2016 Annual Conference
Celebrating 30 Years of Farmers Teaching Farmers
Fifty farmers and friends attended the first Practical Farmers annual meeting on a cold day in December 1985, and came away with a plethora of practical information shared by farmers about research and farming experiences. Thirty years later, the crowd has grown significantly, but the vein of the gathering stays the same: farmers teaching farmers how to improve their farms and communities.
Even more than the learning that takes place, attendees prize connections they make at Practical Farmers conferences, from life-long friends and mentors to new business partners. “It’s like attending a big family reunion,” some members say.
Attend the Practical Farmers of Iowa 2016 Annual Conference to strengthen these important relationships while learning from farmers about building community; being stewards of our natural resources; and creating viable farms, farmers, and food systems.
This year’s highlights:
Pre-conference short courses, January 21-22
Growing Good Small Grains
Successful Establishment and Management of Orchard Trees
Partner event: Iowa Forage and Grassland Council’s conference will run concurrent with short courses
Growing Good Small Grains Video:
Keynote address, Common Characteristics of Successful Farmers, by John Kempf, farmer and founder of Advancing Eco-Agriculture
40 conference sessions, including:
Cover Crops, Companion Crops and No-Till with Robin and Kelly Griffeth
Regenerative Grazing with Jim Elizondo
Goat Dairying and Value-Added Marketing with Leslie Cooperband and Wes Jarrell
Financial Literacy and Business Management with Richard Wiswall
Farmland Legacies with Angela Tedesco, Dale Nimrod and Jim French
Special this year: North Central Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (NCR-SARE) Farmers Forum, featuring farmers sharing information about their sustainable agriculture research, demonstration, and education projects.
Friday night potluck, hosted by Ty and Bobbie Gustafson, where all can come together to share good food and company.
Thank you to all of our Sponsors and Exhibitors for the 2016 Annual Conference!
If you are interested in sponsoring the next conference, please contact conference coordinator Kathy Eastman at keastman33@gmail.com, 515-255-0882 or Steve Carlson at steve@practicalfarmers.org, 515-232-5661