Thursday, January 12, 2012
St. Cloud, Minnesota
Event Link: 2012 Minnesota Organic Conference
Organized By: Minnesota Department of Agriculture
Chris' Presentations:
Full-Day Training: Practical GAPs Implementation on Your Diversified Vegetable Farm - As the demand for local and organic food has exploded in the last five years, so has the expectation on the part of consumers and institutional buyers for clean produce that lasts on the shelf and in the refrigerator. At the same time, institutions have begun demanding food safety assurances, and now the Food Safety Modernization Act has opened the door for FDA regulation of the production and handling of fresh vegetables and produce. Join Rock Spring Farm's Chris Blanchard for a review of post-harvest handling practices, and the methods developed at Rock Spring Farm for meeting the documentation and record-keeping requirements of the GAPs audit process in a way that flows with the work on the farm, rather than existing as a separate set of tasks and requirements.
Organic Under Glass and Plastic - Hoophouses can provide a competitive advantage, a more-certain crop, and a way to spread income and work over a longer growing season. Join longtime high tunnel producer Chris Blanchard for a look at construction options, cropping techniques, and how to extend the growing season for warm-season crops as well as produce greens through the winter.
St. Cloud, Minnesota
Event Link: 2012 Minnesota Organic Conference
Organized By: Minnesota Department of Agriculture
Chris' Presentations:
Full-Day Training: Practical GAPs Implementation on Your Diversified Vegetable Farm - As the demand for local and organic food has exploded in the last five years, so has the expectation on the part of consumers and institutional buyers for clean produce that lasts on the shelf and in the refrigerator. At the same time, institutions have begun demanding food safety assurances, and now the Food Safety Modernization Act has opened the door for FDA regulation of the production and handling of fresh vegetables and produce. Join Rock Spring Farm's Chris Blanchard for a review of post-harvest handling practices, and the methods developed at Rock Spring Farm for meeting the documentation and record-keeping requirements of the GAPs audit process in a way that flows with the work on the farm, rather than existing as a separate set of tasks and requirements.
Organic Under Glass and Plastic - Hoophouses can provide a competitive advantage, a more-certain crop, and a way to spread income and work over a longer growing season. Join longtime high tunnel producer Chris Blanchard for a look at construction options, cropping techniques, and how to extend the growing season for warm-season crops as well as produce greens through the winter.