NOFA-VT’s Winter Conference
In Randolph Center This Year

With ever-increasing enthusiasm and attention being devoted to local food systems, the Northeast Organic Farming Association of Vermont (NOFA-VT) recently announced that its first two-day Winter Conference will take place February 16 and 17 at Vermont Technical College in Randolph Center.

For the past quarter century, the organization’s winter conference has brought together over 800 farmers, gardeners, homesteaders, consumers, and educators to share in a day of workshops and conversation focused on keeping the state’s food system safe and healthy.

The theme this year, "Business Not As Usual," will bring together those interested in securing the Vermont food system with community-based businesses that play an important role in strengthening the Vermont economy. Judy Wicks, the owner and founder of Philadelphia’s 24-year-old White Dog Café, and a national leader in the local, living economies movement, will be the keynote speaker on Saturday. Co-founder and co-chair of the national Business Alliance for Local Living Economies (BALLE), and founder of the Sustainable Business Network of Greater Philadelphia (SBN), Wicks is also president of the White Dog Community Enterprises (formerly White Dog Cafe Foundation), a non-profit dedicated to building a local living economy in the Philadelphia region.

Heather Darby, Adjunct Extension Assistant Professor at UVM, will be Sunday’s keynote speaker. Darby is involved with implementing many research and outreach programs in the areas of fuel, forage, and grain production systems in New England. These programs have focused on delivering on-farm education in the areas of soil health, nutrient management, organic grain and forage production, and oilseed production. Research has focused on traditional and niche crop variety trials, weed management strategies, and cropping systems development. Darby will share her vision for the future of Vermont agriculture and how innovations currently being used on farms in Vermont contribute to that vision.

Workshops for hobby gardeners and commercial farmers will be offered on subjects including gardening, putting food by, alternative health, livestock and dairy, and many hands-on courses. Workshop presenters include Samuel Fromartz, author of "Organic, Inc.," Jeffrey Roberts, author of "An Atlas of American Artisan Cheese," Eric Toensmeier, author of "Edible Forest Gardens and Perennial Vegetables," and Elizabeth Henderson, author of "Sharing the Harvest; A Citizen’s Guide to Community Supported Agriculture."

Future farmers can attend the Children's Conference, offering youth, ages 6-12, the opportunity to explore food, agriculture, and the environment with interactive games and activities.

Registration brochures will be mailed in early January. Anyone who would like to be added to the mailing list should send an email to info@nofavt.org or call 802-434-4122.

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