The conference's theme is “Building Resiliency through Biodiversity and Conservation in Organic Farming,” with keynote speaker, Rattan Lal, World Food Prize Laureate and professor of soil science at Ohio State University, speaking on “Why Soil Quality in Organic Systems Matters.”
The conference begins at 2 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 20, with vendor setup, and a reception featuring local and organic food and drinks at 6 p.m. The conference lunch on Monday afternoon highlights local and organic produce, meats and dairy products.
Monday’s breakout sessions start at 8 a.m. and include information on transitioning into organic farming, weed management, organic livestock production, and alternative crops such as black beans and split peas. Sessions include improving soil quality, pest management, organic no-till, what you need to know for organic inspection, diversifying your rotations and more.
Conference registration is available online. Registration is $100 until Nov. 10 and $120 after.
Hotel rooms are available at the Iowa House Hotel for Sunday, Nov. 20. Guests may access room reservations by going to iowahousehotel.uiowa.edu and entering group #112122, or calling the hotel at 319-335-3513 and mentioning the Iowa Organic Conference.
For additional conference information and directions to the conference, visit the 2022 Iowa Organic Conference webpage, https://www.regcytes.extension.iastate.edu/iowaorganic/, or contact Kathleen Delate at kdelate@iastate.edu or 515-294-5116.