EVENTS
Date: July 27, 2018, 9:20am
Location: Spring Green, WI
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Date: August 3-4, 2018
Location: Spring Grove, MN and Coon Valley, WI
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Date: August 8, 2018, 9:30am-6:30pm
Location: Tour begins in Madison
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SUCCESS STORIES
As older farmers retire, fewer young farmers are stepping in to take their place. The number of beginning farmers dropped 20 percent in the last five-year census period, and the average US farmer now tops 58 years of age.
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CIAS supports innovative graduate student research addressing the challenges faced by small- and medium-sized farms and food businesses. Awarded annually, our competitive mini-grants aid students as they initiate their research in sustainable agriculture and food systems.
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Organic Agriculture in Wisconsin: 2009 Status Report
While growth in the organic industry has slowed, U.S. consumers are not giving up on organic food. Organic sales, which expanded at a rate of 20 percent per year from the early 1990s through 2007, likely experienced negative growth in 2009. But 31 percent of U.S. families bought more organic food in 2009 than in 2008.
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Scaling Up: Meeting the Demand for Local Food
Robust local and regional food systems offer social, environmental and economic benefits. Increasingly, wholesale buyers are demanding locally grown food and growers are looking for new regional markets. To develop informed business development strategies for Wisconsin farmers and other supply chain start-ups, the UW-Madison Center for Integrated Agricultural Systems (CIAS) and UW-Extension Agricultural Innovation Center studied and documented eleven models of regional food aggregation and distribution.
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CIAS Provides IPM Expertise to Apple Growers through Conference Calls and Blogging
Due to the limited number of apple IPM consultants in Wisconsin and the high cost of hiring consultants, few Wisconsin apple growers have been able to take advantage of professional consultant expertise in implementing IPM on their orchards. To address this need, the Eco-Apple Project launched a blog in 2006 and free weekly conference calls with an apple IPM consultant in 2007.
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Grass-Based Dairy Products: Challenges and Opportunities
There is growing consumer interest in dairy products from grass-fed cows. Consumers are increasingly aware of the environmental, health and taste benefits of eating dairy and other animal products from livestock fed using managed grazing. If this interest translates into demand, it may open new value-added markets for farmers who use managed grazing.
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Cover Crops on the Intensive Market Farm
Crops that are grown solely to provide soil cover or for the purposes of increasing soil fertility are referred to as cover crops or green manures. Due their ability to protect and enhance soils, cover crops are considered a fundamental aspect of any sustainable cropping system.
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CIAS: a catalyst for sustainable agriculture and food ideas in Wisconsin
CIAS builds partnerships to incubate innovative ideas in agriculture, research new specialty crops, build markets for local food, train the next generation of farmers, survey organic agriculture, reduce pesticide use on farms, increase profit on family farms, and more. This document describes new projects we are launching, projects we're currently working on, and long-term projects we continue to monitor.
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Wisconsin College and University Programs and Projects in Sustainable Agriculture
Wisconsin's colleges and universities offer a variety of classes and programs in sustainable agriculture, from practical skills taught at the technical colleges to a graduate degree in Agroecology at UW-Madison. In addition, student groups at a number of colleges offer non-formal opportunities for learning about and promoting sustainable agriculture.
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Find Local Food With the 2009 Southern Wisconsin Farm Fresh Atlas
Whether you are cooking at home or enjoying a meal out on the town, the 2009
Southern Wisconsin Farm Fresh Atlas can steer you to local, sustainably grown food. The 2009 edition will be available for free in Madison and across southern Wisconsin beginning April 18.
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