, which
prohibited corporate farming, has suffered a serious
blow in court. A 2005 ruling against it has been
upheld in by a 3-judge panel. It is likely an appeal to
that will go to the full 8
th
Circuit Court.
source: Acres, USA, February, 2007
NOSB Considering Hydroponics Can organic
crops be raised without soil? Some hydroponic
tomatoes, peppers and cucumbers are already
certifed, while other certifers say it is an artifcial
practice and not organic. The NOSB will be
addressing this as one of the contentious topics to
consider this year.
Highest Value Crop? According to the Los
Angeles Times, the value of US-grown marijuana
exceeds $35 billion, far beyond such staples as
corn ($23 billion), soybeans ($17 billion) and hay
($12.2billion). Production has grown 10-fold in the
past 25 years, despite anti-drug efforts.
source: Growing for Market, January, 2007
Wal-Mart Stores Accused of Organic Fraud --
The Wisconsin-based Cornucopia Institute surveyed
Wal-Mart stores around the country last September,
analyzing the retailers pronouncement that they
would begin selling a wide variety of organic food
at just a 10% mark-up over similar conventional
products. At that time, they say, they were surprised
to discover widespread problems with signage
misrepresenting nonorganic food as organic. Now,
Cornucopia has found that more than four months
after informing the company of the problems, which
could be interpreted as consumer fraud, and two
months after fling a formal legal complaint with
the USDA, the federal agency regulating organic
labeling, many of the deceptive signs at Wal-Mart
stores are still in place.
It is unconscionable that rather than correct
these problems, Wal-Mart Stores Inc. instead
responded to our concerns by attacking our
comparatively modest public interest group in an
effort to discredit our organization in the media,
said Mark Kastel, codirector of the Institute. It is
not as if a product recall or store remodeling would
have been required to correct Wal-Marts deceptive
consumer practices. They could have simply sent
out an e-mail to store managers and corrected the
problem instantly.
This past September, The Cornucopia Institute
released a white paper, Wal-Mart Rolls Out Organic
ProductsMarket Expansion or Market Delusion?,
that concluded that Wal-Mart was poised to drive
down the price of organic food in the marketplace
by inventing a new organicfood from corporate
agribusiness, factory-farms, and cheap imports of
questionable quality. The White Paper, along with
a photo gallery containing images of some of the
violations observed and of organic items now being
offered for sale at Wal-Mart stores, can be found on
the organizations web page at www.cornucopia.org.
source: Cornucopia Institute press release, January
17, 2007
Livestock Generate 18 Percent of Worlds
Greenhouse Gases - A new report by the United
Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)
found that domestic animals are a major source of
greenhouse gases, producing 18% of the worlds
total - even more than transportation. Unless
more sustainable techniques such as controlling
soil erosion, providing animals with better diets,
and using water more effciently are adopted, the
environmental impact of animal production will
worsen, as world production of meat and dairy
products is expected to double by 2050. The report
is available at http://www.virtualcentre.org/en/
library/key_pub/longshad/A0701E00.htm

Evidence Links Conventional Chicken Feed,
Litter and Arsenic - Anaerobic spore-forming rods
of the genus Clostridium in chicken litter release
arsenic from the feed additive roxarsone much faster
and more effectively than previously assumed. The
addition of roxarsone, or 3-nitro-4-hydroxybenzene
arsonic acid, to chicken feed has stirred up debate
ever since it was revealed that this organoarsenic
compound can be transformed into more toxic
inorganic arsenic. The chemical is routinely used by
most U.S. broiler-chicken farms as a feed additive
to prevent disease and stimulate growth. Chickens
primarily excrete roxarsone unchanged into their
Geographical Distribution of Certifed Organic Growers in the United States
waste, which is typically applied as a fertilizer
on the surrounding farmlands. Ellen Silbergeld
of the School of Public Health at Johns Hopkins
University says: This is really elegant work that
amplifes previous evidence on the environmental
release of inorganic arsenic from roxarsone. I am
concerned about the potential contamination of
groundwater with inorganic arsenic in my local
region [in Maryland], because we have a lot of
poultry farms and most people here get their
drinking water from groundwater, she says.
source: Science News, January 10, 2007
Nearly 31 Million Certifed Organic Hectares
Worldwide - The International Federation of
Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM) has
released a study The World of Organic Agriculture:
Statistics and Emerging Trends 2007, which shows
that nearly 31 million hectares (a hectare is 10,000
sq. meters or about 2.5 acres) are currently certifed
according to organic standards. Australia accounts
for the largest certifed organic surface area, with
11.8 million hectares, followed by Argentina (3.1
million hectares), China (2.3 million hectares) and
the USA (1.6 million hectares). Germany is in the
seventh position worldwide. The most signifcant
portion of global organic surface area is in Oceania
(39%), followed by Europe (23%) and Latin
America (19%). In terms of the certifed organic
agriculture as a proportion of all arable agricultural
surface area, the Alpine countries, such as Austria
with more than 14%, top the statistics.
The global market for organic products reached
a value of 25.5 billion Euros in 2005, with the vast
majority of products being consumed in North
America and Europe, according to the market
research experts of Organic Monitor. For 2006, the
value of global markets is estimated to be at more
than 30 billion Euros. Healthy growth rates are
expected to continue in the coming years.
source: IFOAM press release, February 14, 2007
European Dairy Association Has No Plans to
Seek EU Approval for Food from Clones For
the time being we dont see acceptance of this from
EU citizens, and we are producing products for our
consumers, said secretary general Joop Kleibeuker.
source: Food Chemical News, January 22, 2007
More Farmers Seek Subsidies as U.S. Eats
Imported Produce - For decades, the fercely
independent fruit and vegetable growers of
California, Florida and other states have been the
only farmers in America who shunned federal
subsidies, delivering produce to the tables of
millions of Americans on their own. But now, in
the face of tough new competition primarily from
China, even these proud groups are buckling.
Produce farmers, their hands newly outstretched,
have joined forces for the frst time, forming a lobby
group intended to pressure politicians over the farm
bill to be debated in Congress in January.
This is like the tectonic plates of farm policy
shifting, because you have a completely new player
coming in and demanding money, said Kenneth
A. Cook, president of Environmental Working
Group, a research group in Washington that has
been critical of farm subsidies. Of course whatever
money the fruit and vegetable farmers might get
would probably have to come out of the allocation
that already goes to other sorts of farmers. As things
stand, the federal farm subsidy program supplies
more than $15 billion a year, primarily to growers
of fve crops: corn, cotton, rice, wheat and soybeans.
Those crops are considered interchangeable
commodities and are traded on world markets,
unlike fruits and vegetables, which are called
specialty crops because their taste and quality are
viewed as being highly variable. Specialty crops
combined cash receipts of $52.2 billion rival or
exceed those of the fve major commodity crops,
which are expected to generate $52 billion this year.
The current agriculture secretary, Mike Johanns,
looks favorably on the produce growers cause,
which also has the advantage that the farmers come
from states with sizable representation in Congress.
In a speech in November Mr. Johanns said that
American farm policy needed to be equitable,
predictable and beyond challenge. Noting the fruit
and vegetable farmers proposal, he said that farm
programs could no longer be decided among a few
commodities in a few parts of the country. That day
has changed.
source: New York Times, December 3, 2006
2 Massachusetts Hospitals Pledge to Support
Local, Sustainable Food - Two Western
Massachusetts hospitals have become the frst in
the state to commit to serving healthy food that is
locally sourced and sustainably grown. Fairview
Hospital, part of the Berkshire Health Systems in
Great Barrington, and Cooley Dickinson Hospital
in Northampton recently signed the Healthy Food
in Healthcare pledge, a voluntary commitment
to serve food that is healthier for people and the
environment.
The Healthy Food in Healthcare Pledge, a
voluntary program of Health Care Without Harm,
outlines steps hospitals can take to support healthy
food. Fairview and Cooley Dickinson join 46
healthcare facilities around the country that are
protecting health by sourcing nutritious, local
and sustainable food, said Jamie Harvie, food
coordinator for HCWH.
By signing the Pledge, we are signaling
to the marketplace that healthcare wants food
produced in a way that protects public health and
supports the local community, said Roger Knysh,
Fairview Hospitals Director of Food and Nutrition
Services. While we are excited to be the frst in
Massachusetts to sign the Pledge, what is most
important to us is health. To learn more about
HCWHs work on food and other issues related to
health care go to www.healthyfoodinhealthcare.org
source: Health Care Without Harm press release,
Feb. 5, 2007
OCA Names Disputed Organic Milk Brands
The Organic Consumers Association has called for
a boycott of Horizon and Aurora brands of organic
milk, claiming their cows are raised on feed-lots,
not pasture. But much of the milk produced by those
frms is privately branded. The OCA has now named
some of the brands involved from Aurora. They
are Costcos Kirkland Signature, Safeways O
brand, Publixs High Meadows, Giants Natures
Promise, and Wild Oats organic milk. In addition
Silk and White Wave soy products are also on
the OCA list because they are sourced from Brazil
and China, where environmental and labor standards
are violated.
FDA to Ban Cattle Materials from Medicines
Closing another Mad Cow loophole, the Food
and Drug Administrations Center for Veterinary
Medicine has proposed banning from drugs used for
humans and ruminants the following (which have
not been banned previously):
brain, skull, eyes and spinal cord tissue from cattle
30 months old or older,
tonsils and a portion of the small intestines from
all cattle,
any material from downer cattle
any material from cattle not inspected and passed
for human consumption
fetal calf serum if where procedures arent
followed to prevent contamination,
tallow with more than 0.15% insoluble impurities,
and
mechanically separated beef.
Bill to Label Food From Clones Introduced in
California - SB 63 was fled by Sen. Carole Migden
(D-San Francisco).
Industry-Funded Studies Show Bias (Surprise!)
A study by the Center for Science in the Public
Interest of 206 scientifc studies of nonalcoholic
beverages has shown that Articles sponsored
exclusively by food/drinks companies were four
to eight times more likely to have conclusions
favorable to the fnancial interests of the sponsoring
company than articles which were not sponsored
by food or drinks companies. Lead author David
Ludwig, a Harvard professor at Childrens Hospital
in Boston said: If the science base in compromised
by confict of interest, thats a top-order threat to
public health.
Organic Seed Database Under Development
The Organic Materials Review Institute is
developing a listing service of organic seeds. Once
completed, it will provide growers with information
about the availability of certifed organic seed. To
see it, go to www.seeds.omri.org/.
source: Growing for Market, December, 2006
National Farmers Union forms New England
Chapter The National Farmers Union, formed
in 1902 and currently with 250,000 members, has
formed a chapter in New England as a result of a
long partnership between the NFU and the Cape
Cod Cranberry Growers Association and the Cape
Cod Commercial Hook Fishermens Association.
The chapters president, Jeff Lafeur, plans to move
quickly to bring in new member groups. For more
details, see www.nfu.org.
source: NESAWG News, Winter, 2007
Report: CAFOs Risk Infectious Disease
Epidemics and Antibiotic Resistance - The
industrialization of livestock production and the
widespread use of nontherapeutic antimicrobial
growth promotants has intensifed the risk for the
emergence of new more virulent or more resistant
microorganisms, concluded a working group, part
of the Conference on Environmental Health Impacts
of Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations. The
group considered the state of the science around
these issues and concurred with the World Health
Organization call for a phasing-out of the use of
antimicrobial growth promotants for livestock and
fsh production. They also agree that all therapeutic
antimicrobial agents should be available only by
prescription for human and veterinary use. Concern
about the risk of an infuenza pandemic leads them
to recommend that regulations be promulgated
to restrict the co-location of swine and poultry
concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs)
on the same site and to set appropriate separation
distances. The full report is available at: http://www.
ehponline.org/docs/2006/8837/8837.pdf
source: Environmental Health Perspectives Volume
115, Number 2, February 2007
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Held at Wheaton College, MA ~ A benefit conference for United Plant Savers
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by Billie Best,
November 2006
Milestones and millstones are markers for ideas
good and bad. At times an event regaled as an
overdue solution, like the codifcation of national
organic standards, comes weighted with unintended
consequences like the industrialization of organic
farming, and organic confned animal feeding
operations. In light of those recent unexpected
outcomes, we may be wise to consider the potential
unintended consequences of our goals for instituting
a more just food system, a more sustainable
agriculture, and a more robust farm economy.
The approach of the 2007 re-authorization of the
U.S. Farm Bill has lead us to dream of new laws,
policies and regulations that would favor a more
diverse agriculture sector, reign in externalization
of agri-business costs, and reward conservation.
But as we tinker with notions of fairness and
equity, subsidies and incentives, regionalism and
nationalism, we should take a whole systems
perspective and prepare ourselves for the worst.
There was a time when government subsidies for
corn and soy seemed to solve myriad problems
for farmers and the nation. Little did we know
the magnitude of the problems we were creating
for the healthcare system, animal welfare and the
environment. Decades later we have twin epidemics
of diet-related and chemical pollutant diseases,
routine animal torture, and a river of poison fowing
into the Caribbeanoutcomes no one could have
predicted when commodity subsidies were frst
implemented.
As we seek to restore the balance between
global and local, its important to remember
that commoditization is a process that impacts
all types of products, from cell phones to blue
jeans to cars. Any product becomes a commodity
when it is both generic and ubiquitous. It is the
commoditization of unhealthy foods that has caused
the healthcare crisis. But healthy foods, like organic
milk, can become commodities too, resulting in
price collapses that spell doom for farmers and
working landscapes. The antidote to commodity is
communitythat is the human scale, trust, loyalty
and increased accountability that come with a
smaller food system. The question we must answer
today is how do we codify community on a large
scale without losing the uniqueness, fexibility and
diversity of smallness? As sustainable agriculture
policymakers, advocates and activists align
themselves to get their share of the $300 billion
dollar 2007 Farm Bill, here are some of the potential
millstones attached to the milestones we hope to
achieve.
SUSTAINABILITY
Milestone: The sustainable communities movement,
of which sustainable agriculture is a part, has
been working for decades to teach the public what
sustainability means, how to recognize its presence
or absence, and why its worth striving to achieve.
The 2007 Farm Bill will undoubtedly have a greater
emphasis and impact on sustainability.
Millstone: As we push to embed sustainability
in government regulations, the largest players
will have disproportionate infuence on how
sustainability is defned and measured. What does
the industrialization of sustainability look like?
CROP SUBSIDIES
Milestone: Widely accepted as trade distorting
and known to unfairly favor the 10% of farmers
who receive 72% of payments, government
subsidies for corn, cotton, wheat, soybeans, and
rice are on the chopping block. Subsidies encourage
dependence on fossil fuel inputs, herbicides,
pesticides and GM seed, as well as the proliferation
of low-nutrient foods, and exports to poorer nations
at a price below the cost of production, which
creates unfair competition, and increased poverty
and hunger in the developing world. A reduction in
subsidy payments, which comprise 25% of Farm
Bill allocations, could make funds available for
other crops, resource conservation and farmland
protection.
Millstone: Many of the big farms and agri-
businesses that depend upon commodity crop
subsidies to fnance their operations will look to
more lucrative market opportunities, increasing
competition in markets for fruits and vegetables
grown mainly by smaller farms. Large farms trying
to mono-crop fruits and vegetables may use more
herbicides, pesticides and irrigation than they
did when they grew commodity crops. Without
subsidies to make them proftable, some large farms
will be lost to development of suburbia and industry.
SPECIALTY CROPS
Milestone: Pressure from rising healthcare costs
is mandating dietary changes that increase market
opportunity for fruit and vegetable (specialty crop)
growers. To encourage production of healthier
foods, government subsidy payments and safety-net
programs could be extended to all types of farms
and crops.
Millstone: Expanded markets and price supports
for fruits and vegetables will attract increasingly
large players into the system, markets will
become more competitive, niche markets may be
fooded with product, and smaller farms may have
increased competition and become less proftable.
Encouraging large-scale production of fruits and
vegetables without limiting use of pesticides and
herbicides may simply shift the healthcare crisis
from obesity and diabetes to cancer and Parkinsons
disease.
RURAL DEVELOPMENT
Milestone: Advocates seek to increase USDA rural
economic development funds allocated in the Farm
Bill by emphasizing the unique interdependence
of agriculture and rural communities. Rural
development dollars are essential to improving the
food processing infrastructure on which small farms
depend.
Millstone: Rural communities may have more land,
but urban communities have more mouths to feed.
Hunger and nutrition programs comprise 65% of the
Farm Bill. As the urban farming movement grows,
urban advocates may be able to claim a similar
interdependence between agriculture and urban
communities. Competition between rural and urban
communities for ag-economic development dollars
could divide rather than unite these two underserved
groups.
CONSERVATION
Milestone: There is broad consensus among
advocates and policymakers that more needs to
be done to conserve the resource base essential to
producing food, particularly working farms, land,
prime soils and clean water.
Millstone: Land conservation tends to increase
the value of nearby housing, raising the cost of
living for new farmers and farm workers. If land
conservation doesnt include conserving affordable
housing, this strategy may not keep farms working.
STATES RIGHTS
Milestone: The USDAs centralized command
and control of the food system and one-size-fts-
all solutions have failed to deliver consistently
higher quality, safer food and a more cost-effcient
food system. In the next Farm Bill, states want
more options to develop solutions that suit their
unique mix of climate, soils, industry, markets and
communities. In particular, state mandated labeling
laws, and allowing states the right to geographic
preference when using federal dollars for food
procurement both have the potential to signifcantly
increase market opportunities for farms.
Millstone: A food and agriculture regulatory
patchwork will impede interstate commerce and
increase competition between states. Industry
will move to states that create the most favorable
business climate, markets will churn in a
continuously shifting regulatory environment, and
watchdogs will have to keep their eyes on many
more agencies than the USDA.
LOCAL
Milestone: This buzzword has penetrated the
policy debate as all things local have increased in
importance and value. Local foods, local products
for local markets, the uniqueness of place, and
place-based brands will have their Farm Bill debut
in 2007.
Millstone: As the advantages of concentration and
consolidation erode, agri-business will diversify and
re-deploy their resources in the corporate take-over
of local by buying up farmland, franchising farms,
increasing contract farming, and developing new
brands that give the appearance of being small and
place-based.
As we plan for the future of farming we will make
some mistakes. Our capacity to correct them will be
the measure of our quality of life. Agriculture is a
dynamic system of natural resources, people, places
and ways of production. Change is a constant for
all of us. Those life-long learners with the capacity
for continuous innovation will have the edge over
those invested in outdated business models, fading
markets, tired products and costly infrastructure. If
we are to grow new farmers, the current generation
must take back the power of food and demonstrate
to all that farming is a good life. At the same time
consumers must take responsibility for the food
system they create with their purchasing power.
Lets not forget what history has taught us. You can
change the world by changing what you eat.
The Future of Farming:
Be Careful What You Wish For, Milestones & Millstones
What does a paradigm shift look like?
OLD PARADIGM: E X T R A C T I ON E C ON OM Y
Big is Better
NEW PARADIGM: S U S T A I N A BL E E C ON OM Y
Small is Smart
EFFICIENCY
STANDARDIZATION
UBIQUITY
expansion
MASSassembly
MASSmarket
PRODUCTS
PROCESS
PEOPLE
PROFITS
DIVERSITY
DECENTRALIZATION
REDUNDANCY
convergence
mobility
miniaturization
PEOPLE
SHELTER
FOOD
ENERGY
organizing principles economic imperatives culture values
POLICY GOALS:
Unl i mi ted growth
External i ze busi ness costs
Bui l d economi c weal th
POLICY GOALS:
Economi c stabi l i ty
Zero pol l uti on + 100% recycl i ng
Restore the resource base
I N D U S T R I A L R E V O L U T I O N
C O M M U N I T Y R E V O L U T I O N
You
Are
Here
Regional Farm & Food Project 2006 www.farmandfood.org
by Roger Blobaum
A strong push is underway to line up new funding to
enable the National Agricultural Statistical Service
(NASS), the Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS),
and other government agencies to collect and report
more organic price, acreage, sales, and other current
data.
The main effort will press Congress to renew
authorization of the 2002 Organic Production and
Marketing Data Initiative this year when it puts
a new farm bill together. Specifc farm bill data
proposals being pushed would provide AMS with
funding for regular nationwide reporting of organic
prices, enable the Economic Research Service
(ERS) to continue and accelerate collection of
market trend and other organic sector data, and
support NASS organic sector surveys.
Along with this farm bill initiative is a new
push for more organic data money in the U.S.
Department of Agriculture budget for the fscal
year that starts October 1. The National Organic
Coalition, the Sustainable Agriculture Coalition,
and other organizations pressed appropriators last
year to provide $1 million for AMS national price
collection, another $1 million for NASS Census
follow-up surveys, and an increase to $750,000 for
ERS collection and analysis of organic sector data.
The Administration did not request any organic data
funding a year ago and the continuing resolution
that resulted from the recent USDA appropriations
meltdown left the ERS at its year-earlier $500,000
level. NASS and AMS are again left with no
direct data funding. Organic sector organizations
are expected to begin working this month on data-
related requests for at least $1 million for AMS, $1
million for NASS, and $750,000 for ERS for the
coming fscal year.
It has been generally assumed that strengthening
organic data gathering and reporting benefts
policymakers as well as farmers, retailers,
processors, and others in the organic sector. Offcial
price and other data also is needed by farmers
applying for credit, documenting crop insurance
and disaster program claims, and pursuing legal
remedies involving organic crop damage from
pesticide drift or GMO contamination. The goal
is to make sure organic prices are paid for organic
losses.
But the USDA appropriations bills passed by the
House and left unfnished in the Senate, even if
passed, would not have provided any additional data
gathering and reporting money for this fscal year.
They did include report language, however, urging
NASS, AMS, and ERS to expand and strengthen
this work.
Report Language Supports Data Efforts
Both the House and Senate reports cited efforts by
NASS to expand the number of organic questions to
be included in the 2007 Census of Agriculture and
to continue to carry out 2002 Census of Agriculture
follow-up surveys. Both encouraged the agency
to take all necessary steps, including a follow-up
survey, to collect in-depth coverage on acreage,
yield, production, inventory, production practices,
sales and expenses, marketing channels, and
demographics of the organic industry.
The Senate report language also encouraged
AMS to continue collection of organic price
information. The current AMS effort has no
direct funding but is supported this year under
provisions of an interagency memorandum of
understanding. It provides AMS with $1.3 million
in Risk Management Agency money for immediate
expansion of the collection and reporting of grain
and livestock price information.
The AMS market news effort appears to have strong
support from growers and others in the organic
fruit and vegetable sectors. Produce price data is
gathered and reported by the AMS from the Boston
and San Francisco wholesale markets. Other price
Inside Organic: Collecting and Reporting
Organic Data, Slowed by Setbacks,
Is Expected to Get a Strong
New Push This Year on Capitol Hill
information is gathered and made available online
through the Organic Price Index, a fle of prices
for about 40 organic products maintained and
made available free by the Rodale Institute, and by
subscription through a private frm.
Farmers Challenge Price Data Push
Recent events suggest, however, that some organic
farmers in the grain and livestock sectors are
challenging the push to get USDA much more
involved in price discovery and reporting. These
concerns received increased public attention
recently when a representative of the University
of Minnesota appealed to organic farmers in the
Upper Midwest to be much more cooperative in
responding to AMS surveys seeking price and other
data.
Certifed organic growers of grains, beans,
oilseeds, and hay are sought to participate in a new
commodity price reporting service, according
to a published report. It noted that the new AMS
price reporting service would make available
high, low, and weighted average prices for organic
commodities in the Upper Midwest.
Prices will be gathered from buyers and sellers
on a daily basis and reported monthly or weekly,
depending on the volume of available data, the
appeal continued. Once collected, all data will be
available in a report format and through the AMS
searchable online database.
The appeal was met by a negative response
from Organic Farmers Agency for Relationship
Marketing (OFARM), a network of eight organic
marketing cooperatives with members in 20
states and Ontario. It engages in price discovery
on behalf of its members and establishes price
targets for 14 individual organic crops that refect
production costs. OFARM contends this kind of
reporting by AMS would be another step in the
conventionalization of organic marketing, that it
will work against the interests of farmers, and that
it would give many of the large companies moving
into organic a government organic market report
over which they could exercise some control.
Oren Holle, a Kansas organic wheat producer who
heads OFARM, contends current AMS market
reports are formulated by agribusiness infuence
and input rather than by producer input. These
same agribusiness giants would probably like
nothing more than to see organic marketing move
in this direction, he noted recently, and eventually
tie organic prices to some formula which would
offer growers only negligible premiums over
conventional prices.
It is diffcult to argue against expanding and
strengthening organic data collection and reporting
overall. Policymakers and others have been forced
to rely largely on industry estimates and a series of
farmer surveys conducted by the Organic Farming
Research Foundation to fnd out what is actually
happening in the organic sector. As late as 2000,
when the fnal rule implementing the Organic
Foods Production Act was proposed, USDA was
still clueless regarding how many certifed organic
farmers would be impacted, where they were
located, and how much land was under organic
management.
The need for offcial data is pressing again now
as lawmakers consider both new organic farm
bill proposals and a request for $25 million in
authorization for another fve years of certifcation
cost share payments. It is important to have reliable
estimates of how many certifed organic farmers are
likely to be eligible for cost share payments in each
of the next fve years, how many organic operations
are small enough to be exempt from certifcation
requirements, and how many are in transition.
Import Data Badly Needed
New problems also strongly suggest the need
for more organic data. Wal-Marts new organic
initiative, for example, is raising concerns about
imports from China and other low-wage countries.
Rumors in the past about the arrival of containers of
organic soybeans from China have focused attention
on the lack of reliable information and the possible
adverse impact on organic farm gate prices of
unconfrmed rumors.
It has been suggested that USDAs Foreign
Agriculture Service should provide import
information since it deals with trade on a daily basis.
But FAS facilitates organic sales overseas and does
not collect import data. The data is compiled by the
Department of Commerce and it uses hundreds of
10-digit codes to track and report imports. But there
is no code to identify organic imports.
As a result, no offcial data is available and both
USDA and the Department of Commerce remain
in the dark about how much organic food is being
imported, whether it is soybeans or frozen peas
or something else, and its country of origin. The
Organic Trade Association deserves support for
pushing a farm bill provision that would authorize
development of an organic import code.
The growing need for more organic data was frst
highlighted eight years ago at an organic marketing
workshop co-sponsored by USDA, the Organic
Farming Research Foundation, and the Wallace
Institute. ERS economist Catherine Greene led
the data sessions and it was clear that ERS, NASS,
and AMS professionals were prepared to do much
more to develop and expand organic data collection,
reporting, and analysis.
ERS since then has received funding for this work
and a team of economists, led by Greene, has been
turning out a series of excellent reports. In 2003, for
example, ERS for the frst time was able to publish a
comprehensive report documenting the number and
location of the nations certifed organic farms and
the number of certifed organic acres in each state.
A year earlier NASS for the frst time included
organic questions in the Census of Agriculture.
Organizations helping shape organic provisions in
the new farm bill are certain to push hard for new
and expanded funding authority for data gathering
and reporting by AMS, NASS, and ERS. However,
this should not be done without considering possible
price reporting problems that organic farmers are
raising. The concerns raised by OFARM and others
about possible adverse impacts on farm gate prices
of AMS price reporting in the Upper Midwest need
to be included in this years farm bill debate and
consensus reached on market reporting refnements
that will alleviate these concerns.
This article was wrtten for, and originally
published in the Organic Broadcaster. Questions or
comments can be addressed to Roger Blobaum at
RJBlobaum@cs.com.
ph. 231/889-3216
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Position Announcement:
Executive Director
NOFA New Jersey
While NOFA-NJ continues to pursue its
traditional strategic goals of building supply of
sustainable and organic products and increasing
market demand for producers, the organizations
principal priorities over the next three to fve
years will be to design, develop, and implement
high impact projects and programs for farmers,
consumers and communities. NOFA-NJ is
currently searching for an Executive Director, as
well as an Administrator.

