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Every where that I go there are organic farmers fully engaged in certification, production, and marketing. I still see small farmers, family farmers, and diversified farmers showing up at the conferences, learning and sharing about organics. The organic farming conferences are getting bigger and bigger attendance. There are half a dozen conferences with 1,000+ in attendance, and many more with 300-500 in attendance. The quality of technical information, tools, and fertility and pest control products that have come into being in the last 10-15 years has made it easier for farmers to transition to organic farming. Farmers to farmer experience and sharing of technical resources is still a major part of the picture. Young people and entry level small farms that raise for farmers markets and CSA's are almost universally interested in organics, in my experience, whether they become certified or not. Sure, keeping all those records and dealing with federal regulatory changes and policy wrangling can be a headache, but organic agriculture in general keeps on growing. An IFOAM speaker at the Texas organics conference last week relayed worldwide figures on acreages devoted to organics, and it is amazing. Of course, there are far greater acreages devoted to eco-farming, sustainable farming, and various other forms of biological farming... beyond certified organic. Steve Diver   ***************************************************** To unsubscribe from SANET-MG: 1- Visit http://lists.sare.org/archives/sanet-mg.html
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