As demand grows for organic produce as well as grains for feed, more farmers are looking in to changing their operation. Ohio State University's new Transition Guide to Certified Organic Crop Management helps producers make the switch.
"It's the only manual of its kind in Ohio and there are very few like it anywhere else in the United States," saiysDeb Stinner, coordinator of Organic Food and Farming Education and Research (OFFER) program. "It helps make the federal guidelines for organic crop production understandable and is filled with both practical and scientific information farmers can use to meet these guidelines."
The transition guide is available online at Ohio State University Extension's eStore, estore.osu-extension.org/productdetails.cfm?PC=2120. The 74-page guide costs $15 and is published by the OFFER program, part of the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center. Orders of 50 or more copies get a 10% discount.
The book explains the rules and realities of switching to organic production. Individuals can read more about it and see the cover, introduction and an excerpt at www.ag.ohio-state.edu/~news/story.php?id=4606.
OFFER, established in 1998 on OARDC's Wooster campus, provides educational and scientific support for organic agriculture to the people of Ohio. OARDC and OSU Extension are the research and outreach arms, respectively, of Ohio State's College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences.