Wisconsin continues to be a national leader in organic food production, despite the fact that certified organic farms, acreage and production represent only a small fraction of agriculture in the state. This report provides a snapshot of the current status of organic agriculture in Wisconsin, and summarizes some of the opportunities and challenges in the [...] [...more]

How profitable are Wisconsin dairy graziers? Are they more satisfied with their lifestyles than other dairy farmers? Do reed canarygrass and kura clover make a good pasture combination? What are the ecological effects of managed grazing? These questions and more will be addressed at the Wisconsin Grazing Conference during a special session on Friday afternoon, [...] [...more]

Farmers who are considering starting or modifying poultry operations have a new resource available. Poultry Your Way is a free, 124-page book that profiles a variety of poultry systems suitable for the Upper Midwest. Producers and poultry experts from Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan contributed to the book, and each chapter profiles a different kind of [...] [...more]

Graziers Rick Adamski and Valerie Dantoin of Seymour received an Honorary Recognition award from the UW-Madison College of Agricultural and Life Sciences on October 27. Honorary Recognition, the highest honor bestowed by the College, recognizes people who have made outstanding contributions toward the development of agriculture, protection of natural resources, and improvement of rural living. Rick [...] [...more]

The bounty of our spring and summer gardens is still a few months away, yet hundreds of Madison school children and their families will enjoy Wisconsin fruit and vegetables in the middle of winter during three upcoming winter harvest dinners. As part of the Wisconsin Homegrown Lunch farm-to-school initiative, students and their families from Chavez, Shorewood [...] [...more]

The UW-Madison Center for Integrated Agricultural Systems has been selected by the EPA as a Pesticide Environmental Stewardship Program (PESP) Champion for 2003. This designation honors CIAS for its efforts to reduce pesticide risk through sustainable agricultural practices such as Integrated Pest Management (IPM) and organic farming. CIAS was specifically recognized for creating workshops and publications [...] [...more]

What do students at Shorewood Hills, Lincoln, and Chavez Elementary Schools have in common? All 1,400 of them, along with school staff and parents, will experience the bounty of local agriculture this month in school-wide Harvest Festivals. As pilot schools involved with the Wisconsin Homegrown Lunch farm-to-school project, each school will host Harvest Festival meals featuring [...] [...more]

Low commodity prices have inspired many farmers to look at alternative enterprises, like poultry production, to increase their farm income. With careful financial planning and management, poultry enterprises can make money for farmers. The Center for Integrated Agricultural Systems at the University of Wisconsin-Madison has developed a budget to help farmers make financial and management decisions [...] [...more]

Organic food sales in the U.S. have grown 20% or more annually for the past decade and remain strong. A new report details the growth of organic agriculture in Wisconsin and the U.S., and encourages state investment in this value-added marketing strategy. “Wisconsin has the third-highest number of certified organic farms in the nation, but our [...] [...more]

A new resource CD from the University of Wisconsin provides a wealth of production and marketing information for fresh market vegetable growers. The “Fresh Market Vegetable Resource CD” includes fact sheets, reports, power point presentations and marketing materials on a range of topics. Vegetable production. The CD includes information on integrated pest and weed management, soil [...] [...more]