THREE MULTICULTURAL AGRICULTURE CONFERENCES TO BE HELD IN GEORGIA

LAWRENCEVILLE, GA (January 3, 2013) - The Upper Ocmulgee River RC&D Council, Inc., in partnership with the USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), will host three conferences for multicultural farmers and producers.

The Georgia Multicultural Sustainable Agriculture Conference will be held on the following dates:

- March 12, 2013
Clarence Brown Conference Center
5450 Georgia 20
Cartersville, GA 30121

- September 17, 2013
The Gwinnett Center
6400 Sugarloaf Pkwy.
Duluth, GA 30097

- April 17, 2014
Miller Murphy Howard Building
(Georgia National Fairgrounds)
401 Larry Walker Pkwy.
Perry, GA 31069

All conferences times are from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm. Registration fee is $20 per person, which covers the cost of lunch and conference materials.

The theme of these conferences is ‘myConservationPad,’ playing on the popular concept of gathering information through the use of ‘Apps’ on a computer tablet. Although no real electronic devices will be distributed at this event, attendees will receive a folder where they will insert individualized material, gathered from conference training sessions that they select, to begin building a successful conservation plan for their farms.

“Georgia has experienced a significant increase in ethnically and culturally diverse populations,” said Jerome Brown, District Conservation, USDA – Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in Lawrenceville. “At our first Multicultural Sustainable Agriculture Conference in July, the participants received an introduction to local, state and federal resources available to them. The goal of these conferences is to go a step further and provide tangible tools and resources that multicultural producers can begin utilizing immediately. We feel that the theme ‘myConservationPad’ and calling the training sessions ‘apps’ is a clever way of connecting the changing faces of farmers with changing practices in sustainable agriculture.”

Sessions (i.e. – Apps) and Topics
APP 1- Application and Eligibility for USDA Farm Bill Programs
TOPICS: Introduction to USDA programs; staying in compliance (contracts, local ordinances, etc.)

APP 2 – Developing a Farm Business Plan and Seeking Technical/Financial Assistance
TOPICS: The economics of farming (Farming 101); Sustainable Agriculture Education

APP 3- Your Soils and Plants
TOPICS: Introduction to soils and resource maps; plants/pest identification and control

APP 4- Developing Conservation Plans and Risk Management
TOPICS: Identify resource concerns on your farm; scheduling farm activities

APP 5- Best Management Practices (BMPs) and Engineering Designs for Your Farm
TOPICS: Crop land: Organic farming, irrigation water management system, seasonal high tunnels, rotational grazing, conservation tillage, pollinators; Animal: Nutrient management for poultry, cattle and equine

APP 6- Emerging Agriculture and Conservation Practices and Issues
TOPICS: Aquaculture, goat production, food safety, organic farming, urban, farming, customer outreach activities

Who Should Attend: Beginning/Growing/Established Farmers, Ethnic/Cultural Minority Farmers, anyone interested in learning more about USDA programs, as well as Georgia and local agricultural resources. Georgia producers will also have a chance to see many of the practices discussed in these conferences through ‘How-To’ Install workshops. Workshops dates will be released in early 2013. Pre-registration is required. To register, go to http://tiny.cc/fh0kpw. For more information contact the Upper Ocmulgee River RC&D Council at 678-376-9518 or USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service Office at 770-963-9288.