Ideal candidates for the position of Executive
Director will:
Be a champion (or have a compelling interest in
becoming a champion) for the NOFA-NJ mission.
Have strong experience and skills in program
development and fund raising, with a clear
understanding of the opportunities and issues
that face a growing organization, particularly
through project start-ups
Be an excellent manager of NOFAs programs,
combining subject matter expertise, strong
administrative skills, and proven leadership
ability
Possess outstanding people-management skills,
able to build broader relationships and coalitions
as well as manage staff and associates in day-to-
day task completion
Have experience in grass-roots policy
development across a variety of levels.
Have superb written and verbal communication
skills.
Be able to work effectively with the board of
directors.
Be computer literate with experience with
Microsoft Offce, internet and email.
Be capable of overnight business travel that
includes at least fve to seven trips per year.
Possess an advanced degree in a relevant feld
or equivalent experience.
The ideal candidate for the job of Administrator:
Has experience in managing all aspects of an
organization administratively;
Is capable of working independently;
Is highly organized;
Possesses strong interpersonal skills:
Has familiarity with Peachtree or other
accounting software;
Is willing to help with the relocation of the
organization to new facilities; and
Is enthusiastic about the organizations mission
to promote organic and sustainable agriculture
in NJ.

To apply, email resume, cover letter and salary
requirements and references to: NOFA-NJ
Search Committee, c/o Donna Drewes, 26 Samuel
Dr, Flemington NJ 08822, or fax to: 908.782.7302.
E-mail applications are preferred to:drewes1@
earthlink.net
NOFA-NY Bids Sarah
Johnston Farewell
The Governing Council of NOFA-NY accepted
the resignation of Sarah Johnston as Executive
Director in late November 2006. Appointed in
December, 1998, Sarah is the frst person to serve
the organic farmers and gardeners of New York
State in this capacity. During her tenure NOFA-NY
has earned the respect of local farmers, grassroots
environmental organizations, land grant institutions,
and the citizens of New York with an ear open to
the cause of agricultural reform. We would like to
express our admiration for her intelligence and wit,
her stamina, her inventive ideas, and her willingness
to serve others.

Faced with the complexity and then the
implementation of the frst national organic
standards in 2002, Sarah Johnston guided our
way through the murky waters of the NOP, and
at considerable hazard to herself. Under her
leadership NOFA-NY has proven to be a vital
organization involved in some signifcant and
innovative programs: the Public Seed Initiative,
the Organic Seed Partnership, the Farmers Pledge,
and the Organic Dairy Transitions Project. The
role of Executive Director of a small non-proft is
a relentless and demanding job. Sarah Johnston
performed it with exemplary devotion, energy, and
strength of character. We praise her equally for
her vision and for her leadership, and we wish her
success and fulfllment in her next endeavor.
The Governing Council of NOFA-NY appointed
Greg Swartz as Interim Executive Director. Greg
is a Vegetable Farmer from Sullivan County who
has been a member of the Governing Council
for 3 years. He brings not only his dedication to
sustainable agriculture and local food systems in
New York State, but also many skills that will help
him in his new role. With management experience
in the non-proft world as well as small businesses,
Greg is prepared to step into the complex position
of Interim Director. He has a good grasp of NOFA-
NYs structure and workings from his tenure on
the Governing Council and he is excited to be
shepherding the organization through this transition.
The skilled and dedicated team of NOFA staff
will no doubt ease the transition. Later during the
calendar year of 2007, the Governing Council will
form a Search Committee to permanently fll the
role of Executive Director. You can contact Greg
Swartz at director@nofany.org
Did You Find Love
at the Summer
Conference?
If so, you are one of many happy couples who have
done so over the years. I am collecting stories for a
Natural Farmer article on the topic. Id love to hear
your happy tale! Please email me at pchamsia@
yahoo.com, and include your love story. Thanks!
-Carolyn Llewellyn
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Jay & Janet Bailey Family
www.fairwindsfarm.org
511 Upr Dummerston Rd.
Brattleboro, VT 05301
802-254-9067
Special Supplement on
from UN World Water Development Report, 2006
If per capita consumption of water resources
continues to rise at its current rate, humankind
could be using over 90% of all available freshwater
within 25 years, leaving just 10% for all other
living beings. Currently, on a global basis, 69% of
all water withdrawn for human use on an annual
basis is soaked up by agriculture (mostly in the
form of irrigation); industry accounts for 23% and
domestic use (household, drinking water, sanitation)
accounts for about 8%. These global averages vary
a great deal between regions. In Africa, for instance,
agriculture consumes 88% of all water withdrawn
for human use, while domestic use accounts for 7%
and industry for 5%. In Europe, most water is used in
industry (54%), while agriculture and domestic use
take 33% and 13% respectively. The same pattern is
true in the US with the numbers 65%, 27% and 8%.
Agriculture
Almost 70% of all available freshwater is used for
agriculture. Overpumping of groundwater by the
worlds farmers exceeds natural replenishment by
at least 160 billion cubic meters a year. It takes an
enormous amount of water to produce crops: one to
three cubic meters to yield just one kilo of rice, and
1,000 tons of water to produce just one ton of grain.
Land in agricultural use has increased by 12% since
the 1960s to about 1.5 billion hectares. Current
global water withdrawals for irrigation are estimated
at about 2,000 to 2,555 square km per year. Pasture
and crops take up 37% of the Earths land area.
Poor drainage and irrigation practices have led
to saline build-up in about 30 million hectares
of the worlds 240 million hectares of irrigated
land, according to the UN Food and Agriculture
Organization. A combination of salinization and
waterlogging affects another 80,000,000 hectares.
Agriculture is responsible for most of the depletion
of groundwater, along with up to 70% of the
pollution. Both are accelerating. Many of the
worlds most important grainlands are consuming
groundwater at unsustainable rates. Collectively,
annual water depletion in India, China, the United
States, North Africa and the Arabian Peninsula adds
a hefty 160 billion cubic meters a year - an amount
equal to the total annual fow of two Nile Rivers.
Industry
Water withdrawals for industry:
World: 22% of total water use
High-income countries: 59% of total water use
Low-income countries: 8% of total water use
The annual water volume used by industry will rise
from 752 cubic km/year in 1995 to an estimated
1,170 cubic km/year in 2025.
In 2025, the industrial component is expected to
represent about 24% of total freshwater withdrawal.
Some 300-500 million tons of heavy metals,
solvents, toxic sludge, and other wastes accumulate
each year from industry.
Industries based on organic raw materials are the
most signifcant contributors to the organic pollutant
load with the food sector being the most important
polluter.
Contribution of the food sector to the production of
organic water pollutant:
High-income countries: 40%
Low-income countries: 54%
More than 80% of the worlds hazardous waste is
produced in the United States and other industrial
countries.
In developing countries, 70% of all industrial waste
is dumped untreated into waters where it pollutes
the usable water supply.
Energy
World energy demand, especially for electricity, will
increase greatly during this 21st century, not only
because of demographic pressures, but also because
of improved living standards, urban and industrial
growth, and rising expectations.
Hydropower is the most important and widely-used
renewable source of energy; it represents 19% of
total electricity production. Canada is the largest
producer of hydroelectricity, followed by the United
States and Brazil.
There are now about 45,000 large dams in
operation worldwide. Built to provide hydropower
and irrigation water and to regulate river fow
to prevent foods and droughts, they have had
a disproportionate impact on the environment.
Collectively, they have inundated more than
400,000 square km of mostly productive land - an
area the size of California. Fully one ffth of the
worlds freshwater fsh are now either endangered
or extinct. Somewhere between 40 and 80 million
people have been displaced by dams, forced to
relocate to other, often less productive, land.
A study by the World Commission on Dams,
published in 2000, found that large dams have a
very mixed record.
On the one hand:
In 140 countries, dams provide cheap hydroelectric
power. On a global scale, dams account for 19%
of the worlds electricity generation and supply,
through irrigation, almost 16% of the worlds
food. Hydropower plays a major role in reducing
greenhouse gas emissions: developing one half
of the worlds economically feasible hydropower
potential could reduce greenhouse gases emissions
by about 13%.
On the other hand:
Large dams have led to the loss of forests, wildlife
habitat and aquatic biodiversity - both upstream
and downstream. Large dams have, in most cases,
systematically failed to assess and account for the
range of potential negative impacts on displaced and
resettled communities. With up to 80 million people
displaced from their homes and many more living
downstream suffering from unintended effects (e.g.,
loss of fsheries), mitigation efforts have, for the
most part, been cosmetic and ineffective.
According to the Commission, large dams may be
on their way out:
Mini-hydropower plants, that is, plants producing
between 100KW and 1MW, have proved to be far
cheaper to build and more economical to run than
originally predicted; plus they have minimal impacts
on the environment.
Better management to reduce the demand for
water has great potential to reduce water stress and
hydropower requirements.
Improved systems management, particularly for
irrigated agriculture, has tremendous potential for
reducing waste, while increasing the effciency of
irrigation systems.
Facts and Figures: The Different Water Users
The virtual water content of selected products
Virtual water is the total amount of water used in
the production and processing of a given product.
by Jack Kittredge
Suffeld, Connecticut, is the states self-proclaimed
agricultural town. Some of the top farmland in
the northeast blesses the town, which prides itself
on keeping as many farmers and as much acreage as
possible in farming, even as the development value
of land soars.
There have been conficts here, however, between
farming and development land uses. The most
prominent occurred back in the 1980s. Ethylene
dibromide (EDB), a Dow Chemical product, had
been used by the tobacco industry as a soil fumigant
for years. Finally it was demonstrated to be a car-
cinogen and was banned for use in tobacco. By that
time, however, signifcant amounts had reached the
water table and a toxic plume had spread, contami-
nating a number of wells. A lawsuit was fled, Dow
settled, and a trust was set up to install well flters to
block EDB, and to change them regularly.
Now Suffeld requires subdivision plans to be
stamped with a warning that agricultural operations
sometimes emit noise, dust, odor or chemicals that
may annoy or irritate neighbors. It even requires a
30 foot buffer to be set aside by subdividers between
the subdivision and neighboring farmland.
All that, however, has not prevented another
problem between an established beef operation and
a new family moving in that hopes to begin farming.
Tom Ruzbasan works as a lineman for the local
power company. He grew up one of 8 kids on a
family farm in Unionville, raising steers and sheep.
His mother was an animal husbandry major at the
University of Connecticut and his father was active
in 4H for over 40 years.
I was in 4H when I was young, he recalls, and
worked on a nearby dairy farm. It was a Guernsey
place and the owner kept it really clean. It was a lot
of fun on the farm back then.
Water Problems at Brightside Farm
Toms wife Amy, who is working with a program to
get agricultural business training to Veterans, shares
his small farm dream. After we got married, she
says, we saved our money because he wanted
to raise our kids on a family farm. We saved and
saved and talked to real estate agents. But of
course farms have been selling off their land for
subdivision development. When this one came up it
was subdivided into 3 lots. We bought one, a 2 acre
building lot in front, as well as all the back land,
including a lovely pond. It was 22 acres in all.
That was ten years ago. The woman who owned
the farm fnanced the back land for the Ruzbasans
because they couldnt afford both it and the building
lot outright. She liked the idea of the land staying in
farming.
photo by Jack Kittredge
Amy Ruzbasan (and her purebred Golden Retriever, Kaisee Joy) pose in front of their
freshly raked hay. Because of the contaminated water, all that Tom and Amy can raise is hay.
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F
R
E
E
The couple had big plans for their farm. Tommy
built the barn before he built the house, Amy
relates. He found another barn and dismantled
it and saved the parts. I got all excited about
agriculture, too. I got active with the Connecticut
Farm Bureau and tried to learn all I could
about organic agriculture. I went to the second
International Conference on Women in Agriculture
in Washington, DC. I got active with NOFA and
took classes. I applied to ag school.
We were thinking of doing vegetables here, she
continues. Theres a farmers market near here
and I started a relationship with local restaurants,
supplying them with green peppers and tomatoes
from our garden in trade for gift certifcates for
pizza! Id like to do a greenhouse that sits 5 to 6
feet below the ground. It would keep it cool and
insulated. We could use it year-round. We were
going to get some sheep from Toms mother. Id
like to use the heat from manure to help heat the
greenhouse, as well as having it underground, so we
dont have to use much oil.
The Ruzbasans realized that they could never make
enough money by farming to live on, and that Tom
would have to continue to work. But they fgured
they could make $15,000 to $20,000 a year with
three or four greenhouses, raspberries, mums,
blueberries, and maybe a CSA.
But Tom and Amys farming plans have been put
on hold because of serious water contamination
problems. In their case it is not EDB (although the
plume has been detected in wells up the street from
them). It is E. coli.
We found out we couldnt irrigate with the pond,
Amy sighs, because of the contamination from the
manure that was fowing in for 20 years from our
neighbors Angus beef operation. He fed them up in
the barn, but they ran down to pasture right along
the property line. The cow lane was full of mud and
manure that had built up for years, and it washed
onto our land. The pond has three feet of sediment
on the bottom, from the manure washing in. Well
have to dig it out with a crane, then aerate it to get
oxygen back in it.
Amy had bought a purebred golden retriever that
she was going to train and breed, in order to sell the
pups -- which bring $1500 each when trained. But
she couldnt use the pond for training because of the
bacteria and the danger of canine leptospirosis.
The Ruzbasans ultimately had to sue their
neighbor to get him to agreed to comply with a
Natural Resource Conservation Services Nutrient
Management Plan. The federal government gave
him almost $85,000 in EQIP funds to build a barn
where he stockpiles manure in a pit until he spreads
it on the felds. Its not pushed into piles out in the
open anymore.
But the lawsuit was upsetting in a town that has
tried so hard to keep farmers and new homeowners
on good terms with each other. The farmer told
neighbors he might have to go out of business, and
the Ruzbasans spent well over $10,000 on water
testing, pond engineering studies, and lawyers.
Although raw manure has stopped washing into
Tom and Amys pond, they still are not able to get
clean water to raise crops. The cattle still gather on
the fence line just above their wetland and on wet
days, Amy says, E. coli laden runoff continues to
run onto their land and into their pond. And it turns
out that the bacteria are not just fouling their pond,
but also their well.
The border between the Ruzbasan land and the neighbor who raised Angus cattle
was a source of contaminated runoff.
A NOFA DREAMER
Young widower seeks organic land west of Quabbin Reservoir in Massachusetts
Areas of Interest
As an Arborist, I am used to going out on a limb to get done what needs done and I understand that
entertaining the public is a natural part of it. So, once you have had your little chuckle about my ad,
would you please consider that I have invested some hard earned money to get your attention. I am
serious about relocating to the West Quabbin Area.
Bottom line: I deeply appreciate all who are willing to assist me in making this dream a reality.
P. S. A warm thank you to everyone who responded to my previous ad.
A trustworthy soul,
Kevin Stitt
10 Cross Street, Woburn, MA 01801 Email: info@organicsoilcare.com
Home: 781-932-3828 Cell: 781-983-4086 Web Site: www.organicsoilcare.com
Proposed Land Use
Orchard: diverse as possible, either established or I will establish
Nursery: organic practices only, low volume, high quality, non-invasive, specimen plants
Green House: propagation of trees and shrubs, year round salad greens
Composting Site: small scale, compost tea brewing center
Tree and Landscape Business: small scale, organic practices only
New Salem
North New Salem
Wendell
Lake Pleasant
Shutesbury
Leverett
East Leverett
Pratt Corner
Montague
North Leverett
Moores Corner
Locks Village
Pelham
West Pelham
Dwight
Belchertown
We got our certifcate of occupancy in December. I
was sick in April and May, Amy recalls, and Tom
had Giardia. But we didnt think it had anything
to do with our water. We went through a lot of
medical tests and fnally tested the water in June.
Sure enough, there was a high bacteria count in our
well. It came back TNTC too numerous to count
for coliform! The well is 362 feet deep with 180
feet of casing. Were still trying to fgure out where
the contamination is coming from. Scientifcally,
with the well that deep, it doesnt seem like it can
be in the aquifer. The tests are sporadic. Some show
bacteria, then the next dont, then there are bacteria
again. Right now we are leaning to there being a
fracture in the bedrock. Or perhaps the casing didnt
seal properly.
The state tested wells further down the road and
did not fnd problems with other neighbors. But
recently Amy found that a new neighbor has been
sick for weeks. She told her to stop drinking the
well water and have it tested. There are a lot of
stories of problems with wells, she says wasps
nests, bad caps, inadequate casing. But, she sighs, it
is diffcult getting anyone in authority to take action:
All of life depends upon clean water. I just dont
understand why there is so much resistance to my
efforts to get clean water for our farm.
People should know more about their well, she
continues, and monitor what is going on when it is
being put in. We have to keep the hot water at 168
to kill bacteria, and drink bottled water. For about
$800 we can videotape the well. Of course we also
have to have the well driller come and pump the
water out of the casing and pull the pump. Then we
send a camera down and look for where leaks might
be coming into the well.
Once the recommendation comes in from the well
driller, she continues, we will decide what to do. I
think we need to have a reverse osmosis system that
includes a UV sterilization unit put on the whole
well. Thats a big system if we are going to use it for
irrigating greenhouses as well, but we will have to
if we cant use the pond. It will cost over $5000. We
may need to get a storage tank as well.
Amy estimates that the water problems at Brightside
Farm have cost them about $30,000 so far. She says
the best advice she can give someone wanting to
buy a farm is to do their homework.
Take responsibility for yourself! Go and look all
around you, she stresses. If you see a dirty farm
nearby you, ask how that could impact your land.
How did waste water escape from their property? Is
there fertilizer buried there? How did they take care
of their other waste? Are their oil barrels dumped
somewhere? Were they responsible in caring for
the land? Maybe run tests. Its buyer beware. Use
common sense.
You have to fnd out if you are comfortable with
everything there, she continues. You can go to
the Department of Environmental Protection and
ask if there have been cases or complaints fled near
you. I want to save anyone else the headache I had.
I know farms in the future will be smaller, so they
will be all the more subject to what is happening
next door!
The current border is well maintained, but during wet periods E. coli laden water
still fows onto the Ruzbasan land.
by Earth Day Network
Agriculture is the sector that uses the most water
worldwide.
Irrigation
Irrigation accounts for two thirds of water use
worldwide and as much as 90% in many developing
countries.
About 40% of the worlds food is grown in
irrigated soils, which make up 18% of global
cropland.
Meeting the crop demands projected for 2025,
when the planets population is expected to reach
eight billion, could require an additional 192 cubic
miles of watera volume nearly equivalent to the
annual fow of the Nile 10 times over.
Severe water scarcity presents the single biggest
threat to future food production. Even now many
freshwater sourcesunderground aquifers and
riversare stressed beyond their limits.
As much as 8% of food crops grows on farms
that use groundwater faster than the aquifers are
replenished, and many large rivers are so heavily
diverted that they do not reach the sea for much of
the year. As the number of urban dwellers climbs to
fve billion by 2025, farmers will have to compete
even more aggressively with cities and industry for
shrinking resources.
Water use in Agriculture a regional overview
Following are facts on water withdrawal for some
geographical regions, including the Middle East
and Northern Africathe most water stressed
regions in the world. Information for all regions
is not providedthe number of countries where
agricultural water use is monitored with suffcient
accuracy is limited.
Africa
About 85% of Africas water withdrawals are
directed towards agriculture.
Arid regions, where irrigation plays an important
role in agriculture, have the highest level of water
withdrawal for agriculture. The Northern region
alone represents more than half of the agricultural
withdrawal of the continent.
In contrast, the humid regions show the lowest
agricultural withdrawals62% for the Gulf of
Guinea and 43% for the Central region, where it is
the same as domestic use.
Middle East and North Africa (MENA)
In the MENA region, 91% of water withdrawal is
directed towards agriculture.
Central Asia has the highest level of water
withdrawal for agriculture (at 95%). Eighty percent
of cultivated land in Central Asia is irrigated, as
compared with 16% in the Maghreb.
Ninety-nine percent of water withdrawn in
Afghanistan is used for agriculture. This is the
highest percentage in the region. The lowest
percentage, 12%, is in Malta.
In North-eastern Africa, many countries rely on
water transfer, particularly from the Nile, which
brings water into the region from upstream countries
outside the region.
Asia
In Asia, almost 84% of water withdrawal is used
for agricultural purposes, compared to 71%the
world average.
The Indian subcontinent and Eastern Asia have the
highest level of water withdrawal for agriculture
92% and 77% respectively. The two regions
together represent about 82% of the total irrigated
area in Asia.
Pressure on water resources is particularly high
in India, the Republic of Korea, China, Japan, DPR
Korea and Sri Lanka.
Increasing pressure on water resources in north
China has led to water scarcity and increased
competition for water between agriculture, industry
and rapidly growing cities. The largest water
transfer program in the region is the Three Gorges
project on the Yangtze River, which is intended to
transfer 70 cubic kilometers/year to north China,
mostly to satisfy the increasing water demand of the
Beijing area.
Former Soviet Union
In the former Soviet Union (FSU), 62% of
water withdrawal is directed towards agriculture,
compared to 71% for the whole world.
In Central Asia, 91% of water withdrawal is for
agriculture.
Latin America and the Caribbean
Water use across the region as a whole is close
to the worlds average. The Guyana and Southern
sub-regions have the highest level of water use for
agriculture.
Pressure on water resources is particularly high in
Dominican Republic and some islands of the Lesser
Antilles. Pressure on water resources is relatively
low in Antigua and Barbuda, Cuba, Haiti, and
Jamaica.
Water Pollution and Agriculture
As well as being the single largest user of
freshwater on a global basis, agriculture is also
a major cause of degradation of surface and
groundwater resources through erosion and
chemical runoff. The agrofood-processing industry
is also a signifcant source of organic pollution in
most countries.
Experts predict that, because pollution can no
longer be remedied by dilution (meaning that the
fow regime is fully utilized) in many countries,
freshwater quality will become the principal
limitation for sustainable development in such
countries early in the next century.
Agriculture is both a cause and a victim of
water pollution. It is a cause through its discharge
of pollutants and sediment to surface and/or
groundwater, through net loss of soil by poor
agricultural practices, and through salinization and
waterlogging of irrigated land. It is a victim through
use of waste-water and polluted surface and ground
water which contaminate crops and transmit disease
to consumers and farm workers.
Environmental pollution
The downstream degradation of water quality
by salts, agrochemicals and toxic leachates is a
serious environmental problem. Indeed, trace toxic
constituents, such as Selenium, Molybdenum and
Arsenic in agricultural drainage waters may cause
pollution problems that threaten the continuation of
irrigation in some projects.
Aquaculture is also recognized as a major problem
in freshwater, estuarine and coastal environments,
leading to eutrophication and ecosystem damage.
Agriculture and public health
Agricultural pollution also has direct and indirect
effects on human health. Nitrogen levels in
groundwater have grown in many parts of the world
as a result of intensifcation of farming practices.
This phenomenon is well known in parts of Europe.
In some countries, more than 10% of the population
is exposed to nitrate levels in drinking water that are
above the 10 mg/l guideline.
In many developing countries, there is little
or no treatment of municipal sewage, yet urban
wastewater is increasingly being used in irrigated
agriculture. The most common diseases associated
with contaminated irrigation waters are cholera,
typhoid, ascariasis, amoebiasis, giardiasis, and
enteroinvasive E. coli. Crops that are most
associated with spread of these diseases are ground
crops that are eaten raw such as cabbage, lettuce and
strawberries.
There is a linkage between increased incidence
of malaria in several Latin American countries
and reservoir construction. Schistosomiasis
(Bilharziasis), a parasitic disease affecting
more than 200 million people in 70 tropical and
subtropical countries, has been demonstrated to
have increased dramatically in the population
following reservoir construction for irrigation and
hydroelectric power production.
In addition, pesticides such as DDT have been
implicated in endocrine disruption. High levels of
agricultural contaminants in food and water as are
found in many developing countries could have
serious implications on reproduction and human
health.
Towards sustainable agriculture: policy issues
Following are general principles for sustainable
agriculture.
Water management
Water has an economic value in all its competing
uses and natural functions and should be treated as
an economic good.
Water management should be based on the
participation of all key stakeholders, with decisions
taken at the lowest possible level.
Effective implementation of a demand-oriented
approach requires adequate institutions to meter and
control water use.
Strong enforcement and management policies
should be implemented to reduce water losses.
Technical improvement measures should be
stimulated and, if necessary, they should be
accompanied by fnancial incentives. For example,
information technology such as surveillance and
control could improve water use in agriculture.
Water quality/pollution
Optimal use of on-farm inputs and minimization
of the use of external inputs in agricultural
activities would help diminish the adverse effects of
agricultural activities on water quality and wetlands.
There should be biological, physical and chemical
water quality criteria established for agricultural
water users and for marine and riverine ecosystems.
Governments also have a role to play in the:
- prevention of soil runoff and sedimentation;
- proper disposal of sewage from human
settlements and of manure produced by intensive
livestock breeding;
- minimization of adverse effects of agricultural
chemicals by use of integrated pest management;
and
- education of communities about the pollution
impacts of fertilizers and chemicals on water quality
and food safety.
Sustainable agriculture: beyond policy
According to the FAO, sustainable agriculture also
depends on the achievement of the following:
- Individual farmers and households need to be
assured stable engagement with land and water
resources, meaning land tenure and water use rights
that are fexible enough to promote comparative
advantage in food staples and cash crops.
- Those rights must be matched by access
to rural credit and fnance and dissemination of
technology and good practices in water use.
- There needs to be a re-adjustment in
management strategies away from formal
irrigation systems and towards pro-poor, affordable
technologies, such as small-scale water harvesting.
- At the irrigation scheme level, modernization
programs would help extract the full value out of
sunk costs and reduce pressure on public funds.
- Modernization strategies should transform
rigid command-and-control systems into much
more fexible service-delivery systems. Agriculture
could shoulder its environmental responsibilities
much more effectively by minimizing the negative
environmental impacts of irrigated production
and seeking to restore the productivity of natural
ecosystems.
Gail Giustozzi, Realtor
Let us live in harmony with the earth and the creatures,

all given to us by God, our Creator.
105 Old Long Ridge Road, Stamford, CT 06903
Cell/VM: (203) 561-5764 Fax: (203) 595-9815
Email: gailg3@optonline.net Website: iworkforyou.us
i work for you
by the Sierra Club
Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs)
are a major source of water pollution and drinking
water contamination because they concentrate
enormous amounts of animal waste in relatively
small areas. Animal waste is rich in phosphorus and
nitrogen and can be a useful fertilizer when applied
to crops at appropriate rates, but when over-applied
to land or spilled and leaked from waste lagoons,
these chemicals can enter groundwater, rivers
and lakes, killing fsh and other aquatic life and
contaminating drinking water supplies.
Animal waste has caused widespread water
pollution:
The 22 states that categorized specifc types of
agricultural pollution concluded that animal
wastes pollute about 35,000 of the river miles they
assessed. (EPA/USDA, 1998)
Animal manure is a greater contributor than point
sources (i.e., municipal or industrial discharges) to
in-stream total nitrogen in 1,802 (88%) of the 2,056
watershed outlets in the U.S., based on a national
modeling effort by the US Geological Survey. (EPA,
1998)
In Milwaukee, Wisconsin in 1993, Cryptosporidium
contamination of public water supply caused more
than 100 deaths and an estimated 403,000 illnesses.
The source of the contamination was not confrmed,
but runoff from cow manure is a suspected source.
(EPA, 1998)
In 1993, the LaGrange (Indiana) County Health
Department identifed a cluster of women living
near a hog operation who experienced miscarriages
after drinking water with high levels of nitrates from
their private wells. (Centers for Disease Control,
1996)
In Iowa, Minnesota, and Missouri, which account
for 36% of hog production, 20 spills in 1992 killed
at least 55,000 fsh. By 1996, the number of spills
had doubled, resulting in 670,000 dead fsh. (US
Senate Committee on Agriculture, 1997)
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration estimated that animal feedlots
contributed to the impairment of 110 shellfsh beds
in 1995. (EPA, 1998)
Blooms of toxic estuarine organisms, such as the
dinofagellate pfesteria piscicida, are associated
with nutrient over-enrichment. Since 1995,
pfesteria have killed more than a billion fsh in the
estuaries and coastal areas of North Carolina and the
Maryland and Virginia tributaries to the Chesapeake
Bay. CAFOs contribute signifcant nitrogen and
phosphorus to these waters. (EPA, 1998)
A 1995 North Carolina State University study found
severe seepage of nitrogen from more than half of
the lagoons included in their survey. (U.S Senate
Committee on Agriculture,1997) A 1999 Iowa State
University study conducted for the Iowa legislature
found that more than 70% of lagoons examined
were leaking faster than Iowa standards allow.
(Melvin, 1999)
Seventeen states have experienced groundwater
contamination from livestock feedlots. (EPA, 1998)
A North Carolina study of nearly 1,600 wells
adjacent to hog and poultry operations showed that
ten percent of the wells tested were contaminated
with nitrates above the drinking water standard,
and 34 percent were contaminated with some level
of nitrates. (U.S Senate Committee on Agriculture,
1997)
The Sierra Club advocates the following reforms to
stop pollution from CAFOs
Place a moratorium on new and expanding factory
farms until all existing facilities have Clean Water
Act permits and new pollution control rules are in
place.
Require factory farms to obtain individual,
site-specifc Clean Water Act permits, including
comprehensive nutrient management plans, to
provide nationally consistent protections.
Mandate full public participation in all aspects of
Clean Water Act permitting and enforcement.
Water Contamination from
Factory Farms
Ban new open-air manure lagoons and aerial
spraying of liquid wastes and phase out existing
lagoon/sprayfeld operations.
Place legal and fnancial responsibility for waste
disposal and cleanup on the corporations that own
the livestock animals.
For more information about the Sierra Clubs
opposition to factory livestock production, contact
your local Sierra Club Chapter.
Sources:
Centers for Disease Control, Spontaneous
Abortions Possibly Related to Ingestion of Nitrate-
Contaminated Well Water - LaGrange County,
Indiana, 1991-1994, Morbidity and Mortality
Weekly Report, Vol.45, No.26. July 5, 1996.
Environmental Protection Agency and Department
of Agriculture, Draft Unifed National Strategy for
Animal Feeding Operation, September 11, 1998.
Environmental Protection Agency. Preliminary Data
Summary. Feedlots Point Source Category Study.
December 31, 1998
Melvin, Stewart. Report to Iowa Legislative
Committee. Earthen Waste Storage Structure Project
(1997-98) and Water Quality Monitoring Project
(1999). January 21, 1999
U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition,
& Forestry. Report Compiled by the Minority Staff
for Senator Tom Harkin. Animal Waste Pollution
in America: An Emerging National Problem.
Environmental Risks of Livestock & Poultry
Production. December, 1997.
AGRICULTURAL CONSERVATION PROPERTY
FOR SALE
Circa 1840 farmhouse and barn with 5 acres of level open pasture/tillable field
located in Orange, MA. Property situated directly across Main Street from 30+
acres of agricultural conservation land. Property to be sold subject to an Agricul-
tural Conservation Restriction. House and barn require rehabilitation or replace-
ment. Buyer responsible for septic installation to meet Title V requirements. Ask-
ing $117,000. No reasonable offer refused. Private financing preferred. Contact
Brenda Bhatti at Mount Grace Land Conservation Trust by phone at 978-248-2043
or email at bhatti@mountgrace.org. REALTORS call us to see how you can
work with us on this and other conservation buyer projects.
by Barbara Bellows
National Center for Appropriate Technology
Rather than relying on synthetic fertilizers and
pesticides, organic farms protect the environment by
building soil organic matter and mimicking natural
systems. Research studies have demonstrated that
compared to conventional farms, organically farmed
soils tend to have:
Less nitrogen leaching
Better nutrient holding ability
More effcient biological nutrient cycling
Less runoff and erosion
However, without proper management, organic
farming practices can create the same environmental
problems as conventional farming practices.
Potential environmental concerns associated with
organic production are related primarily to:
The transition period from conventional to organic
farming practices
Unmanaged applications of manure
Improper timing of green manure plowdown
Improper storage of manure or compost materials
The Final Rule of the National Organic Program
(2000), seeking to ensure that organic cropping
systems protect the environment, includes the
following language:
The producer must manage crop nutrients and
soil fertility through rotations, cover crops, and
the application of plant and animal materials.
The producer must select and implement tillage
and cultivation practices that maintain or improve
the physical, chemical, and biological condition
of soil and minimize soil erosion.
The producer must manage plant and animal
materials to maintain or improve soil organic
matter content in a manner that does not
contribute to contamination of crops, soil, or
water by plant nutrients, pathogenic organisms,
heavy metals, or residues of prohibited
substances.
Overview of Organic Practices that Protect
Water Quality
Systems-based organic production practices
conserve nutrients, protect water quality, and
maintain biological diversity by a combination of
the following:
Increasing soil matter by returning organic
materials to the soil and choosing practices that
support a biologically active humus complex.
Composting animal manure and other organic
residues to form a more uniform and chemically
stable fertilizer material.
Timing the release of nutrients from organic-
matter mineralization to coincide with the times
when plants are actively growing and taking up
nutrients.
Using crop rotations for nitrogen fxation and to
recycle nutrients from the soil profle, increase soil
tilth through root growth, and provide a diversity of
crop residues.
Using intercropping practices to diversify
crops in the feld, enhance soil fertility, increase
the effciency of nutrient use, and decrease pest
pressures.
Planting catch crops or cover crops to recover
nutrients that may otherwise leach into the subsoil.
Using conservation practices that reduce the
potential for water runoff and wind and water
erosion.
Providing buffers or flter areas between
cropping areas and water bodies to protect against
nutrient and sediment movement into lakes and
streams.
Managing and monitoring irrigation practices
to enhance nutrient uptake, decrease leaching of
nutrients, and minimize root and stem diseases.
Controlling pest populations through cultural
practices, enhanced pest-predator balances, and
the use of biodegradable pesticides that have
low toxicity to benefcial insects, fsh, birds, and
mammals.
The keys to both effective crop production and
water quality protection are high levels of soil
organic matter and an active community of soil
organisms. Adding manure, legumes, and other
plant residues to the soil stimulates the growth and
multiplication of soil organisms. As these organisms
decompose the plant and animal residues, they
rapidly release nutrients from young, succulent,
and fresh organic materials. They retain within
their bodies the nutrients they need to grow, and
excrete materials that are diffcult to decompose.
These components of organic materials that resist
decomposition become stabilized in the soil as
humus. As populations of soil organisms increase,
the amounts of nutrients held within their bodies or
stabilized as humus also increases. Soil organisms
hold nutrients in a form that is relatively available
for crop uptake but is still protected against
leaching, runoff, and erosion. It is important to note
that climate and soil conditions determine how
rapidly populations of soil organisms increase and
how effective they are in mineralizing or holding
nutrients in their biomass. Thus, organic production
practices are most effective in promoting both
high yields and water quality protection when
they are fexibly developed in response to local
conditions. Problems may arise when general
organic management concepts are implemented in
a prescriptive manner that does not account for the
local context.
How Organic Farms Sometimes Fail to Protect
Water Quality
Sustainable, well-managed organic farms do not
focus on a single crop, but involve a diversity of
crops that represent multiple nutrient utilization
strategies, water uptake requirements, and pest
preferences. Carefully planned crop rotations
and intercropping systems guard against nutrient
movement into waterways by recycling and
conserving nutrients within the plant-soil system.
To ensure that an integrated approach is followed,
the Canadian Standard for Organic Agriculture
recommends that crop rotations be as varied as
possible and include green manures, deep-rooted
plants, legumes and/or rotation pastures that include
legumes.
Many organic growers strive for this ideal
integration of production practices with natural
processes. But on some farms, economic pressures,
labor shortages, incomplete knowledge of how
to integrate new crops or cropping practices into
existing operations, unexpected weather conditions,
pest pressure from surrounding farms, or other
factors result in the implementation of farming
practices that meet the defnition of organic
but lack certain characteristics of sustainability.
When this happens, the systems approach to
organic production may weaken to the point where
environmental impacts are similar to those found on
conventional farms.
As mentioned above, good organic management
does not mean simply following a general list of
approved practices. Instead, management decisions
Protecting Water Quality
On Organic Farms

