By MICHELE F. MIHALJEVICH

Indiana Correspondent

DANVILLE, Ind. — Organizers of the Indiana Small Farm Conference will continue to focus on networking during the event’s 2019 edition. The seventh annual conference is Feb. 28-March 2 at the Hendricks County 4-H Fairgrounds and Conference Complex.

“Fifty to 100 years ago, there were a lot more farmers and they talked to each other,” noted Tamara Benjamin, chair of the conference and assistant program leader in agriculture and natural resources at Purdue University. “To replicate that this year, we’re setting up a little café where farmers can take time out, sit at a table and have a conversation.

“We’re working on better networking. We want them to leave the conference feeling like they have a partner in Purdue extension, but we also want them to create bonds with other farmers so they don’t feel alone. If we can’t answer their question, can we get them to the right sources? Are they able to make connections with others?”

The conference has information for all small-scale farmers and not just those farming organically, she said. “We look at what does it mean to be a small-scale farmer in the state? Every year we get new farmers. Some have no background in farming. Others might be younger, who have 10 to 20 acres on Grandpa’s farm.

“Interest in small farming is not decreasing. I don’t know if it’s increasing or leveling off.”

Benjamin hopes attendance this year equals or surpasses last year’s number of 400. Two years ago, about 500 people attended.

This year’s conference will offer two farm tours during the event’s first day – one focuses on butcher shop and livestock processing, and the other on agritourism. Workshops on mushrooms, biological orcharding and planning for vegetable growers are also scheduled for the first day.

Michael Phillips, of Lost Nation Orchard, will be the keynote speaker on March 1. Breakout sessions that day include presentations on goat production, saving seeds and expanding farm offerings.

Ariana Torres, assistant professor of agricultural economics and horticulture and landscape architecture at Purdue, will discuss pricing trends at farmers’ markets in the state. Price data are collected weekly on about 200 fruits, vegetables and some herbs. Eleven markets – urban and rural – were monitored last year, and eight in 2017.

“Some weeks prices between urban and rural markets are similar, but prices change over time,” she explained. “Prices are generally higher at the start of the season, but go lower in the summer when there’s more supply.”

Consumers often choose farmers’ markets for more than just the products they sell, Torres said.

“If you go to the grocery store, you pick a tomato, put it in your basket, pay for it and leave,” she noted. “The value is in the product itself. At a farmers’ market, the value is in that market, the sense of community, in supporting farmers and the quality of the product.”

The conference’s final day will feature Karen Washington, of Rise and Root Farm, as the keynote speaker. Breakout session topics include high-tunnel production, soil health and disease management. A demonstration featuring herding dogs is also planned. A trade show is scheduled for March 1-2.

The registration deadline is Feb. 20, though Benjamin said a few registrations could be accepted the day of the conference. Pricing levels are available for adults and for those 18 and under. For more information or to register, visit www.purdue.edu/dffs/smallfarms