Every farmer and processor who sells over $5,000 of organic products must be certified. If selling organic, the standards must be met. If regulations are violated, there is a $10,000 penalty for each incident.

There are many misconceptions about organic production. Today, there are federal regulations. In 1990, Congress passed the Organic Foods Production Act. Over a decade later, it was implemented in October 2002 in what’s called the “Final” Rule. Final is in quotation marks because it’s continually amended. There have been three amendments since 2002, typically approving additional substances that farmers or processors can use in organic production.

Read the entire What Makes a Farm Organic? article written by Jim Riddle. The article appeared in the May 25, 2007 issue of Hoard’s Dairyman.

Spend a family outing at an organic farm 15 minutes north of Moorhead on Saturday, June 9, 9:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. rain or shine at the Lee and Noreen Thomas Farm.

The day will be out in the fresh air with learning about farm animals as well as rotating sessions that keep you and your family on the move and in the know. A sampling of sessions includes backyard composting, planting perennials as well as how to plant trees to save 20% on your energy bills. Take a tour of the farm using GPS/GIS. Experts will be on hand to answer your gardening/lawn questions. There are hands on activities for children. Lunch includes a tasty blend of local foods grown within 75 miles of the farm!

To register and receive more information please call Moorhead Community Education at 218-284-3400. You can register online at https://communityed.moorhead.k12.mn.us. The fee of $15 per person or $35 per family includes lunch. Co-sponsored with Thrivent Financial for Lutheran Brotherhood and Country Choice Organic and U of M 4-H foundation.

Rep. Collin Peterson recently announced that presentations and handouts from the seminar, Home Grown Economy: Foods from Local Farms as an Economic Development Tool, held April 2, 2007, at the University of Minnesota-Morris, are now available at:
http://www.morris.umn.edu/HomeGrownEconomy/

People are invited to join an ongoing dialog about local foods from local farms by participating in the University of Minnesota’s Home Grown Economy website blog at:
http://blog.lib.umn.edu/kinge002/HomeGrownEconomy