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must be made in the context of local climate and
soil conditions. Five environmental problems that
may be associated with the merely prescriptive
implementation of either conventional or organic
cropping practices are:
Nutrient leaching and runoff
Soil erosion
Pathogen transport into water bodies
Pesticide leaching or runoff
Heavy-metal accumulation in soil
In the remainder of this publication, we will
examine the biological, chemical, and physical
factors that infuence each of these environmental
problems. Based on this information, you are
provided with lists of both practices to be avoided
and positive practices to guide your management
decisions. Ecological impacts are discussed
throughout to guide adaptation of organic
production practices to ft specifc soil and weather
conditions.
However, before discussing how certifed organic
production practices can best be managed to
enhance water quality protection, lets examine the
period of transition from conventional to organic
practices, since this production stage has the highest
potential for environmental risks.
Transitioning from Conventional to Organic
Agricultural Practices
Conventional farming practices rely on inputs
to treat production problems such as nutrient
defciencies or pest infestations, while organic
farming practices enhance crop production by using
a systems-based approach that seeks to mimic
natural processes. Because of differences in how
these two agricultural systems function, production
and environmental problems can arise during the
transition phase between farming conventionally
and establishing organic certifcation. During this
period, before natural balances in nutrient cycles
and pest-predator relationships have become
established, organic production practices may not
function effectively. At the same time, transitional
farmers are not allowed to use many of the
conventional inputs that previously provided their
crops with rapid nutrient inputs or pest controls.
Resource degradation or contamination problems
may also arise during the transition period as the
farmer learns new management practices. Factors
that can present environmental concerns for farmers
transitioning to organic practices include:
Low soil fertility levels and low levels of organic
matter in the soil
Small populations of soil microorganisms
available for the decomposition and temporary
immobilization of manure and organic residues
added to the soil
Poor soil quality that favors runoff and erosion
rather than water infltration
Pest populations that far outnumber predator
populations
Incomplete information or mistaken assumptions
on the part of the farmer regarding organic cropping
practices
Low soil fertility and incomplete natural cycles.
Land that has been farmed using conventional
agricultural practices often has poorer soil tilth,
less active biological fora, and less active
organic matter than soil that has been managed
using organic farming practices for several
years. Such soils have a limited ability to supply
nutrients for crop production. They also may have
low populations of soil organisms because of the
residual effects of prior applications of pesticides
or fertilizers with high acid or salt contents. In
an attempt to produce high yields, transitional
farmers may apply large amounts of manure or
legume residues. However, the time required for
soil organisms to release nutrients from organic
matter depends on the succulence of the material
and the number and diversity of organisms involved
in decomposition, as well as on soil and weather
conditions. These organic nutrient sources may
not decompose in time to promote healthy and
productive crop growth, but instead mineralize their
nutrients into a form that is biologically inactive
with a high potential for nutrient loss through runoff
or leaching.
Over time, well-managed organic farming practices
increase soil organic matter, enhance soil tilth
and aggregation, and increase the retention of soil
carbon and nitrogen within the biomass of soil
organisms. Organic farming practices also bring
weed and other pest communities into a dynamic,
low-level balance within the cropping system.
Farmers having incomplete information about
organic practices. Beginning or transitioning
organic farmers may not realize the amount of
nutrients removed from the soil when crops are
harvested or understand the need to balance nutrient
removals with nutrient applications. They also may
not realize how low the concentration of nutrients
contained in manure or compost is compared to that
contained in a similar quantity of synthetic fertilizer.
Farmers operating under the misconception that
organic farming systems require few or no outside
inputs risk degrading their soil and obtaining low
and declining crop yields. Conversely, farmers who
either apply excessive amounts of nutrients or make
applications without understanding nutrient cycles
or plant needs may create conditions conducive to
nutrient runoff. Nutrient imbalances in the soil can
also occur when manure or other organic materials
contain nutrient concentrations that are different
from those needed for crop production.
While additions of manure, compost, plant residues,
and other sources of organic matter are critical
for maintaining nutrient balances and establishing
healthy populations of soil organisms, effective
use of these materials requires an understanding of
their effect on soil chemistry and soil biology. For
example, repeated additions of organic matter can
lower the soil pH. This can increase the availability
of phosphorus in normally arid soils, which are
usually alkaline. But, on normally neutral or slightly
acid soils, this decrease in soil pH will reduce the
availability of phosphorus and other plant nutrients
and may require farmers to add lime to re-neutralize
the soil. Also, as we will discuss in more detail later,
nutrient availability and the rate of nutrient release
differs greatly among different organic materials.
Not understanding these differences can result in
either unthrifty plants or pollution concerns.
Nutrient Leaching and Runoff
The two agricultural nutrients of particular concern
to water quality and human health are nitrate and
phosphorus. Nitrate, the common form of nitrogen
in soils, is subject to leaching. Unlike potassium,
calcium, and magnesium, which are positively
charged, nitrate is negatively charged. Positively
charged nutrients are able to bind onto most soil
particles, including organic matter, because these
soil particles have negative charges. Negatively
charged nitrate, however, is repelled by negatively
charged soil particles. Thus, it is easily transported
down through the soil profle and into the
groundwater.
Phosphorus is the nutrient of most concern for
runoff and erosion losses since this nutrient is
limiting in fresh-water systems. This means that
a modest addition of phosphorus to lakes, rivers, or
streams can cause nutrient imbalances that stimulate
the growth of algae, which in turn limits the access
fsh have to nutrients and oxygen.
Plants cannot use nutrients from manure or crop
materials directly. Instead, these materials need to
be broken down, or decomposed, by various soil
organisms including beetles, earthworms, fungi,
bacteria, and nematodes. Activities of soil organisms
mineralize, or release, nutrients from organic
materials into the soil solution. Temperature,
moisture, type of organic matter applied, and
application methods affect the time required for soil
organisms to decompose organic materials and the
amount of nutrients mineralized, or released, during
decomposition. Conditions favoring the growth of
soil organisms and hastening the rate at which they
feed on and mineralize organic materials include
warm temperatures, moist conditions, a relatively
neutral soil pH, moderate fertility levels, and good
soil quality. Conversely, cool temperatures and soils
that are wet, compacted, or nutrient poor impede
decomposition.
Soil organisms break down fresher, younger, and
more succulent materials faster than materials
that are older or woodier. The more succulent
organic substances contain concentrations of
carbon and nitrogen that are similar to the cells
of soil organisms and better ft their nutritional
needs. Older or woodier materials have a higher
concentration of carbon and are diffcult for
soil organisms to decompose because they
contain complex compounds or do not contain
suffcient nitrogen to meet the organisms dietary
requirements.
Actively growing plants can take up and use
mineralized nutrients from decomposed animal
manure, legumes, and crop residue mulches. If
plants are not actively growing when nutrients are
mineralized or if soil or rainfall conditions do not
favor nutrient movement through the soil to plant
roots, these nutrients can be transported through the
soil by leaching or moved from the feld by runoff
or erosion.
Leaching
Leaching affects crop growth when nutrients
are moved beyond the reach of plant roots. It is
of concern to water quality when nutrients are
transported into groundwater. Leaching of water and
contaminants into groundwater is favored by soils
that:
are saturated
have a high water table
have a sandy or gravelly texture
have cracks caused by soil drying or tunnels
formed by animals or earthworms
Various researchers have reported signifcantly
greater nitrate leaching from conventional practices
as compared to organic systems. For example,
researchers in Illinois looking at nitrogen leaching
from tile-drained corn and soybean felds found
that accumulation of organic matter and buildup of
soil organism populations in organically managed
felds resulted in less nitrogen leaching, compared
to conventionally managed felds. European
studies reported that organic cropping practices
reduced nitrate leaching up to 50% compared to
conventional practices.
Organic cropping systems control nitrate leaching
by stabilizing nitrogen in crop plants used in
rotations. Adding organic matter to the soil
stimulates the growth and reproduction of soil
organisms, which also retain soil nitrogen in a
relatively stable form. As decomposition processes
continue and populations of soil organisms increase,
they stabilize mineral nutrients in their bodies and
in the soil humus fraction. Effective practices to
promote the stabilization of nitrogen in this manner
include using a legume and forage grass rotation or
using non-leguminous plants as cover crops. High
levels of biological activity in cover-cropped felds
corresponded with a greater ability of the soil to
hold nitrogen against leaching.
Practices to avoid to minimize nutrient leaching.
In both conventional and organic crop production,
the risk of nitrogen leaching is greatest when this
nutrient is allowed to accumulate in the soil during
times when 1) plants are not actively growing and
taking it up and 2) water is available to transport
it downward through the soil profle. Therefore,
farmers should avoid:
Applying manure or other organic materials at
rates in excess of the nitrogen requirements for plant
growth
Adding nutrient inputs that are mineralized when
plants are not actively taking up and using nutrients
Fall or early spring plowing that stimulates
nitrogen mineralization from soil organic matter
during times when plants are not actively growing
Repeated additions of manure, compost, or other
nutrient sources to soil without monitoring for an
excessive buildup of soil fertility
Repeated years of legume green-manuring
without rotation with a non-legume crop or without
monitoring for high or excessive levels of soil
fertility
Continuous row-crop production with yearly
nitrogen additions from fertilizers or manures
without any rotations with a closely rooted grass or
forage crop
Excessive irrigation following manure additions or
incorporation of a succulent green manure
Establishing manure or compost piles on soils that
have not been cemented or compacted to minimize
leaching under the piles
Certain adverse or unexpected weather conditions
also favor nitrogen leaching. These conditions
include:
Favorable weather that promotes productive
growth and heavy nodulation by legumes, followed
by a prolonged drought or untimely frost that causes
an early dieback of plants and the release of the
nitrogen contained within plant nodules and roots
into the soil solution
Manure or organic-matter additions during weather
favorable for decomposition, followed by weather
conditions that stunt plant growth and decrease
nitrogen uptake
Unexpected heavy rainfall following manure
additions
Nutrients and contaminants other than nitrate can
leach through cracks or larges pores in the soil
profle. Referred to as preferential fow paths,
these pores are formed when high-clay soils become
dry, when plant roots decompose, or when soil
organisms such as earthworms leave channels in
the soil. The potential for contaminant movement
through preferential fow paths is particularly great
in areas with:
High water tables
Subsurface or tile drainage
Karst geological formations (irregular or rocky
limestone formations that have cracks that drain
directly to underground streams)
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Used by growers to protect the following crops:
Corn, pumpkins, soy beans, strawberries, vineyards,
fruit trees and whips.
To guard against movement of contaminants
through preferential fow paths, manure should not
be applied to these high-risk areas during times
when the ground is saturated or rainfall is likely.
Runoff
Runoff and erosion affect crop growth by removing
nutrients from the surface layer of the soil. Erosion
is the transport of soil and manure particles either
by water or by wind. The application of manure,
compost, or other nutrient sources to the surface
of the soil greatly increases the risk that rainwater
or wind will move these materials off the feld and
into nearby drainage-ways or streams. Runoff water
transports dissolved nutrients or other contaminants
into drainage ways, streams, or lakes. Nutrients are
more readily dissolved by runoff water when they
have become concentrated in the surface layer of
the soil. This occurs when repeated applications
of manure or compost are made without regard to
the amount of nutrients already in the soil or to
the nutrient needs of growing plants. Dissolved
nutrients transported by runoff have a greater impact
on algae growth and lake eutrophication than the
sediment-bound nutrients transported by erosion.
Unlike nitrate, phosphorus is held by soil particles.
Previously, soil scientists believed that soils could
bind almost unlimited amounts of phosphorus.
Current research clearly indicates that on farms with
high rates of manure application (typically livestock
operations) or fertilizer applications (typically high-
value vegetable farms), the amount of phosphorus
in the soil can exceed the ability of soils to bind
this nutrient. When this happens, phosphorus not
bound by the soil is subject to being dissolved and
removed from felds by runoff water.
Phosphorus buildup is most common on livestock
farms that do not monitor their use of manure
nutrients well and on conventional vegetable felds
where excess or insurance levels of phosphorus
fertilizers are applied. Phosphorus can also build
up in organically managed crop felds if manure is
applied at rates designed to increase soil organic
matter rather than rates calculated to meet crop
nutrient needs. For example, an organic crop farmer
in New York experienced more than a three-fold
increase in the phosphorus concentration in one feld
as the result of applying animal manure annually at
the rate of 6 tons per acre for 21 years.
Aside from management practices, soil mineralogy
and pH determine the capacity of a soil to
bind phosphorus. Soils with low pH and high
concentrations of aluminum and iron, as well as
soils that are neutral to slightly alkaline and have
high concentrations of calcium, can absorb high
amounts of phosphorus. Soils that are sandy, silty,
or have a low organic matter content have a limited
ability to absorb and hold phosphorus. Phosphorus
that is not bound by soil particles can be transported
to surface waters by water runoff.
Practices to avoid to minimize nutrient runoff.
While erosion occurs primarily when soils are bare,
nutrient runoff can occur whether the soil surface
is bare or has vegetative cover. Crop management
practices that can cause nutrient runoff include:
Repeated additions of manure, compost, or other
nutrient sources to soil without monitoring for an
excessive buildup of soil fertility
Addition of manure, compost, or other nutrient
sources to the soil surface, without incorporation,
followed by a heavy rainfall or excessive irrigation
Manure or compost additions to ground that is
frozen or snow-covered followed by rapid melting
Manure or compost additions to sloping land
without soil incorporation
Manure or compost piles established on soils that
do not have appropriate diversions or flter areas to
minimize the contamination of runoff water
Cropping or applying nutrients up to the edge of
rivers, streams, or drainage-ways
Certain land characteristics and adverse weather
conditions also favor nutrient runoff and surface
water contamination. These include:
Intense rainstorms and rains of suffcient quantity
to saturate the soil
Sudden melting of snow or ice
Soils that are compacted at the surface
Soils that have an internal hardpan
Sloping land
Positive Management Practices to Minimize
Nutrient Leaching and Runoff
To ensure that organic production practices
are implemented in a manner that protects the
environment, the National Organic Practice
Standards specifcally state that raw manure must
be applied in a manner that does not contribute to
the contamination of crops, soil, or water by plant
nutrients, pathogenic organisms, heavy metals, or
residues of prohibited substances. This requirement
provides certifying agents the discretion to prohibit
questionable practices, such as applying manure to
ground that is frozen or too close to water resources.
Sustainable and organic crop production practices
used to control nutrient leaching and runoff include:
Nutrient management planning
Careful management of manure and plant-residue
additions to the soil
Crop rotations, cover crops, and catch crops
Riparian buffers
Establishing and managing manure and compost
piles in ways that prevent the contamination of
rainwater that moves through them
Nutrient management planning refers to the
balancing of nutrients applied to felds with the
nutrients removed from felds. Nutrient management
practices balance nutrient inputs into the soil system
with nutrient uptake by plants growing in the feld.
Besides protecting environmental conditions,
good nutrient management planning practices are
important for obtaining high production and good
economic returns. A nutrient management balance
sheet should include:
Soil nutrient content as determined by appropriate
soil and plant-tissue analyses
Nutrient availability from animal manure,
compost, or other organic sources that will be
applied to felds during the current growing season
Estimated nutrient release from the mineralization
of animal manure or green manure crops applied
to or grown on the land during previous growing
seasons
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Anticipated nutrient uptake by crop plants growing
in the feld, adjusted according to yield potential as
affected by soil characteristics, weather conditions,
crop variety, and management practices
Soil and plant-tissue analyses. Nutrients available
to crops from a feld can be determined by using
chemical or biological analyses of soil and plant-
tissue samples. Most Cooperative Extension
Service offces can provide instruction sheets on
how to collect representative and uncontaminated
soil and leaf-tissue samples, and will accept and
ship these samples to state-approved soil and
plant nutrient analysis laboratories. While a few
states subsidize the cost of soil and plant tissue
analyses, in most states there is a moderate charge
for each analysis. You can also work directly with
either conventional or alternative private testing
facilities. Private conventional laboratories
measure soil organic matter, phosphorus, potassium,
calcium, magnesium, cation exchange capacity,
and pH in their standard analyses. Assessments
of micronutrients and heavy metal contaminants
are available at an additional charge. As we
shall discuss later, assessments of heavy-metal
contaminantscopper, arsenic, zincmay be
important if you have been using manure from
certain types of conventional animal production
operations since these metals may be components of
animal feeds or bedding materials.
Alternative soil and plant analysis laboratories
provide a variety of assessments that may be
of particular interest to organic crop producers,
including nutrient analyses of composts and
analyses of the populations and diversity of
microorganisms in the soil. Other alternative labs
provide analyses similar to those of conventional
labs except that they give nutrient recommendations
in rates associated with commonly used organic
inputs, such as composts and manure, whereas
conventional labs typically recommend rates
associated with synthetic fertilizers. Increasingly,
however, conventional labs are able to provide
organic recommendations on request.
When using information from a soil or plant-tissue
analysis, you need to take into account how the
lab developed the recommendations provided.
Labs associated with state Land Grant Universities
usually base their recommendations on conventional
plant production research conducted on soils found
within the state. Analyses associated with local soil
types are particularly important for phosphorus
since the availability of this nutrient varies
according to soil mineralogy and pH. Therefore, you
should use the phosphorus soil test procedures that
are recommended for your state.
Private soil testing labs may not provide
recommendations based on yield experiments
conducted on soils in the state. Instead, they often
provide recommendations based on the nutrient
needs of crops to be produced without consideration
of the capacity of the soil to either release or absorb
nutrients.
Organic producers may need to modify
recommendations provided by soil testing
laboratories to refect:
The often greater availability of nutrients from
an organically managed soil as compared to a
conventionally managed soil
The lower, or more gradual, or long-term nutrient
needs of traditional plant varieties compared to
hybrid crops, which are typically used as the test
crop in fertilizer yield trials conducted to determine
fertilizer recommendations
Soil analyses should be conducted just prior to crop
planting to guide applications of nutrients before
or during the growing season. Plant tissue analyses
can be conducted during the early growth stages to
guide applications of supplemental foliar fertilizer
or additions of readily available forms of nutrients
during the growing season (Table 1). Analyses of
mature plant tissues can identify defciencies and
help guide nutrient additions for the following
growing season.
Nitrogen is diffcult to analyze because it readily
changes from one compound to another by chemical
and biological processes. Especially on organic
farms and on conventional livestock farms that use
manure as a fertilizer, nitrogen availability will
depend on organic matter decomposition and the
formation of nitrate from mineralized nitrogen.
For producers growing crops on humid eastern
or midwestern soils, the pre-sidedress nitrate test
provides an assessment of nitrate in soils just prior
to the time of greatest nitrogen uptake by plants.
Unfortunately, fertilizer recommendations based on
the pre-sidedress nitrogen soil test have so far been
developed only for hybrid feld and sweet corn,
with preliminary recommendations developed for
pumpkins and cabbage.
A new nitrate soil test, being developed by
researchers at the University of Illinois, may provide
more reliable results once its been perfected. It is
based on the fnding that amino sugars are the most
readily decomposed component of soil organic
matter. By measuring the amount of amino sugars
in the soil, this test can predict the amount of nitrate
that soil organisms will mineralize and release into
the soil environment. Thus far, the amino sugar test
has been tried only on feld corn.
These nitrogen availability tests can help organic
producers identify felds that have suffcient or
defcient levels of organic nitrogen. If test results
indicate that the soil is defcient in nitrate, readily
available forms of nitrogen need to be added soon
after soil testing to meet plant nitrogen needs. Since
manure, composts, and plant residues must undergo
decomposition before becoming available for
uptake, applications at the time of plant need may
not be mineralized in time to be available for crop
growth. Instead, they may mineralize after plant
uptake has ceased, releasing mineralized nitrate that
is susceptible to leaching. Readily available forms
of nitrogen that can be added at this time are listed
in Table 1.
Nitrogen soil testing is less problematic in the
more arid soils of the western U.S., where tests that
sample soils to a depth of 2 feet can be conducted
just prior to the cropping season (not at the end
of the previous cropping season). For a detailed
discussion of soil test procedures and variations in
soil test recommendations see Building Soils for
Better Crops.
Nutrients from animal manure and compost
applied in the current year. Since manure and
compost contain a high percentage of water,
the amounts of nutrients in these materials are
relatively small compared to synthetic fertilizers.
The nutrient content of manure samples can vary
widely depending on the length and type of storage,
the type of bedding (if any) mixed with the manure,
and the type of feed consumed by the animals.
It also varies according to the type of animal
producing the manure. A comparison of nutrient
contents of various types of manure is provided
in Table 2. Remember that the animals diet, how
the manure was managed and collected, and the
age of the manure will also affect nutrient content
and availability. For example, animals fed nutrient
supplements will tend to have high concentrations
of those supplemented nutrients in their manure.
Manure that is mixed with wood or paper bedding
will have a higher concentration of carbon and thus
be mineralized more slowly than manure that is not
mixed with bedding. Fresh manure will have more
available nitrogen and will decompose more rapidly
than old manure.
To accurately apply manure according to the
assessed nutrient defciencies of your soil and the
nutrient needs of your crop plants, take at least three
replicate samples of the manure or compost that
you will be using and have these samples tested
by an approved nutrient analysis laboratory. Many
Cooperative Extension offces can provide you with
instructions and sampling containers for manure
collection. They may also be able to submit the
manure samples to appropriate laboratories for you.
These laboratories should also be able to determine
(for an additional fee) the amount of heavy metals
present in manure samples submitted.
For contact information of laboratories that conduct
nutrient analyses of composts, refer to the ATTRA
publication Alternative Soil Testing Laboratories.
For more information on how to calculate
appropriate amounts of manure and compost to be
used in organic production systems, refer to the
ATTRA publication Manures for Organic Crop.
Nutrient availability from previously applied
compost, manure, or legumes. Calculations for
nutrient balances should account for the release
of nutrients, over time, from various sources of
organic matter in the soil. For example, under humid
temperate conditions, soil organisms decompose
and mineralize about one-third of the nutrients
contained in manure within the year in which the
materials were applied. Another 12% of the plant
nutrients is released in the year after application,
and 5% is released in the third year. Leguminous
green-manure crops can supply almost all of the
nitrogen needs of crops grown in the feld the
following year, and about half the nitrogen needs
of crops grown two years after legumes have been
incorporated into the soil.
Decomposition rates will be different in other
regions of the U.S. In hot climates, mineralization
may proceed more rapidly because of the more
rapid growth of soil organisms. In contrast, nutrient
contributions from legumes grown in arid temperate
regions will become available more slowly because
arid conditions limit both the growth and production
of green-manure plants and the decomposition
activities of soil organisms. Remember, in arid
regions, you can take soil samples just prior to
the growing season to determine the availability
of nitrogen from incorporated legumes or other
green manure plants. Typical amounts of nutrients
available from green-manure crops are provided in
Table 3.
Anticipated nutrient uptake by crop plants.
The amount of nutrients a plant will need for
productive growth depends on the species and
variety, the soil and weather conditions, and the
producers management practices. Table 4 compares
the nutrient uptake needs of different crop plants.
Generally, nutrient uptake is distributed more
evenly over the cropping season for traditional crop
varieties than for hybrid varieties. When plants
are subject to stress conditions such as drought,
cold weather, or waterlogging, they will use lesser
amounts of nutrients. Unfortunately, producers are
rarely able to predict the impact of future weather
conditions on plant growth at the time when they
are applying fertilizers or manure to their soils. As
a result, many farmers apply nutrients at rates that
plants can use under favorable growing conditions.
If conditions are not favorable, plants will be unable
to use all the nutrients applied and these unused
nutrients may leach or run off.
Careful management of manure and plant
residue additions to the soil. Following the
decomposition of manure and plant residues by
mineralizing soil organisms, mineralized plant
nutrients released into the soil solution may be:
Taken up by plant roots and used in plant growth
Stabilized or held chemically by minerals or
organic matter in the soil
Immobilized or incorporated into the bodies of soil
organisms
Transported by water either downward through the
soil (leaching) or over the surface of the soil (runoff)
Timing nutrient mineralization to coincide with
plant nutrient uptake. Crop plants use nutrients
from the decomposition of organic materials most
effciently when nutrient mineralization occurs
during the time when they are actively growing and
taking up nutrients. If organic materials are added
late or decomposition occurs slowly (because of
weather conditions or the type of organic matter
added to the soil), nutrient mineralization will
continue after plant nutrient uptake has ceased or
become negligible. These nutrients have a high
potential for loss through leaching or runoff.
For example, when manure or succulent organic
residues are added to the soil in the fall, some of the
nutrients will be mineralized in the fall, and some
in the spring prior to crop emergence. Nitrogen
mineralized prior to plant uptake can leach into the
groundwater, while mineralized phosphorus can
be transported by runoff water. As we will discuss
in more detail later, a cover crop planted in the fall
or early spring can take up and hold decomposed
nutrients until it is killed and incorporated before
planting of the main crop.
Conversely, the addition of woody or old plant
residues to the soil, either just before planting or
while plants are actively growing, will cause soil
organisms to extract nutrients from the soil in order
to have a balanced diet while they decompose these
high-carbon residues. The resulting lack of available
soil nutrients can stunt plant growth. Even the
addition of nutrient-rich, succulent organic residues
can slow plant growth and enhance nutrient leaching
and runoff risks if these materials are not added
in time for soil organisms to decompose them and
make their nutrients available for use during the
period of active nutrient uptake by plants.
Weather conditions can greatly affect the synchrony
between mineralization of organic materials
and plant growth. Cold weather slows down the
activities of soil organisms. Producers who grow
early-season crops in the northern U.S. often
apply readily available forms of phosphorus in
order to stimulate seed germination and seedling
growth since soil organisms that solubilize mineral
phosphorus or mineralize organic phosphorus
are not active in cold weather. This can enhance
the potential for phosphorus runoff, once the
weather warms up, if the amount of mineralizable
phosphorus in the soil is high.
Legume management. Legumes used as green
manures can be a source of leached nitrogen,
particularly in humid temperate regions, if
unfavorable environmental conditions, such as
a prolonged drought or untimely frost, cause
plants to die back early in the growing season. As
legumes die back, nitrogen contained within their
nodules and roots is released to the soil solution.
Agronomic systems in arid regions usually do not
experience this problem since legumes are typically
incorporated (or in conventional systems, killed
back with herbicides) early in the growing season so
as not to deplete soil moisture critically needed by
the main crop.
Nitrate leaching from legume nodules can also
occur if a high-nitrogen-fxing legume is rotated
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with a crop that has a low nitrogen demand or
if legumes are planted for two years in a row. In
either case, the amount of nitrogen produced by the
legume is in excess of that used for crop growth.
Rotating legumes with non-leguminous crops,
particularly grassbased forages, can effectively
enhance soil organic matter as the forage crops will
promote stabilization of nutrients in the bodies of
soil organisms and in the soil humic fraction.
Use of high-yielding varieties in organic
production systems. The mismatch between
nutrient mineralization and plant nutrient needs is
especially great when organic materials are used to
fertilize high yielding or hybrid crop varieties.
These varieties were developed to be grown with
synthetic nitrogen fertilizers, which can dependably
provide high levels of readily available nitrogen.
The selection of many hybrid varieties was based on
their capacity to exhibit a high response in growth
and production to increases in available nitrogen. As
Pang and Letey state in their discussion of nitrogen
availability to organically grown crops:
One might make the case that N was
exclusively supplied from organic forms
prior to the availability of commercial
sources and farming could revert back to
those systems. One major difference is
the development of high yielding crops,
such as hybrid corn, which have a high N
demand for a short time, which is a feature
that is not readily compatible with organic
farming.
Use of traditional seed varieties may decrease this
mismatch between nutrient mineralization from
organic matter and crop uptake needs. These crop
varieties evolved in systems that relied primarily, if
not exclusively, on organic nutrient sources. Thus,
their nutrient uptake needs are less extreme, less
focused on a particular stage in the growth cycle,
and more uniform across the growing season,
similar to the nutrient releases from organic matter
decomposition.
Long-term benefts of organic management.
Over time, organic farming practices promote the
formation of soil humus and the accumulation of
nutrient reserves in the bodies of soil organisms and
in the readily decomposable form of soil organic
matter. As communities of soil organisms become
larger and more diverse, the decomposition of added
organic matter will be enhanced, as will the ability
of this biological community to temporarily store
mineralized nutrients. As the ability of soils to store
nutrients increases, crop nutrient demands will
be met from a combination of applied and stored
nutrient sources.
Careful management of the types of organic
residues added to the soil can also control nutrient
mineralization and immobilization processes. In
the fall, you can either apply carbon-rich organic
materials to the soil or leave woody crop residues
on the soil. Soil organisms decomposing these
materials will use excess soil nutrients to meet
their nutrient demands. Nutrients immobilized in
the bodies of soil organisms can be made available
to crops in the spring by adding a nitrogen-rich
form of organic matter to the soil shortly before the
onset of the growing season. This will stimulate
the decomposition of the high-carbon material
and the mineralization or release of nutrients held
in the bodies of soil organisms. Remember that
climate conditions affect the time needed for either
immobilization or mineralization processes to occur.
In cold or arid climates, these processes will be
much slower than in warm humid climates.
Readily available forms of nutrients can be applied
to crops to meet high nutrient demands or to
stimulate mineralization of nitrogen-poor organic
materials. Table 1 lists the nitrogen, phosphorus,
and potassium available from various organic
materials. Concentrated sources of nutrients can be
sidedressed, distributed through a drip irrigation
system, or provided as a foliar application. These
nutrient sources and application methods are
expensive; careful monitoring of nutrient additions
in relation to plant uptake needs can save money,
enhance plant production, and reduce the risks of
nutrient leaching and runoff. Use of these readily
available nutrients without proper management
can increase the potential for nutrient leaching and
runoff.
Crop rotations, cover crops, and catch crops.
Crop rotations enhance the effciency of nutrient
use and nutrient cycling since plants vary in their
nutrient requirements, in their ability to extract
nutrients from the soil, and in their access to
different soil depths. For example, legumes do
not require nitrogen additions since they are able
to transform atmospheric nitrogen into a plant-
available form, but they do require high levels
of phosphorus. Plants with taproots can extract
nutrients that have leached deep into the soil. Plants
with more fbrous roots can better extract nutrients
mineralized from decomposing plant and animal
materials in the surface soil. Combining plants with
different nutrient needs and root systems in a feld,
as intercrops or in a cropping sequence, can increase
the effciency of nutrient use and decrease the
potential for nutrient leaching or runoff.
Cover crops and catch crops are used in rotations at
the end of a growing season or during a secondary
growing season. The primary role of cover crops is
to reduce erosion potential by providing a vegetative
cover on the soil surface. Keeping growing crops on
the ground and active roots in the soil enhances soil
organisms growth and nutrient uptake. This reduces
the potential for nitrogen leaching while maintaining
nutrients in a form available for uptake and growth
by crop plants.
Depending on need, cover crops can be selected to
provide secondary benefts such as nitrogen fxation,
allelopathic control of plant pests, or nutrient
scavenging. Care should be taken when selecting
cover and catch crops to ensure that these plants do
not have allelopathic impacts or serve as secondary
hosts for pests or diseases that affect the primary
crop. In arid areas, rotation crops can limit the
amount of stored soil water available to the primary
crop if they are not managed, in part, for water
conservation.
Crops that are effective in nutrient scavenging or
taking up excess nutrients are referred to as catch
crops. Catch crops can be harvested to remove and
reduce the amount of excess nutrients in the feld
or they can be plowed under to return the nutrients
within these plants to the soil for uptake by the
primary crop. Depending on your cropping system,
catch crops can be planted as a:
Secondary fall-seeded crop
Winter-sown spring crop
Secondary crop in the spring prior to planting the
main crop
Main crop in the spring
Intercrop or secondary crop that is either broadcast
or seeded between rows of the main crop or mixed
in the drill with the main crop
Catch crops effective in controlling nitrogen
leaching include brassicas like mustard, rape,
radish, and turnip, as well as other crops that
establish quickly and develop a root system
during the relatively low temperatures of the fall
or early spring. Researchers in both Oregon and
Georgia found winter rye and ryegrass to be the
most effective cover crops tested for the control
of nitrogen leaching. Field crops that have high
nitrogen demands also serve as effective catch
crops. These crops include corn, rape, mustard,
and wheat (especially spring wheat and hard wheat
varieties).
As concerns over phosphorus leaching and nutrient
imbalances from manure use increase, researchers
and producers are looking for cover crops and
rotation crops that have the ability to take up high
concentrations of phosphorus (especially on neutral
pH and sandy or loamy soils that do not have a
strong ability to absorb phosphorus). Legumes
are effective rotation or cover crops for reducing
phosphorus levels. These plants do not require
nitrogen additions from manure because of their
ability to fx atmospheric nitrogen, but this process
does require high-energy inputs that are provided
by phosphorus-containing compounds. Other heavy
users of phosphorus include tall fescue, coastal
Burmuda grass, feld corn, grain sorghum, Sudan
grass, buckwheat, and brassicas including rape.
While these crops are growing, they can reduce the
potential for phosphorus movement into surface
waters by reducing soil erosion and by incorporating
phosphorus into their plant cells. When these crops
die back or are incorporated into the soil, however,
decomposition will release phosphorus back into
the soil solution where it can then be transported by
runoff water into lakes and streams. To reduce the
potential for phosphorus runoff, the phosphorus-
scavenging crops need to be removed from the feld.
This is in contrast with nitrogen-scavenging catch
crops, which typically are used to hold nitrogen
within the feld in a form not subject to leaching,
then plowed back into the soil so that this nitrogen
can be mineralized and used for crop production.
Table 4 provides a list of nitrogen- and phosphorus-
scavenging plants.
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Riparian buffers are vegetative areas maintained
on either side of rivers or streams. They serve
as a fnal protection against the movement of
contaminants from felds into waterways. A
combination of deep-rooted grasses or sedges
with water-tolerant trees and shrubs helps hold
streambanks in place while also trapping sediments
and recycling nutrients transported from felds to
riparian areas by runoff or erosion. Soil organisms,
sustained by organic residues from these riparian
plants, decrease nitrogen additions to waterways by
transforming nitrate into ammonium gas through
denitrifcation, degrading pesticides and other
contaminants, and decreasing populations of human
and animal pathogens in the soil. Maintaining the
effectiveness of these buffers requires that good
nutrient management and soil conservation practices
are implemented across the feld. This prevents
buffer areas from becoming overloaded with
nutrients, sediments, or other contaminants.
Protecting manure and compost piles against runoff
and leaching. Storage and composting of animal
manure in improperly prepared areas can result in
leaching of nutrients into groundwater and runoff of
nutrients into surface waters. To preserve the quality
of composts, manure, and other compost feedstocks
as well as to protect water quality, the following
compost or manure management guidelines should
be used:
Permanent areas for manure or compost storage
should have an impermeable concrete foor with a
slope that allows runoff or leachates to fow into a
collection or flter area.
Short-term storage areas should be established
on soils that have been compacted or that have
had a clay liner installed, in order to minimize
permeability.
Roofs or plastic tarps over nutrient piles protect
them from becoming saturated. The composting
process depends on maintaining aerobic conditions
within the pile so that the maximum number of the
right type of microorganisms will be involved in the
process. If the pile becomes saturated, pore spaces
that formerly held air become flled with water. As a
result, conditions within the pile become anaerobic,
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leading to the proliferation of bacteria that form
methane, sulfdes, and ammonium. Anaerobic
decomposition is much slower, less complete, and
more odor-producing than aerobic decomposition.
Maintain collection or flter areas downslope
from the pile. As mentioned previously, any runoff
from nutrient piles will be a concentrated source of
nutrients, and potentially of pathogens. Measures
should be installed to prevent this material from
fowing directly into lakes, rivers, or streams. A
collection tank installed below the surface of the
concrete pad can be used to collect runoff from
the pile. The material in this tank can be pumped,
mixed with raw manure, and applied to crop
felds (since this material is highly concentrated,
it should be diluted with manure or water prior to
application to minimize risks of stunting plants by
nutrient burn). A flter area is usually a vegetated
area laid out on a shallow slope in a manner that
encourages infltration and microbial processes
of runoff materials. Unfortunately, in areas with
cold winters, vegetative flter areas have minimal
ability to capture and treat runoff wastes during
cold weather when vegetation is not growing
and the ground may be frozen or snow-covered.
A bark-bed fltration system has been tested in
these areas for the treatment of waste materials
from milk houses. This system is more effective
throughout the year since it contains a bed of tree
bark or other high-carbon materials on which
colonies of microorganisms become established.
The combination of highly absorbent materials and
diverse microbial populations allows this system to
continue functioning during the winter months.
Soil Erosion
Soil erosion is the transport of soil particles by wind
or water. Because these forces most easily move
lightweight particles, erosion removes more topsoil,
reactive clays, and organic matter than other soil
components. Thus, it degrades soil by removing
its most fertile components. Soil erosion can also
damage surrounding felds and contaminate adjacent
water bodies.
Soil erosion by wind can shred or smother growing
crops, expose seedling roots in the felds from which
the soil is being stripped, and bury seedlings and
crops in felds where eroded soil is re-deposited.
Wind erosion can also deposit piles of compacted
soil on felds.
Soil erosion by water can form rills and gullies in
surrounding felds, deposit sediments in ditches, and
damage the quality of streams and rivers. Sediments
transported by erosion carry attached nutrients,
pathogens, and other contaminants. These sediments
affect fsh habitat by making water cloudy, by
altering water temperature, and by becoming
embedded in streambank areas used for feeding and
breeding. Nutrients transported by sediments can
cause algae blooms, degradation of fsh habitat, and
eutrophication. Pathogens attached to sediments
degrade the quality of water for animal and human
consumption and increase purifcation costs if lakes
fed by contaminated streams are used as a source of
drinking water.
The major land-management factors that control
both wind and water erosion are the amount of plant
or residue covering the surface of the soil and the
amount of aggregation of soil particles.
Practices that Encourage Erosion
To minimize soil erosion and the movement of
nutrients attached to soil particles, avoid the
following practices:
Harvest or land-preparation practices that remove
plant residues from the soil surface and leave the
soil bare during times when rainfall or snowmelt is
likely
Cropping practices that do not use mulches or
cover crops and leave the soil bare between rows,
especially when plants are young and their leaves do
not cover this between-row area
Practices that cause soil compaction, such as
driving equipment onto felds, tilling felds when the
soil is wet, or not maintaining an adequate amount
of organic matter in the soil
Use of shallow soil or soil with a high water table
that rapidly becomes saturated and then favors
runoff or erosion
Positive Practices that Minimize Erosion
To protect land against the forces of erosion, use
practices that:
Maintain a cover of growing plants or residues
over the soil surface at all times
Decrease the potential for water to fow off the
land and increase the potential for water to infltrate
the soil
Increase soil organic matter, soil tilth, and water
infltration
Practices that provide a vegetative cover over the
soil surface. When soils have little or no vegetative
cover, the forces of wind or water can pick up the
exposed soil particles. Raindrops falling on bare
soil spray out and disperse fne soil particles. These
particles become embedded in nearby soils to form
surface crusts or are carried away by the force of
fowing water. Winds pry up soil particles and carry
them as dust clouds that can be deposited on nearby
felds, in rivers, on roadways, or in residential areas.
Conservation tillage, mulching, cover cropping,
intercropping, and other practices that maintain a
complete cover of vegetation or residues over the
soil surface minimize the potential for erosion.
Vegetation and residue cover protect the soil surface
and minimize soil splatter from the impact of
raindrops. Rain that slowly flters or seeps through
residues or vegetation to the soil surface have
decreased momentum and are more likely to be
absorbed by the soil, whereas raindrops that strike
a bare soil surface will likely encounter a crust and
run off the soil surface as water erosion. Vegetation
over the soil surface also decreases wind erosion, by
protecting the soil from being detached and moved
by wind.
Various cover-cropping and intercropping practices
were discussed above in relation to nutrient leaching
and runoff control practices. Unfortunately, most
of the research and practical experience with
conservation tillage comes from conventional
systems that use herbicides as a key component of
the practice.
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Soil conservation practices. Cover-cropping
and conservation-tillage systems enhance water
infltration and minimize contact of wind and
water with the soil surface, thereby decreasing
the potential for these forces to transport soil
particles. Other soil conservation practices capture
water or reduce wind speed as eroded soil is being
transported. Soil conservation practices that serve
this function include:
Planting crops on a contour, often involving strip
cropping with a forage crop or other nonrow crop
that provides complete groundcover
Establishing vegetative buffers upslope or upwind
from cropped felds to absorb water fowing into and
wind blowing across the felds
Establishing vegetative buffers downslope or
downwind from cropped felds or adjacent to rivers
or streams to protect these surface waters from
erosion coming off the felds
Establishing catchment areas or creating or
preserving wetlands to capture excess and
potentially contaminated water leaving felds
(Biological and chemical reactions in catchments
and wetlands purify water by capturing nutrients,
degrading toxins, and decreasing populations of
pathogens)
Practices that improve soil tilth and aggregation.
Organic-matter build-up enhances soil tilth and
aggregation. Good soil tilth encourages water
infltration, thereby decreasing the amount of water
available for runoff and erosion. Soil aggregation
refers to soil particles that are held together in small
soft clumps by microbial gels, fne root hairs, and
organic matter. Because these soil clumps are larger
and heavier than individual soil particles, they
are less susceptible to being moved by wind and
water erosion. In addition to protecting soil against
erosion, good soil tilth and aggregation enhance root
growth and the ability of plants to take up nutrients
from the soil solution.
Crop production practices that favor the build-up of
organic matter and the formation of soil aggregates
include:
Appropriate use of animal manures as fertilizers
and soil amendments
Crop rotations involving pasture grasses or other
plants that have a fne root system
Crop rotations that include slowly decomposing,
non-leguminous plants that will increase the amount
of humus in the soil
Cropping practices that maintain a healthy
environment throughout the year for the growth
and reproduction of soil organisms involved in the
formation of gels that bind soil aggregates
Pathogens
Pathogens (disease-causing microorganisms)
are often found in manure. The organisms
of most concern to human health are E. coli,
Cryptosporidium, and Giardia. These organisms
cause gastrointestinal problems in people who
consume contaminated food or water, posing the
greatest threat to young children, the elderly, and
people whose immune systems are compromised.
Municipal purifcation systems chlorinate water
to kill E. coli and protect the safety of drinking
water. However, Cryptosporidium and Giardia
form resistant resting stages (oocysts and cysts,
respectively) that are not killed through primary
water treatment processes such as chlorination. Sand
flters are required to remove these parasites from
water.
Application of fresh manure to growing crops or
shortly before planting can contaminate these crops
with pathogens. Water from rivers or streams used
for crop irrigation can also contaminate plants with
pathogens if livestock production operations or
septic systems upstream are not properly managed
and have allowed fresh waste to fow into the water.
Poor sanitary practices by farm workers during crop
production and harvesting can also cause produce to
become contaminated with pathogens.
Practices to Avoid
To minimize pathogen contamination of food and
water, you and your neighbors should avoid:
Animal production practices that do not properly
protect young animals from getting ill or passing
infections to other animals in the herd
Lack of biosecurity practices that minimize
the potential for movement of pathogens onto
the farmthese include ensuring that visitors,
veterinarians, technical advisors, and neighbors do
not carry pathogen-containing manure from other
farms onto your farm by wearing contaminated
boots or clothing or driving vehicles that carry
contaminated manure
Applying fresh manure to crops just before or
during the growing season
Using improper manure storage or composting
practices that allow rainwater to become
contaminated
Using improperly or incompletely composted
materials for crop production
Poor sanitary practices by farm workers when they
are handling edible crop parts during production or
harvesting
Positive Practices

