Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture

Local Foods and 3rd Crops Producer Meeting

Date: Monday, February 27th, 2012

Start: 9:30 am

Location: Knights of Columbus, 920 East 10th Street, Fairmont, Minnesota

Contact: Jill Sackett, UMN Extension/Rural Advantage, 507-238-5449, sacke032@umn.edu

University of Minnesota Extension and Rural Advantage are hosting this meeting.

The morning session will include an update from Jeff Jensen on Rural Advantage’s Martin County Farm2Cafeteria project which is working to help bring growers and buyers together.  Judy Harder with Jubilee Fruits and Vegetables in Mountain Lake will share her experiences with high tunnels, quick hoops, CSA management, and much more. James Luby from the University of Minnesota and the Landscape Arboretum will update attendees on what the University’s fruit breeding program has been working on apples to grapes.

The afternoon session will start at 1 p.m. with the owners of Hall’s Across the Prairie, Dan and Terese Hall.  Hall’s have a grass-fed meat operation that includes cattle, sheep, and poultry. Grape Producer Bob Lau will follow with his experiences getting a vineyard off the ground including trellis design, crop insurance and pruning. Also presenting will be Lake Crystal businessman Tim Harbo whose family owns and operates Welsh Heritage Farms and Harbo Cider. Other sessions are scheduled on research that aims to increase concentration of nutraceutical compounds in fruits and vegetables, and an update on hybrid hazelnuts.

Related information

Rural Advantage is a nonprofit corporation based in Fairmont, Minnesota.  Their mission is to promote the connections between agriculture, the environment and rural communities in order to improve ecological health, economic viability and rural vitality.   Their work centers around efforts to reduce agricultural nonpoint source pollution with major programming focused on the 3rd Crop Initiative, ECoPayPack development, Martin County Farm2Cafeteria Network and building the Madelia Model concept.