14th Annual PlacerGROWN  Food and Farm Conference  Saturday, February 7, 2009

NOTE:  The early registration date has been extended to January 29, 2009.

Welcome to the PlacerGROWN Food and Farm Conference. The conference will be held from
8:00 a.m. - 3:30 p.m. at Lincoln High School, 790 J St., Lincoln, CA. 

It is co-hosted by PlacerGROWN and Placer/Nevada Counties University of California Cooperative Extension (UCCE).  PlacerGROWN is a nonprofit organization that promotes activism around farming and the local food system. 

The conference is an occasion for both farmers and those who purchase their commodities to gather for a day, partake in educational workshops and an opportunity to better know one another.  This year's keynote speaker is Michael Dimock, president of Roots of Change, a collaborative of leaders and institutions unified in common pursuit of achieving a sustainable food system in California by 2030.  Michael will address how small and medium sized agricultural producers can survive amidst global corporate consolidation.  He will also discuss the Declaration of Healthy Food and Agriculture which calls for U.S. Food and Agriculture to move beyond the production of cheap calories to a more holistic approach that addresses the root causes of health, social and environmental problems.

In addition to the trade show, and lunch, the conference features over 25 workshops.  The speakers presenting these workshops come from various backgrounds:  farm advisors, local ranchers and farmers, and business people within the local community.  The following provides a glimpse of the strands and workshops they offer: 

• EATING LOCAL 
  Food Preservation
  What is Local & How to Buy Local
   
• GETTING STARTED IN FARMING
  Business & Operations Planning
  Where to Turn for Resources
   
• BEGINNING FARMING
  Soils in the Foothills
  Irrigation Design & Management

Reserve your space and register today, registration fees go up on January 29, 2009.  Download a registration form, complete it and enclose payment made payable to U C Regents, and mail to:  PlacerGROWN, 11477 E Ave., Auburn, CA, 95603.  Contact Roger Ingram at (530) 889-7385, or by email rsingram@ucdavis.edu for supplementary information on the Farm Conference.