Rigorously monitoring compost piles, protecting
manure and compost piles from rainfall, and
applying composts and manure according to
standards will minimize or eliminate the risk of crop
contamination by pathogens.
The National Organic Standards require that
composting of plant and animal materials occurs at
temperatures high enough to kill most pathogenic
organisms found in manure. Guidelines provided by
the National Organic Standards specify that:
Compost material must have an initial C:N ratio of
between 25:1 and 40:1
and
A temperature between 131 F and 170 F must
be maintained for 3 days using an in-vessel or static
aerated pile system
or
A temperature between 131F and 170F must be
maintained for 15 days using a windrow composting
system, during which period the materials must be
turned a minimum of fve times.
The National Organic Standards seek to minimize
pathogen contamination of fresh produce by
stipulating when manure can be added to felds.
These standards require that when raw manure is
used as a nutrient source, it is:
Soil-incorporated not less than 120 days before
harvest of a crop whose edible portion is in contact
with the soil or soil particles or
Soil-incorporated 90 days prior to harvest for
a crop whose edible portion does not have such
contact.
The National Organic Standards do not restrict the
timing of manure applications for crops not intended
for human consumption (e.g., animal feeds, fber,
or biofuel crops), nor is there a restriction on the
timing of applications of fully composted materials.
However, organic certifying agents can prohibit
growers from applying manure to frozen ground
or too close to waterpractices that present a high
risk for pathogen and nutrient runoff from felds,
resulting in water contamination.
Conficts between protecting against pathogens
and minimizing leaching and runoff risks.
Unfortunately, practices designed to protect
against food contamination by pathogens may
be contradictory to practices designed to protect
against leaching and runoff. For example, if you are
planning on growing cool-season greens in the early
spring for harvest around the start of the farmers
market season in early May, you will need to apply
raw manure no later than the end of December.
Realistically, manure should be incorporated into
the soil in the fall following harvest. To prevent
nutrient leaching and runoff, you should plant a
cover crop that can capture and hold mineralizing
nutrients from manure applications until they
are needed for crop production in the spring.
Unfortunately, achieving a balance between nutrient
holding by cover crops in the fall and winter and
nutrient release from these same crops in the
spring can be diffcult. Growing crops need readily
available nutrients for productive crop growth while
decomposition and mineralization of nutrients
in cover crops is slow in the spring because cold
weather slows microbial activity. Applications of
readily available nutrient sources may be necessary
to overcome this lag in nutrient release.
Pesticides
For pest and pathogen control, organic production
methods rely primarily on preventive measures such
as use of pest-resistant varieties, cultural control
methods, and practices that enhance balances
between pests and predators. Pesticides are used as
a last resort, and are mostly limited to biologically
derived substances with low mammalian toxicity.
However, some botanical pesticides are toxic to
non-target organisms. Rotenone is toxic to fsh
and pyrethrum kills benefcial as well as disease-
causing insects. Diatomaceous earth controls
insect pests because of its irritant, physically-
disruptive properties but it can also be a strong
irritant of human lung tissue if not handled with
care. Even plant nutrients and substances with
relatively low toxicity can become contaminants if
applied at excessive rates, close to water sources,
or during times when heavy rainfall or fooding
is expected. Copper sulfate is permitted as a
pesticide on the NOP National List of Allowed and
Prohibited Substances, with the stipulation that this
substance must be used in a manner that minimizes
accumulation of copper in the soil. Although
necessary for crop production as a micronutrient,
copper becomes phytotoxic even at slightly elevated
levels.
Positive Practices
Crop production practices that minimize
environmental contamination and ecological
disruption by pesticides include:
Integrated pest management (IPM) practices that
control pest and disease incidence through the use
of crop rotations, good sanitary measures, disease-
resistant varieties, predatory insect and nematode
species, and the targeted application of least-toxic
pesticides.
Farmscaping practices that provide habitat for
species that are predators of plant pests.
Heavy Metals
The term heavy metals refers to lead, cadmium,
arsenic, copper, zinc, and iron. While the last three
elements are required for plant growth in small
amounts, buildup of these elements in the soil
environment can be phytotoxic as well as damaging
to the growth of soil organisms. Use of copper
sulfate as a pesticide can result in the accumulation
of copper in the soil. Animal manure can be a source
of various other metals. The National Organic
Standards prohibit the use of sewage sludge or
biosolids because these products tend to have high
concentrations of heavy metals.
Arsenic for many years has been the standard
treatment for lumber to protect it against rotting and
insect damage. However, public concern regarding
the leaching of this toxic substance into groundwater
has resulted in federal regulations prohibiting the
sale of arsenic-treated lumber starting in 2003. The
National Organic Standards prohibit the use of
treated lumber in the construction of compost bins,
within a cropped feld, or for livestock fencing.
Manure from non-organic livestock operations may
contain antibiotics or heavy metals. Copper and zinc
are used as trace-mineral supplements and additives
in feed for various animals; arsenic is a feed additive
for poultry. While not a heavy metal, boric acid is
a potentially toxic element and can contaminate
soils when boric-acid-treated recycled paper is used
as bedding material by the poultry industry. Plants
can take up these elements, causing phytoxicity and
lowering the food quality of harvested products.
While the National Organic Program Final Rule
does not prohibit use of manure from non-organic
sources, it does permit certifying agents to test soil
and manure for residues when a reasonable concern
exists that manure, either raw or as a component of
compost, contains suffcient quantities of prohibited
materials to violate the organic integrity of the
operation. Careful soil management can permit
safe food production from felds contaminated with
potentially toxic elements. For example, copper
and zinc become increasingly available for plant
uptake at low soil pH levels. Increasing the soil
pH decreases the availability and toxicity of these
elements.
Other Environmental Concerns
Irrigation practices can cause soil and water
degradation and food contamination if not used
carefully. Water from streams that run past animal
agricultural operations can be contaminated with
nutrients and pathogens if the livestock farm does
not use environmentally sound manure management
practices. Use of contaminated water in irrigation
practices can compromise food safety if this water
comes in contact with edible parts of the crop.
Applying irrigation water at inappropriate times
or in excessive amounts can promote the leaching
or runoff of nitrogen, phosphorus, and other
crop nutrients. Irrigation water should be applied
in amounts appropriate to the soil type and the
growth stage of the crop. It also should not be
applied prior to the incorporation of manure or
compost into the soil, especially on sloping soils.
Monitoring irrigation water and tracking the rate of
evapotranspiration are key irrigation management
strategies.
Particularly in arid areas, irrigation practices can
cause heavy metals, salts, and other contaminants
to become concentrated in surface soil. Water
added to the soil absorbs minerals, which move
upward in the soil profle as water is lost from
the soil surface through evaporation. When water
evaporates, the absorbed minerals are left on the soil
surface. Keeping soils cool and protected against
evaporation can conserve water within the soil while
minimizing concerns associated with the upward
movement of salts and contaminants.
Inappropriate or contaminated soil amendments.
Soils can become degraded or unacceptable for
organic production if inappropriate or contaminated
soil amendments are used. Some amendments
that were labeled as organic prior to the National
Organic Program may no longer be acceptable since
they contain secret or inert ingredients or other
substances not approved under the new federal
standards. While bloodmeal and bonemeal are not
currently restricted by the U.S. National Organic
Standards, it is interesting to note that the Canadian
Standard for Organic Agriculture restricts the use of
these materials and requires that they be obtained
from organically raised livestock and composted.
Concerns are also being raised regarding the use
of soybean and canola meal as fertilizers and soil
amendments for organic crop production because of
the prevalence of genetically engineered soybeans
and canola.
For production as well as certifcation purposes,
the farmer should ascertain the source of materials
used to produce compost applied to felds. Recently,
the pesticides clopyralid and picloram have been
traced to various urban composting operations,
to hayfelds, and to manure from animals grazing
on treated hayfelds. In the state of Washington,
composts containing these pesticides were
being provided as soil amendments to backyard
gardeners and organic growers. Unfortunately,
the pesticides, which are used for weed control
on lawns, in pastures, and along utility right-of-
ways, are very persistent in the environment and
very toxic to plants. These pesticides do not break
down during composting, and when ingested
by animals, pass into the urine quickly without
signifcant degradation. Small concentrations of
these pesticides in composts or straw mulch cause
plants to become bushy rather than grow vertically.
They also prevent fruit set, and promote abnormal
formation of side shoots. Plants most susceptible
to toxicity from these products are sunfowers,
legumes such as peas and beans, and solanaceous
plants such as peppers, tomatoes, and potatoes.
Plastic. Plastic materials are commonly used in
vegetable and fruit production as a mulch, for
row covers, and to kill weed seeds and other pests
through soil solarization. As a mulch, plastic warms
up the soil, allowing for earlier crop production;
reduces evaporation, leaching, and waterlogging
of soils; deters weed growth; protects against soil
compaction; and enhances growth by increasing
the concentration of carbon dioxide in the soil.
Like plastic mulches, plastic row covers allow for
earlier crop production, increased yields, enhanced
effciency of water resource use, and decreased
weed growth and soil compaction. In addition,
plastic row covers can protect against certain insect
pests, and buffer plants against cold caused by wind
chill. Clear plastic laid on the soil prior to planting
can increase soil temperatures suffciently to kill
certain weed seeds and plant pests through soil
solarization.
The many advantages of plastic use in
horticultural production unfortunately come with
an environmental price. While plastics reduce
leaching and water-logging of covered soils, they
also concentrate water that cannot soak through the
plastic into the soil. This concentrated water fows
off the plastic and forms erosive streams. USDA
researchers determined that felds mulched with
plastic exhibited four times more water runoff and
up to 15 times more soil erosion than felds mulched
with organic materials.
Disposal of plastic mulch poses an additional
environmental problem. To prevent semi-degraded
plastics from becoming incorporated into the soil,
the National Organic Standards require removal
of plastic mulches from beds at the end of the
production season. Mulch removal is tedious and
dirty work, and good methods for plastic disposal
or recycling are lacking. Soiled plastics cannot
currently be recycled economically. Consequently,
plastic users are forced to dispose of this material
through incineration, burying on the farm, or
landflling. Burning requires costly fuel and labor,
emits toxins into the air, and forms an unsightly,
diffcult-to-handle pile of plastic residues. Several
states require permits for open burning. Burying
plastic on the farm may limit future land use and
lower the value of your land since plowing or
digging into these soils may expose the buried
materials. Public landflling can be costly and is
ultimately unsustainable.
Alternatives to plastic mulches include
biodegradable paper mulches and living mulch
crops. Many paper mulches developed to date are
unacceptable since they tear and degrade before
the end of the growing season. Other experimental
products are cost-prohibitive. However, the USDA
Agricultural Research Service (ARS) is currently
testing a brown paper coated with vegetable oils and
getting positive results.
Living mulches under examination include white
clover, perennial rye grass, and hairy vetch.
Advantages of organic mulches compared to plastic
mulches is that they build up organic matter in the
soil and may decrease pest populations by providing
habitat for benefcial insects.
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Summary
Organic farmers protect against contamination of
water by using practices that conserve and recycle
nutrients within the farming system. Such practices
are most effective and sustainable when they are
implemented as part of an integrated, systems-based
approach.
Maintaining nutrient balances within felds while
minimizing water fows onto felds from off farm
areas, keeping water within felds, and capturing
any water that fows away from felds will
conserve nutrients on the farm while protecting the
environment.
Using a diversity of plants as rotation crops,
cover crops, and intercrops enhances soil quality,
facilitates nutrient capture, and helps recycle
nutrients that would otherwise be leached through
the soil. These crops also provide soil cover, which
encourages water infltration and decreases the
potential for nutrient runoff and erosion.
Building up stores of active organic matter and
diverse communities of soil organisms will enhance
soil storage of nutrient reserves while decreasing the
potential for transport of these nutrients to ground or
surface waters. Composting organic materials will
provide a more uniform nutrient and organic-matter
source that is less likely to cause biosecurity risks
than fresh manure. During storage, both manure
and compost piles should be sited on concrete
slabs or soils with a low leaching potential and
with collection or treatment areas for contaminated
runoff water. By using practices that conserve
nutrients in your crop felds, you are also protecting
the environmental quality of nearby streams, lakes,
and rivers.
by Dan Kittredge
On the weekend of December 7-9 this author
attended the 32
nd
annual Acres USA conference in
St. Paul, Minnesota. The location was conventional
enough -- a big downtown hotel -- but attendees
and material were far from ordinary. For those who
do not know of Acres USA, the organization is
something of a sister organization to the NOFAs.
They use the term eco-agriculture instead of
our term organic but the underlying principles,
philosophies and type of people attracted are
very similar. Acres has, over its 35+ year history,
attracted more large-scale commodity farmers and
aims at a national audience.
Being a dyed-in-the-wool organic farmer, my
frst concern was to understand the practical
implications of the different terms organic and
eco-ag. Coming away from the conference, the
oversimplifed defnition I would give to eco-ag
is an agriculture that works in harmony with lifes
forces to facilitate as healthy and bountiful a soil,
crop, and/or animal as possible. I presume most
organic farmers would feel comfortable with such a
defnition of their practices.
The essence of what I picked up from the
conference was: 1) a tangible scientifc
understanding of what lifes forces are, and 2)
techniques and technologies for practically utilizing
them to maximize the vitality and abundance of a
crop. I hope to outline some of these basics in this
article.
The theme of the conference was Nutrient Dense
Crops. The implicit point being that the objective
of agriculture is to produce crops as rich in healthful
attributes as possible, and that such an objective
is the starting point from which all management
decisions should be made.
In Arden Andersons talk, it was noted that 80% of
the organic food on the market today is nutritionally
no better than conventionally available food. As he
laid it out, the objective of eco-ag is to produce
high brix or nutritionally dense food.
For those who have not heard of the term, brix is a
measure of dissolved solids, or sugar and mineral
content, and high brix correlates to sweet tasting,
high mineral content, low nitrate, low water content,
high protein, greater specifc gravity, better storage
and better insect resistant crops.
Arden Andersons critique, which seemed to a
certain extent aimed at organic farmers, is that
philosophy is accentuated over product. According
to him, the coming international food quality
standard is about foods nutritional value and
not procedure or rhetoric. In fact, last year Japan
refused kiwi fruit from New Zealand because of low
brix. Apparently it is physiologically impossible
to have high nutrient density, balance and
comprehensiveness, and low brix. He claimed that
the new paradigm is outcome based management.
Outcome is the determining criterion for success.
This seemed to me an interesting point. When I
was working on a biodynamic farm in Siberia, I
remember the farmer I was working with being
amazed that there was no product testing done in the
US to validate the organic nature of crops. Although
that conversation was specifcally in reference to
confrming a lack of toxins, a positive standard of
nutrient density does seem to be the objective that
Nutrient Dense Crops A Report from Acres USA
organic farmers are striving for. With all of the
conversation these days about local vs. organic, it
seems that absolute quality is the objective that we
are striving for. If a high level of nutrient density,
vitality, enzyme activity etc. are the objective
standards that determine the quality that we want to
attain, it seems that brix may be a valuable piece of
the puzzle for us to begin to understand.
Brix can be measured in the feld with a
refractometer (cost $100 and up) and testing it
along with a series of other markers like plant sap
and soil pH, conductivity, nitrogen and potassium
availability can lead to management decisions that
maximize yield as well as avoid insect and fungal
infestations. There is a relatively specifc set of
growing conditions that maximize crop yield and
nutrition density, and inexpensive tools are available
for use by farmers who want to manage their crops
to achieve these ends.
Reams and Albrecht
There seemed to be two schools of thought
dominant at the conference on techniques for
monitoring and amending soils. These were
propounded by followers of the theories of William
Albrecht and those of Carey Reams. I found myself
to be more attracted to the Reams Method school
and emphasis here is on that analysis. For starters
they use different soil tests.
The Albrecht soil test is done using strong acids.
This determines all of the elements and compounds
in the soil, but due to the intensity of the acid the
test shows materials that are not available to plants.
This is the test that is typically done -- what you will
get done if you send your soil to a university for
analysis.
The Reams soil test is done using a diluted carbonic
acid whose intensity is based on the strength
of acids exuded by plant roots. This shows not
everything that is in the soil, but what is in the soil
that is available to plants. This test is known as a
LaMotte test, and Johnnys and Fedco sell them.
They can also be done by International Ag Labs in
Minnesota at www.aglabs.com.
The metaphor used in describing these two is that
the Albrecht test shows the savings account, and the
Reams test shows the checking account. Checking
being what is available for use, and Savings being
what is there, but not necessarily available for use.
It seems rather stunning to me that every soil test
I have seen has been done in a way which has
no correlation to what is actually biologically
available in the soil. This is probably the case
with most everyone reading this article. Unless
you specifcally have a LaMotte test done of your
soil, the conventional soil test is the one developed
by William Albrecht and which does not show
biologically available nutrients. This started me off
on the path to understanding what else Reams had to
say. Here are some of the highlights:
One of the principles he discovered was that
the minerals in the soil need to be not only in
proper quantity but also in proper ratio with each
other. Specifcally: there should be a minimum of
3000 pounds per acre of calcium in the soil, with
5000 being a good level. The ratio of calcium to
magnesium, however, needs to be at least 7:1. If it
is less than that the soil will become compacted and
nitrogen will be dissipated. These numbers are of
course biologically available ratios, which may be
different than present in the Albrecht soil numbers.
If you have grass weeds you have a calcium issue.
A 7:1 calcium to magnesium ratio in the soil will
control this problem.
Calcium defciencies will show up in hollow
stems, soil compaction, poor growth, and low brix.
Suffcient phosphate is necessary for high sugar/
brix content.
If you have broadleaf weeds, you have a phosphate
to potash ratio problem.
Phosphorous defciencies will show up as purpling,
poor fruit set, defciencies of minerals even if they
are present in the soil, and low brix
Weeds and conventional food crops do not grow
well on the same soil. This is because weeds grow
Arden Andersen and Graeme Sait together
primarily in symbiotic relationships with microbes,
and crops grow in symbiotic relationship with
fungi. As soils become denuded, microbial activity
becomes dominant in the soil medium and thus
weed growth is accentuated and crops become
weaker and more susceptible to infestation. In
a healthy soil it is the weeds that will become
infested.
For row crops which are being grown for seed
you need a 1:1 Potassium to phosphorus ratio, or
equivalently a 2:1 Phosphate to potassium oxide
ratio. This correlates to 400 and 200 pounds per acre
available of each of these nutrients, respectively.
For crops that are harvested for their leaves this
is correspondingly a 2:1 or 4:1 ratio for pure
potassium to phosphorus and Phosphate: potassium
oxide.
Crops grown for seed prefer the ammonia form
of nitrogen and crops grown for leaf like nitrate
nitrogen.
Plant sap pH needs to be at 6.4. This is a guideline
for enzymatic breakdown of carbohydrates, risk
of insect damage, risk of foliar disease attack,
nutritional balance, quality of produce, and shelf
life.
If the sap is over 6.4, then the likely imbalance is
one of anions of nitrogen, phosphate, or sulpher. At
a pH of 8 there is a 100% chance of insect attack.
If the pH is lower than 6.4 there is a cation
problem which is probably a defciency of calcium,
magnesium, potassium, or sodium. Low pH means
fungal problems, and at 4.5 there is a 100% chance
of fungal attack.
Graeme Sait
The best workshop of the conference for me was
by far one put on by a consultant from Australia
named Graeme Sait. Here are some notes from his
workshop that fll out the information from Reams.
Nutrition Farming (his term for nutrient dense
farming) produces nutrient dense food with a
favor forgotten in todays available foodstuffs,
with an extended shelf life. Nutrition farming
utilizes a functional hybrid of conventional and
organic worlds with the objective of productivity,
proftability, and sustainability.
Do It Yourself plant therapy includes sap analysis,
leaf analysis, and then a foliar feed
Use a refractometer to measure brix level, which
is dissolved solids, or sugar and mineral content.
Higher sugar means lower freezing point. Brix
indicates soil fertility, i.e. suffcient phosphate and
calcium determine brix.
Storms and impending weather changes will lower
brix readings. Droughts raise the readings since
water content is low.
Suffcient humus will retain brix through stressful
times.
Brix is lower in the mornings and higher in the
afternoon, as plants bring sugars down at night.
Use refractometer to test the suitability of a foliar
spray. Test a plant, then spray it with the foliar spray
and test an hour later. If the brix has gone up, then it
is benefcial.
Foliar spraying should be done between the 3
rd

and 6
th
leaf stages, as growing leaves absorb more
readily.
Foliar feeding is a good stress reliever, especially
after transplanting, hail, wind, heat or drought.
Foliar feeding should occur when the temperatures
are between 50 and 85.
The plant sap conductivity meter indicates levels
of simple ion uptake.
Two elements limiting yield are nitrogen and
potassium. Right amounts are necessary, and
excesses or defciencies will limit yields. The
Horiba Nitrogen meter takes the guess work out of
nitrogen monitoring.
Potassium is the fruit fller. A shortage will
guarantee that yields will suffer. An excess ties up
magnesium and boron. Horiba makes a plant sap
potassium meter as well.
Infrared sensor. Use the sensor to take a reading
from a piece of white paper that is at the ambient
temperature. Then take the temperature of the
leaf surface. The leaf surface should be cooler,
as it is using water to cool itself. If it is the same
temperature or warmer, the plant is water stressed.
Sait even had a recipe for free nitrogen. As over
70 percent of the atmosphere is nitrogen, he claimed
that as long as the following pieces are in place
there is little if any need to add nitrogen to crops.
The pieces are a good calcium/magnesium ratio, an
adequate supply of soluble phosphate, soluble iron,
molybdenum and cobalt.
So the essence of the conference was this: use a
LaMotte soil test to asses the status of your soil.
Use the recommendations of Reams to bring
the soil closer to ideal balance via amendments.
Throughout the season test the plants to determine
what imbalances are present and correct via foliar
feeding. The result will be nutritionally dense,
A digital refractometer
extremely favorful, long shelf life produce. Pretty
simple, eh?
All of this is information that I was not aware of. I
assume that I am not alone and hope that it intrigues
others to look deeper into it. I talked to numerous
farmers and consultants who had had amazing
results using these basic principles to balance their
felds and produce bumper crops. Here is a list
of websites, companies and other materials that
should prove educational to those intrigued by this
information.
According to Arden Anderson, authors whose work
is central to fully understanding soil are Albrecht,
Anderson, Brunetti, Callahan, Chabossou, Ingham,
Kinsey, Reams, Steiner, Skow, Tanio, Wheeler,
and Zimmer. Many of the books of these authors
are available at www.acresusa.com. I have found
Mainline Farming for the 21
st
Century by Dan
Skow, a student of Reams, to be a good overview of
the Reams method and theory. Nutrition Rules by
Graeme Sait is a very good synopsis of their seminal
thoughts, through personal interviews, of many of
the authors on this list. Science in Agriculture by
Arden Andersen is also very good. All of these are
available at Acres.
As was noted earlier in the article, there are two
agricultural consulting groups that I met that seemed
very knowledgeable, and reasonable in price. They
will do a soil test for you, recommend amendments,
and otherwise assist in balancing your soil. They
are International Ag Labs in Fairmont Minnesota
at www.aglabs.com. Crop Services International in
Grand Rapids Michigan will do a radionics LaMotte
test, but not a chemical one. They are at www.
cropservicesintl.com.
If you are inspired to buy one or more of the meters
mentioned in this article, Pike Agri Lab supply in
Maine at www.pikeagri.com was the distributor
that I met at the conference that I found most
knowledgeable and reasonable. Pike also has some
interesting books for sale that I have not seen in
other places that get into more of the hard science of
the Reams method.
Dan Kittredge is Manager of Spencer Brook Farm
in Concord Ma, www.spencerbrookfarm.com and
Executive Director of the environmental non-proft
Remineralize the Earth. www.remineralize.org. He
can be reached at dkittredge@remineralize.org
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the adults. If your group would like such an
opportunity, contact Julie Rawson at (978) 355-
2853 or julie@nofamass.org by March 15.

