New Grant to Evaluate Use of Approved Fertilizers in Organic Tomato Crops
September 10 - OFRF has awarded a grant to Kate Scow, Director of the Russell Ranch Sustainable Agriculture Facility at the University of California Davis to evaluate the costs and benefits of using organic-approved liquid injectable fertilizers in tomato crops.
Organic for Climate Research Priorities
September 1, 2020 - OFRF’s organic research priorities focus on ensuring public research investments respond to the top challenges facing organic farmers and ranchers and producers who want to farm more sustainably, while also advancing organic agriculture’s contribution to climate change mitigation and adaptation.
Beginning Farmer Training Program Now Available
August 26, 2020 - OFRF’s free online training program is now available! Please help us get the word out on this new resource. We are looking for feedback and ask that anyone who takes the section also completes the brief surveys at the end.
Cover Crops for Weed Management
August 18, 2020 - Cover crops can suppress weeds and build soil health, but how and when to terminate cover crops is not straightforward. In 2019, OFRF provided a grant to Professor Alex Woodley at North Carolina State University to begin addressing this question in sweet potatoes.
Fresh From the Fields: A-Frame Farm
August 6, 2020 - Luke and Ali Peterson farm 500 certified organic acres employing practices such as cover cropping, minimal tillage, and crop livestock rotation toward the goal of becoming self-sustaining and truly regenerative.
Organic for Climate Policy Recommendations
August 6, 2020 - As conversations around the climate crisis continue to evolve on Capitol Hill, OFRF wants to ensure that climate legislation includes support for organic agriculture given its many climate benefits.
Focus Group Hosts Needed for National Survey
August 4, 2020 - OFRF and OSA are conducting a national survey of certified organic producers and producers transitioning to organic production. We are seeking applications from organizations that support certified organic and transitioning agricultural producers to facilitate and coordinate virtual focus groups.
Regional and Long-Term Agricultural Research Build Climate Resilience
July 30, 2020 - Food and agriculture research is critical to improving farm and rural viability, public health, food security, and agriculture’s potential to address the climate crisis.
Combating the Climate Crisis Through Conservation
July 16, 2020 - In this blog, we dig into the soil health provisions in the Agricultural Resilience Act, emphasizing the proposed changes to the country’s primary working lands conservation programs.
OFRF & FFAR Announce Grants to Advance Soil Health Research
July 15 - OFRF and FFAR are pleased to award three grants to researchers in California, Pennsylvania, and Texas to bolster soil health research by developing innovative organic strategies for controlling weeds, pests, and disease.
Calling All Farmers: We Want to Hear From You!
June 17, 2020 - During these uncertain times, it is more important than ever that farmers and ranchers make their voices heard through our National Organic Survey.
Building a Resilient Future in Food and Farming
June 16, 2020 - The road to a more resilient agricultural system will be long and hard. Fortunately, far-sighted Members of Congress have joined NSAC, OFRF, and many other organizations to begin the first steps on that road.
OFRF & FFAR Fund Soil Health Research at MSU
June 4, 2020 - OFRF and FFAR awarded a second year of funding in the amount of $20,000 to Dr. Jed Eberly at Montana State University based on the promise shown in his first year of organic lentil trials.
Fresh From the Fields: Barr Farms
June 3, 2020 - Barr Farms is a seventh-generation family farm in Rhodelia, Kentucky. Adam and Rae Strobel Barr raise organic vegetables, pastured chicken and pork, and grass-fed beef. They farm with the intention of taking care of the land by growing healthy soil, healthy plants, healthy animals, and healthy people.
Agriculture’s Role in Addressing Climate Change
May 19, 2020 - The House Select Committee on the Climate Crisis held a hearing in Fall 2019 to discuss the role of agriculture in identifying and implementing solutions to the climate crisis. It was the first time they focused on the potential for America’s farmers and ranchers to be a positive force in the nation’s efforts to combat climate change.
Strawberry Transplants for Organic Producers
May 15, 2020 - This research trial on five organic strawberry farms on the Central Coast of California tested the success of public varieties of organic versus conventional transplants.
Creating a Soil Health Roadmap for Your Farm
May 8, 2020 - A Soil Health Roadmap provides a framework and set of tools for systematically evaluating the health of your soil and creating an integrated set of strategies for enhanced stewardship.
New Economic Injury Disaster Loan and Advance for Ag
May 6, 2020 - The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) has just opened the Economic Injury Disaster Loan EIDL program to farms and ranches that were previously unable to apply. SBA released the following information on May 4, 2020.
Today You Can Support Organic Farmers
April 29, 2020 - When I started farming full time, I quickly learned that I needed good science-based information that I could trust, and OFRF was the place I could get that information. I also quickly learned research that builds a resilient future doesn’t happen overnight and requires our collective investment.
New Digital Toolkit for Climate Advocacy
April 23, 2020 - Our new virtual campaign is designed to inspire, educate, and inform people on how best organic practices help mitigate climate change and build resilience—leading to healthy people, ecosystems, and economies.
Please Support Our Work
April 23, 2010 - Dear friends, I sincerely hope this message finds you and your family healthy and safe in the midst of this pandemic. As I juggle working from home, homeschooling my two kids, and ensuring our family has healthy food to eat, I am reflecting on the challenges each of us face and am reminded of how central food and farming is to all of our well-being.
Research Forum Scholarship Recipients Share Feedback
April 10, 2020 - With generous support from Ceres Trust, OFRF was able to provide scholarships to the 2020 Organic Agriculture Research Forum to 19 students, farmers, and researchers.
Wild Hope Farm
Wild Hope Farm is a certified organic farm owned by the Belk family and located in Chester, South Carolina. The practices they use are simultaneously decreasing off-farm inputs (e.g., pesticides, fertilizers) and increasing the health of their ecosystem.
It’s About the Long Game Now
March 30, 2020 - Bob Scowcroft, co-founder and first Executive Director of OFRF was scheduled to speak at OFRF’s benefit luncheon at Expo West on March 4th. Unfortunately, the cancellation of Expo West and our luncheon due to COVID-19 was just the beginning of a series of events that none of us could have foreseen.
The Power of Hope and Resilience
March 31, 2020 - As our world faces the confusion and heartache that the COVID-19 pandemic has brought with it, we at OFRF are reminded of the power of hope and resilience. For the OFRF team, our lives, like yours, are looking quite different these days. Our office in Santa Cruz is closed as we “shelter in place.” But, we are sticking together and are committing to our mission more than ever.
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