Do You Want to Exhibit at the NOFA Summer
Conference?

Spread your wares where all can see. We are
seeking exhibitors for the annual NOFA Summer
Conference. Outdoor space and tables in the
tent available. Exhibits are open to all 1,200
plus attendees for the three day conference.
Exhibit prices are in two tiers: one includes
a free registration with access to all conference
workshops and activities. The other tier is
more economical just buy exhibit space and
skip the workshops. Interested? Please contact
Katie Campbell-Nelson at 413-337-4327 or at
katiecampbellnelson@gmail.com.
continued from page 1 Seeking Sponsors to Help Support Summer
Conference

Help support the great work of spreading the word
on organic farming, agriculture, landscaping, animal
and garden care, homesteading, etc. at our annual
Summer Conference. Receive recognition in our
conference program book, which is usually kept by
attendees throughout the year, and support the 33rd
annual summer conference. To sponsor the NOFA
summer conference contact Katie Campbell-Nelson
see contact info under Exhibitors.

Want to Advertise in our Program Book?

It is a wonderful way for people to see you.
Those who attend usually keep the Program Book
throughout the year as a great reference guide.
Spread the word about your business to over 1,200
people. To fnd out more info regarding how to
advertise, contact Katie Campbell-Nelson see
contact info under Exhibitors above.

Keep an eye on the nofamass.org website as we
add forms and information for the upcoming 2007
conference.

Attention Certifed Organic Northeastern
Farmers

As in past years NOFA will feature a meal made
entirely from organic ingredients produced in the
Northeast at its annual summer conference. If you
are interested in showcasing your farms produce
or other products by selling us ingredients for this
meal, please contact John Ferris at (413) 624-5172
or j_david_ferris@hotmail.com.

We will keep you posted as further news happens.
We look forward to seeing you in August. Hope
youre all staying warm these days of winter, and
as we move into Spring!
by Rebecca Wood
Its diffcult to get the average American interested
in participating in Local Agriculture. You can tell
the average American about GM foods, terminator
seeds, the malicious economic destruction of family
farms, annual subsidies of billons to agribusiness,
confnement factory farming of livestock, mad cow
disease, e. coli poisoning, the subversion of labor
laws by agribusiness, the subversion of immigration
laws by agribusiness, and the dependence of the
food system on petroleum, and it doesnt matter to
the average person.
However, according to the American Diabetes
Association, 20.8 million Americans, or 7% of
Americans, are afficted with diabetes. This is one in
14 Americans.
There are foods such as Jerusalem artichokes that
are likely able to reduce the frequency of insulin
shots for diabetics. I have anecdotal (non-scientifc)
evidence of two diabetics who were able to skip
shots (of insulin) as a result of eating Jerusalem
artichokes which I provided to them.
Therefore, I would urge organic farmers in New
England to specialize in supplying the following
vegetables that help regulate blood sugar and
therefore are good for people with hypoglycemia
and diabetes:
Bitter Melon - As its name suggests, bitter melon
tastes bitter. It is not, however, a melon. Its a
summer squash similar in size and shape to a
cucumber but with skin and fesh the color of pale
jade. Bitter melon has a lumpy, ridged skin. It is
a traditional diabetic remedy throughout the Far
East. In clinical tests bitter melon inhibits glucose
absorption, increases insulin fow and has insulin-
like effects. It is available in Asian and growers
markets and in a supplement form. Asian bitter
melon recipes use salt to eliminate the vegetables
bitter favor.
Fenugreek - A popular spice throughout the Middle
East and India, this legume is a common curry
ingredient. Fenugreek is smaller than a grain of
wheat, mustard yellow in color, and oddly shaped. It
helps regulate sugar levels of non-insulin-dependent
diabetics. Enjoy fenugreek as a tea or a spice. Or
sprout these little seeds and substitute them for
alfalfa sprouts in salads and sandwiches.
Stevia - A South American herb 30 times sweeter
than sugar, stevia helps regulate blood sugar and
blood pressure. It also suppresses dental bacteria
and reduces mental and physical fatigue. I fnd
stevia easiest to use as a beverage sweetener. Its
available in natural food stores in numerous forms.
It is most healthful as a cut herb rather than when
its refned into a liquid extract or blended with
other sweeteners.
Food Medicine for Diabetes
and What it Means for Local Agriculture
Sunfower Family Root Vegetables - The roots of
sunfower relatives contain inulin, a natural fructose
that helps diabetics lower their blood sugar. They
include burdock, chicory, dandelion, Jerusalem
artichoke, salsify and scorzonera. Burdock and
Jerusalem artichokes are available in the produce
section of most natural food stores. Youll fnd
burdock, chicory, and dandelion as dried herbs or
in tinctures. Salsify and scorzonera are occasionally
available with imported produce or theyre easy to
grow in your garden. In temperate regions you may
forage chicory, dandelion, Jerusalem artichokes and
salsify root.
Onion Family - All onion family members help
regulate sugar so use them daily and with abandon.
They include garlic, leeks, onions, ramps and
scallions., You may also consider supplementing
with garlic powder, which is available in numerous
forms.
May you be well nourished.
More on
Jerusalem
Artichokes
by Rob Freeman
35 Easy St.,
Plainfeld, CT 06374
Of all these, Jerusalem artichokes are a sure bet
and are very easy to grow. They can be kept in the
ground until they are ready for harvest and sale,
even from under the snow. Jerusalem artichokes are
heavy feeders and can be invasive; however, they
are proven to help people with diabetes.
When you sell Jerusalem artichokes, you should
advise your clients how to prepare them in order to
get the dirt taste out of them. First of all, spray
them off. Second, scrub them well with a vegetable
brush. Third, put them in cold water, boil the water,
then change the water and boil again until the
Jerusalem artichokes are moderately cooked like
boiled potatoes. Try not to overcook them.
Jerusalem artichokes can be eaten boiled or raw, as
long as you can get the dirt taste out of them. Raw
Jerusalem artichokes grated in salads is a good way
to take them. It must be remembered that this is a
medicinal food and should not suffer prejudice if
you dont like the taste. If you are diabetic and dont
like insulin shots, you should do whatever you can
to include Jerusalem artichokes in your diet.
Organic farmers should talk to local health food
stores about marketing to diabetics. The Connecticut
chapter of the American Diabetes Association
(Louise Butcher) has not replied to my inquiries, but
people on the street suffering from diabetes, as well
as health food stores, are very interested in food
medicine for diabetes.
I have Jerusalem artichokes already, and I recently
acquired seeds for funugreek and btter melon. If you
would like more information or assistance, either
as an organic farmer, a diabetic, or both, please
contact me through by blog at http://locallygrownet.
blogspot.com
Biodynamic Farming & Gardening Association
25844 butler road, junction city or 97448
(888)516-7797; fax: (541)998-0106;
biodynamic@aol.com; www.biodynamics.com
Working for Social Renewal Through Agriculture
biodynamic farming &
gardening association
Biodynamics, the oldest non-chemical agricultural
movement, seeks to actively work with health-giving
forces of nature. Join with us in the renewal of agriculture,
health, and nutrition. To support our efforts, consider an
annual membership, which includes a subscription to the
quarterly BIODYNAMICS and discounts on our books and
conferences. Membership cost is $45.00. To receive an in-
formation packet and a copy of our book catalog, please
call, write or e-mail us at:
by Anne and Eric Nordell
Peak Oil has sounded the alarm that in just a matter
of years half of the easily extracted oil in the world
will be consumed. We cant help feeling that Peak
Water should also be the rallying cry of the new
millennium. After all, half of the readily available
potable water across much of the globe has already
been used or polluted.
Agriculture has suffered as a result of this dwindling
resource, especially in areas dependent on pumping
fossil water. At the same time, farming has been
a major contributor to Peak Water. Irrigation
represents the lions share of the rapid increase in
worldwide water consumption.
With an average annual precipitation of 42 inches
here in north-central Pennsylvania, we can hardly
complain about lack of moisture. In fact, when
we moved to the area in 1982, the neighboring
dairy farmers assured us there would be plenty of
rainfall for growing vegetables. Not realizing the
big difference in moisture requirements between
feld crops and produce, we naively decided against
digging a well and purchasing irrigation equipment.
Instead, we focused on preserving soil moisture.
For the past 24 growing seasons, we have used the
dryland practices described in this article to direct
seed and transplant vegetables all season long
without irrigation. Although we consistently get
good stands of produce, we must admit that most of
our crops yield better in wet weather.
Nevertheless, our farm income has increased every
year without expanding acreage despite the long
stretches of dry weather we have experienced
in recent years. Possibly some of the following
moisture preserving ideas will be helpful to farmers
making do with limited access to irrigation water
or simply desiring to reduce the size of their
hydrological footprint.
Organic Matter
Like most organic growers, we try to maintain a
respectable percentage of organic matter in the soil.
Adequate levels of humus are particularly important
for dryland market gardening because organic
matter acts like a sponge in the soil, absorbing
excess moisture and holding it until the crops need
it.
We maintain soil organic matter by taking half of
the market garden out of production each year just
to grow soil-building cover crops. Although it may
not be realistic to expect large increases in organic
matter from cover crops alone, our experience
suggests that growing two mature annual cover
crops in the fallow year following each cash crop
can offset most of the organic matter loss associated
with intensively cultivated vegetables. At least,
regular soil testing indicates that the soil organic
matter in the market garden averages 3.5% despite
regular use of bare fallow periods and preplant
tillage for weed control. By comparison, the
adjacent permanent pasture, which has not been
tilled in over 30 years, tests just one-half per cent
higher than the market garden in organic matter.
Crop consultants often recommend that vegetables
should receive at least an inch of water a week.
Soil scientists, on the other hand, claim that each
percent of organic matter in the topsoil can hold
an inch of rainfall. If both rules-of-thumb are in
any way accurate, then a soil containing 3 - 4%
organic matter should be able to absorb 3 - 4 inches
of rainfall and supply the vegetables with adequate
moisture for at least 3 - 4 weeks.
Conserving Your Moisture:
Dryland Market Gardening
Soil Structure
We can increase the moisture-holding capacity of
the land by making sure that water moves freely
between the topsoil and subsoil. Deep tillage is
often used to improve infltration and drainage.
On heavier clay soils this sort of mechanical
manipulation may be necessary to improve soil
structure. The improvements in moisture movement
from tillage, however, are often short-lived and
sometimes counterproductive if working the soil
degrades the natural crumb structure of the soil
or creates large clods and air spaces that impede
capillary action.
Instead of using deep tillage to improve soil
structure, we rely on the extensive root systems
of the fallow year cover crops to aggregate our
silt-loam topsoil and open up the red clay subsoil.
Conditioning the land with cover crops allows
rainfall to go deeply into the earth and to return to
the surface as the soil dries out.
The Six Week Rule
Taking half of the market garden out of production
each year makes it possible to realize the full soil-
structuring potential of the cover crops well ahead
of planting the vegetables. This is important because
the cover crops can remove a lot of soil moisture
from the soil during their peak vegetative growth
stage. In fact, the ground may be bone dry by the
time the cover crops have produced the bulk of their
above and below ground biomass.
For this reason we make it a point to kill the
cover crops at least six weeks before planting the
vegetables. Call us lucky, but so far we have been
able to count on at last one moisture-restoring rain
during this six week period. In the future, it may be
necessary to extend this moisture collection period
to 8 or 10 weeks to compensate for the increasing
extremes in the weather.
Killing the cover crops does not necessarily require
intensive, soil drying tillage. For example, crimping,
mowing, or shallowly undercutting an annual cover
photo courtesy Eric and Anne Nordell
Knocking down a cover crop of rye and hairy vetch with a lightweight disc
six weeks before planting fall vegetables.
Fall crops of carrots, broccoli and kale planted after disced down rye and vetch during the
hot, dry summer of 2002.
crop in early bloom is usually suffcient to kill the
cover crop and prevent it from taking more moisture
out of the ground. For example, we use these non-
invasive techniques to kill a cover crop of rye and
hairy vetch the third or fourth week of May, six
weeks before planting the frst of the fall vegetables
in the middle of July. Knocking down the cover crop
when the rye is well headed out and the vetch is
fowering also creates a signifcant cover crop mulch
on the soil surface, preserving the rainfall received
during this critical six week moisture collection
period leading up to the hottest and driest part of the
growing season.
Killing cover crops at least six weeks before
planting spring vegetables is even easier. We simply
use frost sensitive covers that naturally dieback
over winter. Winter killed cover crops, such as oats
and spring feld peas, or sorghum-Sudan grass and
forage soybeans, guarantee a dead root system and
cover crop mulch well before spring arrives. This
conserves the whole winter store of moisture. The
key is planting these cold sensitive covers the frst
part of August in order to maximize their top growth
and root system before the onset of winter.
Shallow Tillage
We limit tillage to the top 2 3 inches of the soil
for three moisture-related reasons. First, it only
takes a week or two of hot, windy weather on our
exposed, hilltop site to dry the soil to tillage depth.
Consequently, we till only as deeply as necessary
to form an adequate seedbed for planting and
cultivating.
Second, restricting the depth of tillage keeps the soil
structure developed by the cover crops root system
intact, insuring that the subsoil moisture can wick
up to the root zone of the vegetables via capillary
action. Maintaining soil structure with surface
tillage also allows the roots of the vegetables to
grow quickly and deeply in search of water.
Third, working the earth shallowly keeps the cover
crop residues in the top two inches of the soil. The
resulting cover crop mulch prevents the moisture
moving up from the subsoil from reaching the soil
surface and evaporating. Shallow tillage also stops
capillary action from releasing moisture to the
atmosphere by creating a 1 2 inch mulch of loose,
dry soil. At our site the combination of a cover crop
mulch and an earth mulch is much more effective at
holding in moisture just below the soil surface than
relying on just one or the other of these moisture-
conserving practices.
Dryland Planting
To transplant vegetables without irrigation, we use
a one-inch wide shovel on the cultivator to mark a
narrow planting furrow through the dry cover crop/
earth mulch into the moist, undisturbed soil beneath.
Then we set the starts in this slit in the soil, making
sure the roots are frmed into the moist earth below
and covered with the dry earth mulch and cover
crop residues. Using this simple method, we do not
need to water in the starts, and we rarely ever lose a
plant to transplant shock.
Direct seeding vegetables without irrigation can
be more challenging. During long stretches of
hot, windy weather it is often necessary to move
the dry layer of the cover crop/earth mulch out of
the planting zone before shallowly planting small
seeded crops like carrots, spinach and salad mix.
One way we do this is to imitate the lister planting
techniques developed in the arid parts of the US.
We use a middlebuster-style V-like shovel on the
cultivator to move the dry mulch materials to the
sides of the planting row, exposing a narrow band of
moist, residue-free soil ideal for trouble-free seeding
with the walk-behind Planet Jr.
Natural Farmer 4.875w x 7.5h | DL: 013107 | jhmelchior@optonline.net | 845-883-0038
Biodynamic
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Gardening
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WORKSHOPS!
Lacto-Fermentation; PowerKraut
and More: Hands-on workshop: learn
about the process, science and health
benets(sauerkraut, kim chi, daikon,
beans honey wine, kombucha and
more). Saturday March 10, 9 to 5
The Role of Raised Beds in the
FarmOrganism: Hands-on workshop
covering principles and practical details
of biodynamic eld & garden vegetable
production. Handwork methods and larger scale tractor tech-
niques. Saturday, April 21, 9 to 5
The Role of the Horse in the Farm Organism: The basic
nature and care of the horse, harness and equipment. Work with
grooming, harnessing and a variety of practical tasks including
logging, plowing, discing, working raised beds, etc. Saturday,
June 2, 9 to 5
260 Hungry Hollow Road
Chestnut Ridge, NY 10977
THE
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Alternating rows of spring spinach and peas planted into a
surface-tilled cover crop of winterkilled oats and peas.
One drawback to lister planting is that the crop ends
up below ground level, making cultivation much
more of a challenge. To minimize this problem
we sometimes plant the cover crops on ridges so
when we use the large V-like shovel to move the
cover crop/mulch off the ridgetops we end up
with a narrow band of moist, clean soil for direct
seeding an inch or two above ground level. With
either method of dryland planting some sort of crop
protection, such as rolling or hanging shields, is
necessary to prevent burying small, slow-growing
vegetables with the cover crop residues during
cultivation.
Cultivation
Our primary objective as dryland market gardeners
is to preserve enough moisture to get the crops off to
a good start. We use cover crops and shallow tillage
to hold moisture near the soil surface for direct
seeding and transplanting vegetables every week of
the growing season.
After planting the produce we rely on the cultivator
to maintain a moisture-conserving earth mulch
during the frst few critical weeks of establishment.
The idea is to get into the feld with the cultivator
after each packing rain to loosen the sealed soil
and reestablish the mulch of loose earth around the
young plants. Not coincidentally, timing cultivation
to follow shortly after rainfall does a good job of
weed control as well as moisture preservation.
Ground Cover
Depending on the crop and the soil temperature,
we stop cultivating to preserve soil moisture 2 6
weeks after planting the vegetables and turn our
attention to creating more permanent forms of
ground cover. In the case of long term, high value
produce, we think it is worth the time and expense
to apply a thick mulch of straw between the crop
rows. We may use as much as 4 5 tons of clean
wheat straw per acre to provide full season moisture
retention.
For short term or low value vegetables, we fnd it
more economical to apply a much lighter mulch or
straw in the pathways. As little as one ton to the acre
is adequate to minimize runoff and partially shade
the soil.
Although not as effective at holding in moisture, we
use living mulches to provide soil cover for most of
our vegetables because planting the living mulches
involves so much less labor and expense compared
to hand spreading straw.
Our favorite living mulch is hairy vetch, seeded in
a single row down the middle of the pathways. This
single-row interseeding system concentrates all the
vetch roots in the center of the pathways well away
from the crop, preventing the vetch from competing
directly with the vegetables for either nutrients
or moisture. At the same time, the prostrate vetch
vines slowly but surely form a ground hugging
mat, providing suffcient ground cover within 4 6
weeks of interseeding to shade the pathways and
minimize runoff.
Low Weed Pressure
Good weed management is essential to make
sure that the vegetables get the full beneft of all
the preserved rainfall. Low weed pressure is also
necessary for implementing many of the practices
we use to conserve moisture. For example, utilizing
shallow tillage and cultivation to form cover crop/
earth mulches would not be possible if perennial
weeds were a major problem. Likewise, high
numbers of annual broadleaf weeds would rule out
the use of living mulches or light applications of
straw to provide ground cover.
Keep in mind that the six week moisture collection
period between killing the cover crop and planting
the vegetables provides a window of opportunity
to use shallow tillage to germinate and kill a
generation or two of annual weeds before the
produce goes in the ground. We also use this stale
seedbed technique between cover crops in the
fallow year preceding each crop of vegetables to
reduce the number of weed seeds in the soil. As a
result, most of our felds are now virtually weedfree.
Low weed pressure, in turn, has made it possible
to develop what we think is the ultimate minimum-
till system for managing moisture in both wet and
dry conditions. We begin in August by planting a
winter-killed cover crop or oats on ridges roughly 5
6 inches high and 32 34 inches wide. Early the
next spring we plant the vegetables directly into the
dead cover crop on the ridgetops, adding enough
wheat straw in the valleys for full season moisture
retention.
Sweet onions and leeks with a single-row interseeding of hairy vetch
providing 80% ground cover.
For vegetables planted later in the spring or early
summer, we lightly till the ridgetops to prevent the
ridges from drying out. Loosening the ridgetops also
enhances soil warming and aeration, and facilitates
direct seeding and transplanting.
Based on fve years experience with very extreme
weather, we think this minimum-till ridge planting
system provides the vegetables with the best of
both worlds: a warm and well drained root zone
on the ridgetops during cold, wet weather; and a
large reserve of soil moisture under the mulch in the
valleys for the crops to draw on when conditions
turn hot and dry.
Single Rows
Perhaps our most controversial moisture conserving
practice is planting all of the vegetables we grow in
single rows 32 inch apart. In our situation moisture
is a more limiting resource than land, so it makes
sense for us to provide every crop, even small
canopied vegetables like cutting lettuce and spinach,
with a large reservoir of soil moisture. The payoff is
that we can grow heads of leaf lettuce to market size
without rainfall or irrigation.
Planting all the crops at the same row spacing
also simplifes cultivation so we can quickly and
effciently cultivate the whole market garden to
slow down evaporation after a packing rain. Widely
spaced single rows also make it much easier to
manipulate lots of moisture-conserving cover
crop residues around tender vegetables with the
cultivator, to apply straw mulches by hand in the
pathways, and to manage the minimum-till ridge
planting method.
Many of our reasons for using single rows would
be negated if the cover crops were chopped into
small pieces with a fail mower and then rotovated
shallowly into the soil. This simple change in
the mechanics of feld management should make
it possible to plant and cultivate vegetables in
multiple-row beds and still conserve enough surface
moisture for good crop establishment despite long
periods of dry weather. Although irrigation may
be necessary to fnish out such intensively planted
vegetables, the combination of multiple-row
plantings and dryland practices may lead to the most
effcient and sustainable use of both natural and
man-made water.
Note: Anne and Erics new and improved booklet
of articles, WEED THE SOIL, NOT THE CROP:
A Whole Farm Approach to Weed Management
is now available for $15.00. The price includes
shipping and handling. Please send check or money
order to Anne or Eric, 3410 Rt. 184, Trout Fun, PA
17771.
Annie McCleary, Director, with George Lisi
Plant Spirit Communication
Nature Adventures ~ Herbs and Wild Edibles
Food as Medicine ~ Holistic Living Skills
Certication, Advanced and Winter Programs
802-453-6764 ~ anniemc@gmavt.net
Lincoln, Vermont ~ www.WisdomOfTheHerbsSchool.com
Wisdom of the Herbs School
by Kiki Hubbard
Almost fve years have passed since the National
Organic Program (NOP) made its debut, a day that
was met with both enthusiasm and criticism. While
proponents of the new rules celebrated a uniform
labeling regime, opponents saw the new government
label as a federal usurpation of the word organic.
Even amid controversy, there were several things
the organic agriculture community could agree on,
including this: Genetic engineering (GE) held no
place in the organic movements collective vision
of what constituted an organic production system.
So, when the proposed NOP rule was written to
allow for the use of genetic engineering, the United
States Department of Agriculture (USDA) received
a record number of public comments in opposition
to the proposed rule, and in the end labeled genetic
engineering as an excluded method.
A success, to be sure. But the time has come for the
organic community to address genetic engineering
more directly. A new conversation needs to begin,
because the NOP does not go far enough to protect
the integrity of certifed organic food in the face of
genetic engineering. I think this conversation can
begin with an essential component of the organic
livestock industry: alfalfa.
The frst perennial GE feld crop
Across the U.S., farmers value alfalfa as the most
important forage crop in the U.S. It is grown
throughout the nation, covering over 22 million
acres in 2006, and is the third most economically
valuable crop to U.S. agriculture. Because of
alfalfas pervasiveness in the landscape, and because
it is typically grown as a perennial crop, it provides
important habitat for wildlife. For all these reasons
it is dubbed the Queen of Forages.
In June 2005, the USDA announced its approval
of Roundup Ready (RR) alfalfa. This variety
is herbicide-tolerant, meaning it is genetically
engineered to survive applications of glyphosate,
the active ingredient in the Monsanto Companys
trademark herbicide, Roundup. Monsanto produced
RR alfalfa in partnership with the largest alfalfa
seed company, Forage Genetics International (a
subsidiary of Land OLakes).
For those following the regulatory process for RR
alfalfa, the approval came as no surprise. Other RR
crops--corn, soybeans, cotton, and canola--already
pervade the North American agricultural landscape,
leaving few hurdles in the way of Monsanto and
Forage Genetics to receive regulatory approval
to add a new crop to the RR line. Still, RR alfalfa
poses unique agricultural, environmental, and
economic risks, similar to its RR predecessors, risks
foreign to alfalfa varieties farmers have grown for
decades.
For instance, RR alfalfa is the frst perennial GE
feld crop to be approved for nationwide planting,
so it will be in the ground for at least a few years,
making transgenic pollen and volunteer plants
more diffcult to contain. The only other perennial
to be approved by USDA is a tree: virus resistant
papaya, grown primarily in Hawaii. Containing
GE papaya traits has proven extremely diffcult, if
not impossible, and organic papaya producers have
suffered contamination through cross-pollination
aided by insects and wind. Furthermore, the USDA
is currently performing its frst Environmental
Impact Statement (EIS) on a GE plant, another
perennial: RR creeping bentgrass. The EIS was
spurred by Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
scientists fndings that RR creeping bentgrass had
established itself within wild populations 13 miles
from experimental test plots in Oregon.
Like bentgrass, alfalfa is capable of cross-
pollinating with other alfalfa plants, so transgenic
Coming to the Table: GE Alfalfa
and the Integrity of Organic
DNA from RR felds is nearly certain to contaminate
organic and other non-GE felds. Unwanted
cross-pollination serves as a reminder of the
interconnectedness of things. Honey and leafcutter
bees are important pollinators of alfalfa, and can
transfer the RR trait (in pollen) from one feld to
the next, from RR alfalfa felds to organic and
other non-RR felds. Contamination could ruin
organic alfalfa, as well as other organic and GE-
free markets, including some in the natural beef,
export, sprouting, and honey industries. No law or
regulation requires farmers who plant RR seeds
to create refuge or buffer areas to avoid cross-
pollination with neighbors crops or surrounding
weeds. USDA says that farmers who want to be GE-
free are responsible for preventing contamination of
their crops.
Researchers at Kansas State University studied
alfalfa pollen drift and found that complete
containment of transgenes within alfalfa seed or hay
production felds would be unlikely using current
production practices. Moreover, an extension faculty
member of Washington State University, who has
researched market effects of RR alfalfa, concluded:
It is diffcult to certify that a non-GMO will not
be contaminated if grown in an area where GMO
alfalfa cultivars are produced. Forage Genetics
own studies found that honeybees were capable of
transferring RR alfalfa pollen to other alfalfa plants
over 2.5 miles from test plots.
It would not be surprising, then, if contamination
has already occurred. Between 1998 and 2005,
Monsanto applied for over 300 RR alfalfa feld
trial permits throughout the U.S. According to the
Information Systems for Biotechnology database,
only seven of these notifcations were either
withdrawn or denied. USDA does not put an acreage
limit on feld trials, and while the agency makes
recommendations on how to manage crops (and
contain their pollen and progeny) in feld trials,
these measures are not legally binding. So, pollen
drift may have happened during RR alfalfa feld
trials, and certainly could have entered organic
felds during this time, depending on where the
feld trials were conducted. For example, the state
of Idaho boasts the largest number of certifed
organic alfalfa hay acres, as well as the second
greatest number of RR alfalfa feld trials, potentially
covering thousands of acres. Because farmers are
not given information regarding experimental feld
trials happening in their communities, RR alfalfa
may have entered organic or other non-GE alfalfa
felds unbeknownst to farmers nearby.
A recent audit report by USDAs Inspector General
found that current feld trial oversight is inadequate
on several fronts, including containment of
transgenes. In general, the report concluded that
current regulations, policies and procedures do
not go far enough to ensure the safe introduction
of genetically engineered plants. Evidence of
this shortcoming, of allowing large expanses of
open-air feld trials, is the 2006 discovery of an
unapproved GE rice variety in the food supply--a
variety that was only allowed in feld trial plantings.
Bayer never completed the process for government
approval of the variety and ended this research in
2001. Four years later, however, the variety showed
up in samples taken from the food supply, spurring
lawsuits by hundreds of farmers against Bayer
and causing Japan, the biggest foreign market for
California rice, to block all imports of long-grain
rice from the U.S. Margaret Mellon of the Union of
Concerned Scientists says the situation offers more
evidence that all of these things that have been
getting tested ultimately have a route to the food
supply.
If RR alfalfa makes its way into the organic market,
organic alfalfa farmers risk serious consequences:
costly eradication efforts and potential loss of
market; loss of consumer confdence and higher
prices for consumers; and loss of genetic resources
used in organic and conventional alfalfa seed
breeding. Considering alfalfas importance to the
organic livestock industry, contamination concerns
cannot be overlooked, especially in light of evidence
that the demand for organic alfalfa derived products
is growing.
The total number of certifed organic livestock,
including beef cattle, pigs, sheep and lambs,
increased by 572 percent between 1997 and 2003.
As the organic and natural beef and dairy markets
continue to expand, so does the demand for organic
alfalfa. In 2005, there was a shortage of organic
milk and grain, and some producers have started
to import organic feed to fll this demand. While
the shortage of organic milk was mostly attributed
to a lack of certifed organic cows, this demand is
implicitly coupled with a need for more organic
alfalfa hay. Farmers and ranchers already have
photo by Kiki Hubbard
An alfalfa stand in south-central Montana. Monsanto says that cross-pollination
wont be a problem because hay producers would never allow their alfalfa to go to bloom.
Unfortunately, this was a particularly wet summer, and farmers
didnt have much control of when they could harvest their hay.
trouble fnding non-GE corn and soybean feed.
If alfalfa becomes as contaminated as these other
commodity feeds, non-GE feed sources will be
increasingly expensive and diffcult to fnd for
farmers who are, or want to be, GE-free.
Returning to the regulations
Little attention has been given to the role of
regulations in the face of organic contamination
by transgenic material. Polls continue to show
that more and more consumers understand that
genetically engineered foods cannot be labeled as
organic under the NOP. Yet, transgenic material
continues to turn up in crops and food intended for
non-GE markets. A press release from Farm Verifed
Organic, a North Dakota organic certifcation
service, described the problem this way: The
[GE] pollution of American commodities is now so
pervasive, we believe it is not possible for farmers
in North America to source seed free from it.
While the NOP prohibits the intentional use of
GE material in organic systems, the rules do not
address the unintended presence of GE material.
Unlike pesticide residue tolerances, there is no
set tolerance for contamination of GE material in
organic products. As long as GE products were
not intentionally used, contaminated products can
still be labeled organic. And, unlike some of the
state organic rules that preceded the NOP, there is
no mandatory testing to ensure that measures to
keep transgenic material out of organic products are
successful. Because the rules state that tests must be
conducted at the certifying agents own expense, the
only true incentive to test for unwanted transgenic
material lies in the organic communitys desire to
maintain the integrity of organic crops and provide
products that refect the inherent values of a truly
organic agriculture.
USDA says that a threshold for GE material in
organic products was not established because there
is not enough information regarding the extent of
how biotechnology affects organic crop production,
the extent of existing transgenes in organic and
other non-GE felds and products. And the agencys
right. The Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS)
report, Gone to Seed: Transgenic Contaminants
in the Traditional Seed Supply, is further evidence
of this lack of knowledge. In the UCSs study, 50
percent of conventional (non-GE) corn and soybean
seed samples, and over 80 percent of conventional
canola seed samples, had at least a trace of
transgenic DNA--seeds not sold as GE. USDAs
inaction on the issue proves to be a large gap in
the NOP, especially when farmers can become
contaminated via environmental factors completely
out of their control.
But many farmers and non-governmental
organizations have taken it upon themselves to test
for transgenic material in organic and other non-GE
seeds and harvests. Speaking to the efforts of the
organic food industry, the UCS rightfully points out
that no sector of the food system is trying harder to
meet consumer demand for choice. Still, questions
regarding if and how the NOP should address
the unintended presence of transgenic material in
organic products remain. As the biotechnology
industry continues to assert that co-existence is a
reality, more and more evidence proves otherwise.
In 2005, scientists from Santa Clara University
and the University of Manitoba concluded that the
movement of transgenes beyond their intended
destination is a virtual certainty. The time to
revisit some hard questions--Should there be
mandatory testing? Should there be a tolerance
level?--is now.
Farmers respond
By the close of the RR alfalfa comment period,
USDA had received a pretty strong response: 663
comments. According to the Federal Register,
comments came from alfalfa growers and seed
producers, organic growers, animal producers,
growers associations, consumer groups, agriculture
industries, university professionals, and private
citizens. The vast majority of respondents (520) did
not support USDAs approval of RR alfalfa, while
137 supported the petition. The main concerns
raised by the opposition included market acceptance
and cross-pollination between RR and organic
alfalfa varieties.
Because these concerns went unheeded by USDA,
a coalition of alfalfa producers (including one
organic producer), farm groups, and consumer and
environmental groups fled a lawsuit a year ago
calling the departments approval of RR alfalfa
a threat to farmers livelihoods and a risk to the
environment. The plaintiffs claim that RR alfalfa
will likely contaminate organic and other non-
GE alfalfa. Other claims include an increase in
herbicide use and weed resistance. (The National
Center for Food and Agriculture Policy estimates
that in California alone RR alfalfa could result in
the application of 200,000 pounds more herbicides a
year.) It is the frst lawsuit to be fled against USDA
photo by Kiki Hubbard
An alfalfa stand in the Moiese Valley, Montana
Supporting Our Regional
Growers and Producers
At Fairfield Farm Kitchens, we are committed to supporting small,
regional growers and nurturing the relationships we have with our
farmers. We invite you to taste their fresh, organic products in every
bite of our Moosewood and Organic Classics refrigerated soups, frozen
entrees and toaster muffins, available at your local natural foods store.
Fairfield Farm Kitchens is proud to
partner with organic farmers!
If you are interested in becoming one of our supplier partners, please
contact John Weaver via e-mail or phone,
jweaver@fairfieldfarmkitchens.com or 508-584-9300 ext. 301
www.fairfieldfarmkitchens.com
Brockton, MA
in response to the approval of a particular GE crop.
The suit was fled in federal court in the Northern
District of California, and asks USDA to rescind its
decision to approve RR alfalfa for commercial sale
and perform a full EIS.
The judge presiding over this case heard testimonies
on January 19, 2007. He focused on whether an
EIS should have been performed before RR alfalfa
was released for commercial sale. His decision is
expected before the 2007 alfalfa planting season.
It would be truly groundbreaking if the judge
demanded an EIS and, in the meantime, imposed an
injunction on further sales of RR alfalfa.
Whats next in the pipeline?
While the introduction of RR alfalfa is not
good news, the trend of GE crops entering the
marketplace remains relatively unchanged, which,
in a way, may be good news. For example, the
majority of GE crops coming on the market
continue to enter the food system in a processed
form (i.e., soybean oil accounts for 80 percent of
oils used in food, and almost 90 percent of soybeans
are GE). And the biotechnology industrys apparent
abandonment of research projects involving
herbicide-tolerant traits in popular foods eaten
directly by people (wheat, lettuce, and strawberries)
is evidence that consumer opposition to GE
foods is infuencing the direction of research and
development. According to a 2004 New York Times
article, lettuce growers in California balked at the
introduction of Roundup Ready lettuce. And in
2006, the Insider eJournal (a publication that covers
pesticide developments) reported that Roundup
Ready lettuce is an example of a crop that didnt
reach the marketplace.
The biotechnology industrys burgeoning interest
in consumer-oriented (second generation) traits
points toward an effort to win public approval
through products that seemingly beneft human
health. The frst of these products to enter the
marketplace, low linolenic soybeans, are already
grown on a large scale in the U.S., and are intended
to reduce or eliminate trans fatty acid in a variety of
food products (they have the RR trait).
Still, nine of the ten petitions now pending approval
by USDA for new genetically engineered crop
varieties involve producer-oriented, or frst
generation, traits--most are engineered to tolerate
herbicides or resist insects and viruses, not very
different from existing GE crops on the market. That
said, two petitions involve plants for which there
are no engineered varieties already on the market:
plums and creeping bentgrass. There is only one
second generation crop pending approval. Pioneer
Hi-Bred International, Inc. has petitioned for its own
variety of soybean to reduce or eliminate trans fats
in foods, a soybean with high oleic oil content.
Part of the take home message here is that
biotechnology companies are infuenced by
consumer opinion more than we may think. The
other part is this: The biotech industrys research
focus on consumer-oriented traits demands a new
campaign effort.
Where to go from here
The organic community enjoyed much success the
frst time it rallied together to protect the integrity
of organic food--when the USDA published its
proposed rule. There have been other successes
regarding threats to the organic standards since
then. These consumer outcries show how important
sound organic principles are to the public, and
that, as far as genetic engineering goes, they have
zero tolerance for transgenic material in organic
products.
The testing and tolerance issues need to be
discussed by the organic industry to weigh the
benefts and risks of establishing a tolerance level
for transgenic material in organic products, as
well as possibly imposing a testing system. These
are not easy questions, and each answer is tied
to potentially serious consequences. Perhaps the
conclusion will be that the NOP should be left as is.
However, currently there is no limit as to the amount
of transgenic material entering organic products as
long as GE seeds were not intentionally used. And
without any testing system, the amount and extent
of contamination remains largely unknown. This
seems like a good place to start. The government
needs to protect the public interest, and it can start
with a comprehensive evaluation of contamination
in organic and conventional seed.
Because the onus of protecting organic products
from transgenic contamination is on organic
producers, testing costs should not fall on their
shoulders, but need to come from the owners of
the patents and perhaps growers of the technology.
The organic community ought to demand that
the biotechnology industry front costs for the
unwanted presence of its self-propagating, patented
technology.
As consumers, choices we now enjoymilk and
ice cream derived from cows not fed GE hay, for
examplemay disappear if RR alfalfa is widely
adopted. Indeed, RR alfalfa is on the market and
has been sown in several states, but its introduction
can still be infuenced, it can still be limited. We
can extend this conversation to all farmers and
ranchers. We can talk to important players in the
dairy and meat industries, organic and otherwise.
We can mobilize yet again in the face of a threat to
the integrity of organics, acknowledging that we
do not want to end up in a place where avoiding
transgenic material in certain crops or foods
becomes impossible. So many of our food products
begin with alfalfa. Lets begin a new mobilization
with those green stands, too.
Kiki Hubbard recently completed a Masters thesis
on protecting the integrity of organic food in the
face of genetic engineering. She is the author of A
Guide to Genetically Modifed Alfalfa, available
at www.worc.org. A resident of Missoula, Montana,
she can be contacted at kristina.hubbard@gmail.
com .
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Bird Flu: A Virus of Our Own Hatching
by Michael Greger, MD
published by Lantern Books
$30.00, hardback, 465 pages
review by Jack Kittredge
This is a seriously frightening book. Greger,
who is director of Public Health and Animal
Agriculture for the Humane Society, walks us
through the very real possibility (some would
say inevitability) that we will soon experience
an infuenza pandemic which will make the
Spanish Flu of 1918 look mild and that was
the one which killed 50 million worldwide!
He starts, appropriately enough, with a quick
understanding of the nature of infectious
disease. All infectious diseases, Greger says,
originated among herding animals (the close
association of herding is necessary for effcient
transfer of the infectious organism among
individuals in the population). The diseases
were then transferred to humans from their
animal hosts: tuberculosis originated with and
lives among goats, measles and smallpox with
cattle, whooping cough with pigs, typhoid
with chickens, leprosy with water buffalo, the
common cold with horses, and avian fu with
ducks. The disease does not signifcantly sicken
the primary animal host species, but when it
transfers to another species it can evolve into a
highly virulent killer.
While diseases have traditionally been thought
of as parasites on their hosts, that view is
evolving. There are some biologists now who
believe diseases exist in a kind of aggressive
symbiosis with their hosts. The hosts give
the disease a species-specifc biological
territory where it can survive and reproduce
without interference by such things as fnicky
immune systems. But the disease gives the
host something also: a safe habitat. Examples
abound, but one should suffce. A herpes virus
infests the squirrel monkey, passing harmlessly
from mother to baby. If a rival species like
marmoset monkeys invades the squirrel
monkey territory, however, they are wiped out
by fulminant cancers induced by the virus. It
is clearly in the squirrel monkeys evolutionary
interest to retain the virus as a kind of microbial
protector, rather than expel it via an immune
response.
In this way the various avian infuenzas
evolved with ducks. The virus reproduces
in the waterfowl without making it sick, and
millions of copies are expelled with the birds
droppings into lakes and ponds. Newly arriving
birds drink the pond water, ingest the virus and
help it spread new copies of itself. But among
ducks the virus is inconsequential. Only when
it is passed to a new species, and conditions
exist that enable it to mutate and acquire traits
to evade the new species immune responses,
does it become deadly. It just so happens that
the conditions necessary for such mutation are
almost ideal in a certain creation of modern
corporate agriculture the confned animal
feeding operation, or CAFO.
CAFOs are factory farms for animals where
thousands (or, for poultry, sometimes millions)
of individuals are confned under one roof,
without adequate space, manure removal,
ventilation, sunlight, or any of the other
sanitizing effects of being raised outdoors.
In addition, modern production requirements
lead corporations (they ought not to be called
farmers) to choose the most productive breed
of animal, stuffng countless individuals with
exactly the same genetics into a disease-prone
environment. What happens? In the words of
the industry-funded Council for Agricultural
Science and Technologys 2005 report: A
major impact of modern intensive production
systems is that they allow the rapid selection
and amplifcation of pathogens that arise
from a virulent ancestor (frequently by subtle
mutations), thus there is increasing risk for
disease entrance and/or dissemination. Stated
simply, the report concluded, because of the
Livestock Revolution, global risks of disease
are increasing.
It is not hard to see why the conditions inside a
poultry CAFO are stressful to a birds immune
system. In modern intensive chicken houses,
Greger reports, broiler densities range between
10 and 20 birds per square yard, or about
half a square foot per bird. Laying hens get
less. How is it possible for birds to survive in
these conditions? One big advance was the
discovery of Vitamin D in 1922. Previously,
birds brought indoors suffered from rickets.
With Vitamin D that could be avoided. Next, in
1950, came the use of antibiotics administered
in the birds feed to prevent their squalid
conditions from leading to disease. By the
late 1990s more than 10 million pounds of
antibiotics were fed annually to chickens
-- more than is used for human treatment
worldwide.
In this crowded, unhealthy environment, viruses
from ducks intestinal systems have adapted to
the respiratory systems of chickens and turkeys
and have begun causing signifcant losses
through disease outbreaks in large poultry
facilities worldwide. Only occasionally, so
far, have humans been infected. The troubling
reality that this book makes clear, however,
is that mutations are continuing everyday in
these hothouses of infection and eventually a
strain, like the one which occurred in 1918, will
become both virulent to humans and airborne
-- thus easily transmitted among them.
This risk will continue to grow so long as large
numbers of birds are held indoors in close
proximity. University of Ottawa virologist Earl
Brown puts it succinctly: You have to say
that high intensity chicken rearing is a perfect
environment for generating virulent avian
fu virus. Or, in the words of Johns Hopkins
neurovirologist R. H. Yolken: In our efforts to
streamline farming practices to produce more
meat for more people, we have inadvertently
created conditions by which a harmless parasite
of wild ducks con be converted into a lethal
killer of humans.
But doesnt this risk exist in backyard settings
as well? Apparently not. According to Greger
there must, as in nuclear reactions, be a critical
mass present to generate an explosion. In a
less dense setting the more virulent mutations
have trouble escaping from the host they have
killed to new ones. So the less virulent strains,
which keep their host alive and get expelled in
manure and airborne droplets, tend to multiply.
Canadas National Manager of Disease Control,
S. Leahy, explains it this way: Just passing
the virus to 3000 or 4000 chickens is enough to
change a harmless virus into something more
pathogenic.
David Swayne, director of the USDAs chief
poultry research laboratory and author of more
Book Reviews
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than 100 publications on avian infuenza,
confrms this when he remarks that there has
never been a recorded emergence of a highly
pathogenic (the kind dangerous for humans)
avian fu virus in any backyard fock or free-
range poultry operation. Lab researchers in
one peer-reviewed study stated fatly that
The conditions under which we generated
highly virulent viruses from an avirulent strain
are generally not duplicated in nature. Bird
fu expert Dennis Alexander of the U.K.s
Central Veterinary Laboratory agrees that,
with the possible exception of ostriches, highly
pathogenic infuenza viruses have never [been]
known to arise in an outdoor fock.
So why is the poultry industry cautioning
us about migratory birds infecting backyard
poultry? And why are Indonesian police
patrolling the streets of Jakarta enforcing a ban
on family chicken raising? All at a time when
even the Food and Agriculture Organization
is warning: We are wasting valuable time
pointing fngers at wild birds when we should
be focusing on dealing with the root causes of
this epidemic spread which[include] farming
methods which crowd huge numbers of animals
into small spaces.
The answer is that if we admitted how
dangerous our intensive animal raising
practices have become we would have to begin
dismantling factory farms. And that would
be taking on a fght with powerful corporate
interests who want to keep producing cheap
food, regardless of the ultimate price.
Farming and the Fate of Wild Nature
Edited by Daniel Imhoff and Jo Ann
Baumgartner
published by Watershed Media
$16.95, paperback, 264 pages
This little book, sponsored by the Wild Farm
Alliance, has 23 essays by the likes of Wendell
Berry, Michael Pollan, Fred Kirschenmann,
Barbara Kingsolver, Aldo Leopold, and Gary
Paul Nabhan on the topic of how farming, to
survive, must change its world view from one
of dominating the earth and its creatures to
coexisting with the wild.
In Conservationist and Agrarian Wendell
Berry writes about the importance of farmers
and conservationists developing a dialog and
realizing that their common interests lie in
sustaining wilderness as a part of economic
rural communities of good farmers. Neither will
be able, alone, to resist the power of the land-
exploiting corporations to gobble up all natural
resources before fnally collapsing of their own
insatiable needs.
In The Way We Live Now Michael Pollan
points out that two centuries ago, when settlers
frst experienced the agricultural productivity of
the American Midwest, corn production soared.
Rather than transport an inexpensive, heavy
crop across the Alleghenies, farmers added
value to their corn by making cheap whiskey.
An era of widespread drunkenness resulted. He
then neatly connects our government subsidized
over-production of corn to the national obesity
problem. Big Food, he says, simply had cheap
calories to get rid of and found attractive ways
to sell them to us.
In Tame and Wild Fred Kirschenmann
reminds us that organic farms are not isolated
enclaves of purity in a contaminated world.
They are, of necessity, a part of that world.
Drift happens, animals get out, nature is,
if anything, a community. Either we are
preserving biodiversity and a healthy ecosystem
everywhere, or we are losing it everywhere.
Certifcation standards under the original
Organic Foods Production Act required
attention on the part of the farmer to the
interests of wild areas. That is proper and is
fnally beginning to happen in the NOP.
In A Forests Last Stand Barbara Kingsolver
discusses her visit to the Mayan Calakmul
Reserve on the Mexico/Guatemala border.
Rather than enforce isolation from the human
world, the local governments have encouraged
intelligent settlement in ways that preserve local
resources. As a result, the forest is protected
by villages of local residents who have an
economic stake in its preservation.
In A Biotic View of Land Aldo Leopold gives
us in 9 pages as succinct a statement as I have
ever read of what ecology is all about. Early
conservationists would rate species of plants
and animals according to their utility to man,
and only gradually have we come to understand
that the biota is far too complex to view in this
one-dimensional way. The only thing we can
know for sure is that the biota as a whole is
essential for sustaining life on this planet and
that while evolution tends to elaborate the biota,
man tends to truncate it. A good farm is one
where wild species of fora and fauna may have
lost acreage, but not lost their existence.
In When the Epidemic Hit the King of Clones
Gary Paul Nabhan focuses on the Mexican
agave plague that has undermined the tequila
industry. Beginning in 1988, several crop
pathogens decimated the agave plantings,
reaching 40 million plants by 1998, ten years
later. The problem, it turns out, is that economic
considerations encouraged planters to favor one
variety of blue agave, which reached maturity
faster than the others. So planters started buying
clones of this variety for new plantings, until
by now most of the agave crop is genetically
identical, which has allowed disease to sweep
rapidly through the crop. Remedies such as
returning to production of new plants via cross-
pollinating rather than cloning, intercropping
with peanuts or beans or other legumes to
improve the soil and suppress disease vectoring
weeds, and intermixing different agave varieties
to increase resistance to disease can begin to
deal with this problem. They also are examples
of how farming needs to learn from nature and
regain a healthy biodiversity to be sustainable.
Seventeen other essays by lesser-known
writers are equally thought-provoking. Anyone
concerned about the natural foundations of
agriculture and how far we have wandered from
that base will enjoy this book.
Local First! (The Small-Mart Revolution:
How Local Businesses Are Beating the
Global Competition)
by Michael H. Shuman
published by Berrett-Koehler Publishers
$24.00, 2006
review by Elizabeth Henderson
As I searched the new books rack for The
Omnivores Dilemma, another title caught
my eye The Small-Mart Revolution: How
Local Businesses Are Beating the Global
Competition by Michael H. Shuman. This
short and punchy study is a guide to focusing
our personal economies on supporting local
businesses and directing economic development
to maximize sustainability and local control.
Shuman contrasts two kinds of businesses:
TINA There Is No Alternative, the major
mega-corporations for which price trumps
place, and LOIS Locally Owned Import
Substitution, enterprises of many shapes and
sizes that are place based. When you add the
99% of businesses that are small to household
employers, non-profts and government, you
get over 58% of our economy. If we all take
this book to heart, we can increase the smaller
is more beautiful sector and take back control
from the corporations that have muscled their
way into our halls of power.
According to Shuman, state and local
governments in the US subsidize TINA non-
local frms to the tune of $50 billion a year,
augmenting the $65 billion in welfare subsidies
they rake in from the national government.
WalMart alone has received $1 billion in
state and local support over the last ten years.
Stopping these supports would give local
enterprises a fghting chance. According to
Shuman, there are fve great advantages to
LOIS frms: 1. They are long-term generators
of wealth. 2. Unlike TINA frms, they do not
destroy local economies by sudden departures.
3. Since they are committed to staying, local
governments can require them to meet high
labor and environmental standards. 4. They
have better chances of making successful
contributions to localities. 5. And they have
higher economic multipliers, that is, a larger
portion of dollars spent with them circulate
through other local uses.
Shuman does not make the mistake of
idealizing smaller local businesses. Rather, he
presents strong evidence that localities have a
greater chance of controlling them and shaping
them to the needs of the community. He
provides many examples of towns and counties
that are assessing available local resources,
calculating where money is leaking out of the
local economy through payments to non-local
businesses, and developing plans for change.
A lot of the responsibility for the kind of
economy we will have, Shuman argues,
depends on each one of us and how we use our
personal resources. He provides a handy guide
to localizing our spending based on the parts
over which we have the most control and for
which the necessary mechanisms already exist.
We can get the largest increase by localizing our
home, buying it with a mortgage at a local bank.
The other most promising sectors are: local
drinks, stopping smoking, car services, local
charities, energy use, health care, entertainment,
eating at local restaurants, buying fresh food
from local farms, and halving auto use.

Explaining that building our own local
economies need not harm developing countries,
Shuman summarizes the main points of his
book:
The Small-Mart Revolution is not about
spending more on any goods or services. Its
about consumers shopping carefully, weighing
quality as well as price, being more attentive to
the expense of travel and time, and accounting
wisely for the costs to their community
exacted by nonlocal purchases. Its about
each of us placing our savings in competitive
local banking institutions and keeping our
loans local, so that the stream of interest and
principal payments build local wealth rather
than drain it. Its about investors putting our
retirement funds in proftable local business,
either directly through stock purchases or
indirectly through local pension and mutual
funds. Its about LOIS entrepreneurs seizing
the new effciencies generated through the
eight trends -- such as increasing energy costs,
listed on p. 83, that are turning the tide against
TINA, shrinking economies of scale, and local
businesses deploying the expanding arsenal
of ways to compete effectively against global
frms. Its about policymakers ending the
massive subsidies to TINA and removing the
countless biases in law and policy that suppress
viable local business. Its about everyone in
the community coming together to envision a
better economic future for all of its members,
including the poor, the elderly, the infrm, and
the young; identifying leaks and news business
opportunities; and systematically mobilizing
talent, capital and technology to plug those
leaks.
You can buy this book directly from the
publisher www.bkconnection.com and get a
30% discount if you buy more than 10 copies.
I intend to buy one for every member of my
county Board of Supervisors and the director of
economic development!
Market Farming Success
By Lynn Byczynski
published by Fairplain Publications
www.growingformarket.com
Lynn Byczynski is the publisher of the
magazine Growing for Market, which is
one of the best publications around for the
market gardener. So it is no surprise to me
that this book is also excellent. It covers all
the basic topics you need to think about when
starting a market garden, and gives straight,
commonsense advice on each.
Chapters cover Getting Started, with a frank
discussion of how much money you can make,
how to fnd land, whether to go organic, and the
importance of a good farm name. Chapter 2, on
The Markets, is exhaustive. It looks at farmers
markets, on-farm markets, Pick Your Owns,
CSAs, selling over the internet, and selling
to restaurants, supermarkets, natural food
stores, marketing coops, institutional buyers
and processors. Other chapters cover picking
the crops, equipment and tools, planning and
recordkeeping, planting and tending, harvesting,
postharvest, value adding, pricing, and
managing such things as taxes, legal structure,
employees, and insurance. A fnal chapter
gives extensive resources for learning more, an
appendix provides USDA grading standards for
vegetables and fruits, and an index concludes
the book.
Lynn always writes with a clear, direct style.
She knows her topic well, being a market
Subscriptions & Back Issues!
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The current issue and the last four issues cost $3.00 postpaid. Earlier
issues (collectors copies) cost $5.00 and are subject to availability.
Subscriptions are $10 per year (or $18/yr. if to a foreign address).
59 The NOP After 1 Year
58 Irrigation
57 On-Farm Dairying
56 Farm Equipment
55 Beginning Farmers
54 Organic Berries
53 On-Farm Research
51 Farming & Families
48 Home Gardening
47 Can Organic Feed the World?
46 Transition to Organic
Yes, I would like a subscription or back issue of , or both
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www.organ|cva||ey.coop/farmer Farmer Hot|ine ~ 888-809-9297
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Amoricas lifoliro for family farms.
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gardener herself, and understands the trade-
offs and limitations most of us experience
concerning money and time. Like any
craftsperson, she knows when you can cut
corners and when you cant -- one of the
hardest things to learn in any trade. She
also understands the family and emotional
realities of this business, and knows that to be
sustainable farming has to work at those levels
as well as the practical and fnancial. All this
informs her book, as well as lots of illustrations
and charts. If I knew someone wanting to go
into market farming, I couldnt think of a better
gift than these years of experience boiled down
into a very readable book.
Detail of how poly is attached to hoophouse
from The Hoophouse Handbook
The Hoophouse Handbook
Edited by Lynn Byczynski
published by Fairplain Publications
www.growingformarket.com
This is another publication from Lynn
Byczynski, publisher of Growing for Market,
a very useful magazine for market gardeners.
In this one, Lynn gets to the basics about
hoophouses. Articles by a luminary such as
Eliot Coleman, as well as farming contributors
to Lynns magazine and other successful market
growers, are all oriented toward practical
information, as opposed to the more lyrical but
not necessarily helpful boosterism so many
small farming books offer. Lynn knows whereof
she speaks, and backs that up with photos of
collapsed hoophouses on her farm resulting
from inadequate initial design for wind loading.
Topics covered include selecting for the most
proftable crops, year-round production, specifc
focuses on such high value crops as tomatoes,
lettuce, strawberries, and cut fowers, as well as
detailed discussion of hoophouse construction,
with sections on sidewalls and endwalls,
moveable designs, and potential problems
(there are many!) As is usual for Lynn, at the
end she provides a list of support resources
(plus a couple of pages of ads from hoophouse
suppliers), and a helpful index.
In the interests of objectivity I should here
confess that I know less than I should about
hoophouses. We are slow to adopt new
technologies, but Julie and I have put up one
500 square foot hoophouse each year for
the last three years, and our son Dan put an
astonishing 10,000 square feet under plastic last
year in our hayfeld using timbers cut from our
woodlot.
There is no question that hoophouses make
economic sense in the northeast. Our short
seasons can be extended, both early and late,
into the periods when gardens and local farms
are not producing so that produce commands
double the price, or more. In areas where wind
or insect problems are signifcant, hoophouses
also provide respite. Of course they come with
their own problems, including structural issues,
as well as ventilation, irrigation, and disease
control.
Given the relatively low cost involved in setting
up a hoophouse, it is one tool serious farmers
and market gardeners in the northeast should
consider. In doing so, this book with its good
counsel, illustrative photos, and informative
diagrams, budgets, lists and charts can save
hours of research and study.
NOFA Videos
0601 Climate Change, Ag & Energy Vern Grubinger
0602 My Weedless Garden Lee Reich
0603 Keynote Talk Sr. Miriam MacGillis
0604 Farm Pond Aquaculture Craig Hollingsworth
0605 Drip Irrigation for Gardens Lee Reich
0605 Growing Fall Brassicas Nancy Hanson
0607 National Animal Identifcation Debate
0608 Cover Cropping David Fisher
0609 Organic Veggie Farm Systems Ryan Voiland
0610 Vegetable & Flower Diseases Bess Dicklow
$15 each
Please send me the circled videos. I enclose $15 for
each in the form of a check to NOFA Video Project
NOFA Video Project, 411 Sheldon Rd., Barre, MA 01005
New from the 2006 NOFA Summer Conference:
for a full list of the 146 videos available, visit
www.nofa.org/conference/video/index.php
Chart from Market Farming Success
Detail of moveable greenhouse skid
attachment from The Hoophouse Handbook
Many Hands Organic Farm
Julie Rawson, Jack & Dan Kittredge
411 Sheldon Rd., Barre, MA 01005 (978) 355-2853
www.mhof.net, farm@mhof.net
Organic & Free-range
Poultry & Pork
CSA shares available
Organic Garlic Seed and Braids
Certifed Organic
by Baystate Organic Certifers
Connecticut
CT NOFA Offce: P O Box 164, Stevenson, CT
06491, phone (203) 888-5146, FAX (203) 888-
9280, Email: ctnofa@ctnofa.org, website: www.
ctnofa.org
President: James Roby , P.O Box 191, 1667
Orchard Road, Berlin, CT 06037, 860-828-
5548, 860-881-8031 (C), jroby7088@sbcglobal.
net
Vice President: Dr, Kimberly A. Stoner, 498
Oak Ave. #27, Cheshire, CT 06410-3021, (203)
271-1732 (home), 203-974-8480 (w), Email:
kastoner@juno.com (h), kimberly.stoner@
po.state.ct.us (w)
Treasurer: Ron Capozzi, 69R Meetinghouse
Hill Rd., Durham, CT 06422-2808, (860) 349-
1417, ronsraspberries@hotmail.com
Secretary: Chris Killheffer, 112 Bishop Street,
New Haven, CT 06511-7307, 203-787-0072,
Christopher.killheffer@yale.edu
Farmers Pledge Program: Contact the offce.
Conference Coordinator: Jennifer Brown , PO
Box 730, Rhinebeck, NY 12572, 413-553-3634,
jennifer@ctnofa.org
Executive Director: Bill Duesing, Box 164,
Stevenson, CT 06491, 203-888-5146, 203 888-
9280 (fax), bduesing@cs.com
Organic Land Care Accreditation Manager
and Webmaster: Janet Cunningham, PO Box
978, Southbury, CT 06478, 203-605-1750 (c),
janet@ctnofa.org
Massachusetts
President: Frank Albani Jr., 17 Vinal Avenue,
Plymouth, MA 02360, (508) 224-3088, email:
plymouthrockmusic@msn.com
Vice President: Sharon Gensler, 87 Bullard
Pasture Rd. Wendell, MA 01379, (978) 544-
6347, email: wildbrowse@yahoo.com
Secretary: Leslie Chaison, 204 Bardwells Ferry
Rd., Conway, MA 01341, (413) 369-4020,
email: lesliechaison@hotmail.com
Treasurer and Executive Director: Julie
Rawson, 411 Sheldon Rd., Barre, MA 01005
(978) 355-2853, Fax: (978) 355-4046, Email:
Julie@nofamass.org
Administrative Coordinator: Kathleen Geary,
411 Sheldon Rd, Barre, MA 01005 (Mondays
& Thursdays, 8:00 am - 5:00 pm), email: info@
nofamass.org
Webmaster: David Pontius: 68 Elm Street,
Shelburne Falls, MA 01370 (413) 625-0118;
Email: webmaster@nofa.org
Baystate Organic Certifers Administrator:
Don Franczyk, 683 River St., Winchendon,
MA 01475, (978) 297- 4171, Email:
baystateorganic@earthlink.net, website: www.
baystateorganic.org
Extension Educator: Ed Stockman, 131 Summit
St. Plainfeld, MA 01070, (413) 634- 5024,
stockman@bcn.net
Newsletter Editor: Jonathan von Ranson, 6
Lockes Village Rd., Wendell, MA 01379, (978)
544-3758, Email: Commonfarm@crocker.com
Website: www.nofamass.org Email: nofa@
nofamass.org
New Hampshire
President: Larry Pletcher, PO Box 204, Warner,
NH 03278, (603) 456-3121, lpletcher@conknet.
com
Vice President: Joan OConnor, PO Box
387, Henniker, NH 03242, (603) 428-3530,
joconnornh@yahoo.com
Treasurer: Paul Mercier, Jr., 39 Cambridge
Drive, Canterbury, NH 03224, (603) 783-0036,
pjm@mercier-group.com
Program & Membership Coordinator: Elizabeth
Obelenus, NOFA/NH Offce, 4 Park St., Suite
208, Concord, NH 03301, (603) 224-5022,
info@nofanh.org
Newsletter Editor: Karen Booker, 44 Prospect
St., Contoocook, NH 03229, (603) 746-3656,
pottedplant@juno.com
Organic Certifcation: Vickie Smith, NHDA
Bureau of Markets, Caller Box 2042, Concord,
NH 03301 (603) 271-3685, vsmith@agr.state.
nh.us
Website: www.nofanh.org,
New Jersey
President: Donna Drewes, 26 Samuel Dr.,
Flemington, NJ 08822, 908-782-2443,
drewes@tcnj.edu
Vice President: Stephanie Harris, 163
Hopewell-Wertsville Rd., Hopewell, NJ 08525,
(609) 466-0194, r.harris58@verizon.net
Treasurer: William D. Bridgers, c/o Zon
Partners, 5 Vaughn Dr., Suite 104, Princeton,
NJ 08540, (609) 452-1653, billbridgers@
zoncapital.com
Secretary: Emily Brown Rosen, 25
Independence Way, Titusville, NJ 08560, 609-
737-8630
Newsletter Editor & Outreach Coordinator:
Mikey Azzara, PO Box 886, Pennington, NJ
08534-0886, (609) 737-6848, fax: (609) 737-
2366, Email: mazzara@nofanj.org
Certifcation Administrator: Erich V. Bremer,
c/o NJ Dept. of Agriculture, PO Box 330,
Trenton, NJ 08625, (609) 984-2225 erich.
bremer@ag.state.nj.us
Offce Assistant: Cynthia Beloff, PO Box 886
Pennington, NJ 08534-0886, (609) 737-6848,
Fax (609) 737-2366 General Request Emails:
nofanj@nofanj.org Email: cbeloff@nofanj.org
website: www.nofanj.org
New York
President: Scott Chaskey, Quail Hill Farm, PO
Box 1268, Amagansett, NY 11930-1268, H
(631) 725-9228 W (631) 267-8942, schaskey@
peconiclandtrust.org
Vice President: Vince Cirasole, Sunshine Farm,
745 Great Neck Rd, Copiague, NY 11726,
(631) 789-8232, vince@sunshinefarm.biz
Treasurer: Joseph Gersitz, 90 Hotchkiss Cir,
Penfeld, NY 14526-1402 (585) 381-8659,
josephg2@aol.com
Secretary: Maria Grimaldi, Panther Rock Farm,
148 Hardenburgh Rd, Livingston Manor, NY
12758, (845) 482-4164, pantherrock@direcway.
com
Interim Executive Director: Greg Swartz, 245
Westwood Dr, Hurleyville, NY 12747-5527,
(845) 796-8994, fax: (845) 434-7306, director@
nofany.org
Offce Manager: Mayra Richter, PO Box 880,
Cobleskill, NY 12043-0880, (607) 652-NOFA,
fax: (607) 652-2290, offce@nofany.org
NOFA-NY Certifed Organic, LLC,
Certifcation Director: Carol King, 840 Front St,
Binghamton, NY 13905, (607) 724-9851, fax:
(607) 724-9853, certifedorganic@nofany.org
Organic Seed Partnership (OSP) Project
Coordinator: Elizabeth Dyck, Crimson Farm,
1124 County Rd 38, Bainbridge, NY 13733-
3360, (607) 895-6913, organicseed@nofany.org
Projects Coordinator & ODT Project Co-Project
Manager: Kate Mendenhall, 14 Menlo Pl,
Rochester, NY 14620-2718, (585) 271-1979,
projects@nofany.org
Organic Dairy Transitions Project Co-Project
Manager: Bethany Russell, PO Box 874,
Mexico, NY 13114-0874, (315) 806-1180,
bethany.organicdairy@nofany.org
Organic Dairy Transitions Project Dairy
Technician: Robert Perry, Maple Slope Farm,
5557 NYS 41, Homer, NY 13077, (607) 749-
3884, robert.organicdairy@nofany.org
Newsletter Editor: Aissa ONeil, Betty Acres
Organic Farm, 21529 State Highway 28, Delhi,
NY 13753, (607) 746-9581, newsletter@
nofany.org
website: www.nofany.org
Rhode Island
President: Fritz Vohr, In the Woods Farm, 51
Edwards Lane, Charlestown, RI 02813 (401)
364-0050, fritzvohr1@verizon.net
Bookkeeper/Membership Coordinator:
Peggy Conti, Brookside Apartments, Apt.
#8, Charlestown, RI 02813, (401) 364-3426,
ConPg8@aol.com
NOFA/RI : 51 Edwards Lane, Charlestown, RI
02813, (401) 364-0050, Fax (401) 364-7557,
nofari@ids.net,
website: www.nofari.org
Vermont
NOFA-VT Offce, P. O. Box 697, Bridge St.,
Richmond, VT 05477 (802) 434-4122, Fax:
(802) 434-4154, website: www.nofavt.org,
info@nofavt.org
Executive Director: Enid Wonnacott, elila@
sover.net
NOFA Financial Manager: Kirsten Novak
Bower, kbower@gmavt.net
Winter Conference Coordinator: Olga Boshart,
olga@madriver.com
VOF Administrator & Apprentice Program
Coordinator: Nicole Dehne, nicdehne@hotmail.
com
Bulk Order Coordinator & VOF Staff: Cheryl
Bruce, Cheryl2643@aol.com
VOF Staff: Erin Clark, ebclark23@hotmail.com
Dairy & Livestock TA Administrator, David
Rogers, drogers@uvm.edu
Dairy and Livestock Advisor: Willie Gibson,
wgibson@thelifeline.net
Offce Manager: Meg Klepack, info@nofavt.
org
Ag Education Coordinator: Abbie Nelson,
abbienelson@adelphia.net
Offce Assistant and Share the Harvest
fundraiser: Becca Weiss, info@nofavt.org
NOFA Interstate
Council
* indicates voting representative
* Bill Duesing, Staff, Box 135, Stevenson, CT,
06491, (203) 888-5146, fax, (203) 888- 9280,
bduesing@cs.com
Kimberly A. Stoner, 498 Oak Ave. #27,
Cheshire, CT 06410-3021, (203) 271-1732
(home), Email: kastoner@juno.com
* Mary Blake, Secretary, P O Box 52 Charlton
Depot, MA 01509 (508)-248-5496 email:
blakem_2001@msn.com
* Ron Maribett, 269 Elm St., Kingston, MA
02364, (781) 585-9670, ron_maribett@hotmail.
com
Elizabeth Obelenus, 22 Keyser Road, Meredith.
NH 03253, (603) 279-6146, nofanh@innevi.
NOFA Contact People
Saturday, April 21: Spring Vegetable and Fruit
Growing workshop, Barre, MA, for more info: www.
mhof.net or (978) 355-2853 or julie@mhof.net
Friday, April 27 and Saturday, April 28, 2007:
Organic Beekeeping Workshop, Chestnut Ridge,
NY, for More Info: beework@pfeiffercenter.org or
845-352 5020 ext.20 or www.pfeiffercenter.org.
*Saturday, May 5: Rustic Composting Toilets with
Carol Steinfeld, Dartmouth, MA
*Monday, May 14: Organic Apples in Bloom with
John Bemis, Concord, MA
*Tuesday, May 22: Make your own Tofu and
Tempeh with Rudy Canale, Jamaica Plain, MA
Saturday, June 2: HerbFest 2007, Coventry
CT, for more info: www.ctherb.org or www.
topmostherbfarm.com
*Saturday, June 9: Grass Finished Natural and
Organic Beef and Lamb with Matt Rulevich, S.
Dartmouth, MA
*Sunday, June 10: Stone Masonry with Mark
Oteri, Natick, MA
*Saturday, June 16th: Framing Carpentry:
Creating a Structure with Will Beemer, Washington,
MA
*Sunday, June 24: Foraging for Wild Edibles with
expert forager and author Russ Cohen, Belchertown,
MA
*Saturday, July 7: Haymaking with Heidi Tafel,
Lincoln, MA
*Saturday, July 14: Starting with Draft Horses
with Dale Perkins, Rutland, MA
*Saturday, July 21: Organic Gardening: Caring for
the Soil with Karen DiFranza, Hubbardston, MA.
Friday, August 10 to Sunday, August 12: NOFA
Summer Conference, Amherst, MA, for more info:
978-355-2853 or www.nofamass.org
*Sunday, September 9: Pickling with Salt with
Seth Travins, Great Barrington, MA.
*Monday, September 24: Creating School Gardens
with Karen DiFranza, Hubbardston, MA.
(*)Part of the NOFA/Mass 2007 Practical Farm
Skills Workshop Series. For full descriptions, see
www.nofamass.org/programs/skills.php or for more
info: contact Tom, (781) 894-4358 or seedpotato@
yahoo.com
Calendar
You may join NOFA by joining one of the seven
state chapters. Contact the person listed below for
your state. Dues, which help pay for the important
work of the organization, vary from chapter to
chapter. Unless noted, membership includes a
subscription to The Natural Farmer.
Give a NOFA Membership! Send dues for a friend
or relative to his or her state chapter and give a
membership in one of the most active grassroots
organizations in the state.
Connecticut: Individual $35, Family $50, Business/
Institution $100, Supporting $150, Student/Senior
$25, Working $20
Contact: CT NOFA, Box 164, Stevenson, CT 06491,
(203)-888-5146, or email: ctnofa@ctnofa.org or join
on the web at www.ctnofa.org
Massachusetts: Low-Income $20, Individual $30,
Family/Org $40, Supporting $100
Contact: Membership, 411 Sheldon Road, Barre,
MA 01005, (978) 355-2853, or email: info@
nofamass.org
New Hampshire: Individual: $30, Student: $23,
Family: $40, Sponsor: $100, Basic $20*
Contact: Elizabeth Obelenus, 4 Park St., Suite 208,
Concord, NH 03301, (603) 224-5022, info@nofanh.
org
New Jersey: Individual $35, Family/Organizational
$50, Business/Organization $100, Low Income:
$15*
Contact: P O Box 886, Pennington, NJ 08534-0886,
(609) 737-6848 or join at www.nofanj.org
New York*: Student/Senior/Limited Income
$15, Individual $30, Family/Farm/Nonproft
Organization $40, Business/Patron $100. Add $10 to
above membership rates to include subscription to
The Natural Farmer.
Contact: Mayra Richter, NOFA-NY, P O Box 880,
Cobleskill, NY 12043, Voice (607) 652-6632, Fax:
(607) 652-2290, email: offce@nofany.org www.
nofany.org
Rhode Island: Student/Senior: $20, Individual: $25,
Family $35, Business $50
Contact: Membership, NOFA RI, 51 Edwards Lane,
Charlestown, RI 02813 (401) 7557, fritzvohr1@
verizon.net
Vermont: Individual $30, Farm/Family $40,
Business $50, Sponsor $100, Sustainer $250, Basic
$15-25*
Contact: NOFA-VT, PO Box 697, Richmond, VT
05477, (802) 434-4122, info@nofavt.org
*does not include a subscription to The Natural
Farmer
NOFA Membership
com
* Jack Mastrianni, 277 Holden Hill Road,
Langdon, NH 03602, (603)835-6488,
jamastrianni@yahoo.com
* Steve Gilman, Ruckytucks Farm, 130
Ruckytucks Road, Stillwater, NY 12170 (518)
583-4613, sgilman@netheaven.com
* Vince Cirasole, Sunshine Farm, 745 Great
Neck Rd, Copiague, NY 11726, (631) 789-
8231, vince@sunshinefarm.biz
Elizabeth Henderson, 2218 Welcher Rd.,
Newark, NY 14513 (315) 331-9029 ehendrsn@
redsuspenders.com
* Fritz Vohr, In the Woods Farm, 51 Edwards
Lane, Charlestown,RI 02813 (401) 364-0050,
fritzvohr1@verizon.net
* Abbie Barber, 1411 Shannock Rd.,
Charlestown, RI 02813-3726 (401) 364-7140
abbie_s_normal@hotmail.com
* Enid Wonnacott, 478 Salvas Rd., Huntington,
VT 05462 (802) 434-4435 elila@sover.net
Kirsten Novak Bower, 65 Wortheim Ln.,
Richmond, VT 05477 (802) 434-5420,
kbower@juno.com
Kay Magilavy, Virtual Rep, 212 18th St., Union
City, NJ 07087, (201) 927-7116
Brian Schroeher, Webmaster, 21 Tamarack
Court, Newtown, PA 18940, (215) 825-2140,
cell (908) 268-7059, Email: webmaster@nofa.
org
Jack Kittredge and Julie Rawson, The Natural
Farmer, NOFA Summer Conference, 411
Sheldon Rd., Barre, MA 01005 (978) 355-2853,
TNF@nofa.org, Julie@nofamass.org
Torrey Reade, Treasurer, Credit Card Support,
723 Hammersville-Canton Rd., Salem, NJ
08079, 856-935-3612, neptune@waterw.com
Interstate Certifcation
Contacts
Nicole Dehne, nicdehne@hotmail.com,PO Box
698, Richmond, VT 05477, 802-434-4122, 802-
434-4154 (fax)
Carol King, 840 Front Street, Binghamton, NY
13905, (607) 724-9851, fax: (607)724-9853,
certifedorganic@nofany.org
Erich V. Bremer, c/o NJ Dept. of Agriculture,
PO Box 330, Trenton, NJ 08625, (609) 984-
2225 erich.bremer@ag.state.nj.us
*Saturday, March 3: Raising Goats for Dairy:
Propagation Concerns and Newborns with Ann
Starbard, Sterling, MA
Tuesday, March 6 and Wednesday, March
7: 7th Massachusetts Organics Recycling Summit,
Marlborough, MA, for more info: Morgan
Harriman, 617-654-6580, http://www.mass.gov/
dep/recycle/reduce/orgsum07.htm
Tuesday, March 6 Thursday, March 8, 2007:
Organic Livestock Health and Management
Conference University of New Hampshire,
Durham, NH, for more info: contact Lisa McCrory
at 802-434-4122 or lmccrory@together.net or
Linda Tikofsky at 607-255-8202 or lg40@cornell.
edu .

Thursday, March 8: Introduction to Alternative
Herd Health Treatments, Grafton, MA
For more info: Kate Rossiter, (413) 625-0118
or Don Franczyk, (978) 297-4171, www.
baystateorganic.org or www.nofamass.org.
Saturday, March 10: Cultivating An Organic
Connecticut conference, Windsor, CT, for more
info: www.ctnofa.org 203-888-5146
Monday, March 19: Local Grain Conference,
Amherst, MA, for more info: (413-582-9009) or
somehungryghost@yahoo.com
Saturday, March 24: Toxics Action Center
Citizens Conference, Boston, MA, for more info:
Jamie at jamie@toxicsaction.org, or (617) 747-
4362
*Saturday, March 24: Cheesemaking with Cliff
Hatch, Gill, MA
*Monday, March 26: Starting a School
Composting Program with Karen DiFranza,
Hubbardston, MA
Thursday, March 29: Introduction to Organic
Pasture Management, Grafton, MA
For more info: Kate Rossiter, (413) 625-0118
or Don Franczyk, (978) 297-4171, www.
baystateorganic.org or www.nofamass.org.
*Sunday, April 1: Biodiesel: Bigger and Better
with GreenGreaseMonkey, Hudson, Mass
*Saturday, April 7: Vegetarian Cooking at the
Food Projects Kitchen with Amie Swanson,
Roxbury, MA
*Saturday, April 14: Waste Veggie Oil Car
Conversion with GreenGreaseMonkey, Marlboro,
MA
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Spring 2007 Natural Farmer

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Spring 2007 Natural Farmer

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Spring, 2007 Vol. 2, No.

72 Publication of the Northeast Organic Farming Association 1077-2294

Let us live in harmony with the earth and the creatures,

proven the most effective and longest lasting

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