AgroEcology and Economics of Organics

Sustainable Grain is excited to offer a brand new educational opportunity this winter. “AgroEcology and the Economics of Organics” is a course in knowledge-based field crop management for advanced farms and business agronomists. The inaugural event will be held in Winnipeg, February 11-12, 2019.

Topics covered relate to the business opportunity for conventional farms to move into the organic space, starting with the macro-economic setup for western Canadian acres, which are strategically very well-located to fill the growing gap in North American and global organic food crop demand. Critical to managing the transition and long-term sustainability is the agronomy.

Sustainable Grain is partnering with Joel Williams of Integrated Soils to deliver the latest knowledge in revitalizing soil biology, soil chemistry and plant management techniques. Joel Williams is an independent plant and soil health educator. Joel studied a Bachelor of Agricultural Science in Australia specialising in plant and soil dynamics and he has a particular interest in managing soil microbial ecology along with crop & soil nutrition to optimise plant immunity, soil function and soil carbon sequestration. More recently he’s been working with both conventional and organic farming systems integrating soil chemical & biological assessments, along with plant nutritional analyses as a joined-up strategy for managing crop production. He has been fortunate enough to educate farming audiences in Australia, UK, Ireland, Netherlands, Latvia, South Africa, Kenya, Canada and the US.

Brenda Tjaden has spent her career helping western Canadian farms respond to emerging profit opportunities in growing and marketing their crops. In the process of founding Sustainable Grain, Brenda spent 3 years researching the organic value chain, it’s opportunities and vulnerabilities. She has found and developed solutions for the standard roadblocks that may be encountered by organizations throughout the value chain in converting their businesses from conventional into regenerative organic. She will present the relevant facts around cropping choices, farm restructuring, market dynamics, policies and pricing structures in the organic sector. Sustainable Grain will also provide templates and support for course attendees to develop and execute long-term strategic plans for growth in the organic space.

Key Learnings and Take-aways:

• Key principals of organic business agronomy consulting
• Practical, hands-on tools to grow crops without chemicals
• Templates for sound decision-making to maximize long-term ROI for organic farms
• Strategic positioning for farm advisory businesses to offer knowledge-based consulting vs. input-based consulting, based on modern food industry trends and future influences.

Farmer Panel:

Stuart McMillan, Legend Organic Farm

David Rourke, Rourke Farms

Jason Peters, Kroeker Farms

Andreas Boersch, RegenAgSolutions

Facilitators and Wrap-Up Panel:

Terry Aberhart, Aberthart Farms and Sure Growth Techologies

Terry Betker, Backswath Management

Garth Rempel, RBC

COURSE AGENDA:

February 11

12:00 - 12:30 Arrive and collect a light lunch.

12:30 - 1:15 Macro-economic setup - Brenda Tjaden - How western Canada is converting a million+ acres into certified organic food grain production without a negative impact on organic prices/premiums.

1:15 - 2:15 Understanding Soil Biology – Joel Williams

- Soil health as a function of chemistry, physics and biology.

- Photosynthesis and root exudates as the drivers of soil biology.

- Functions, roles and interactions of soil organisms towards nutrient cycling for plant uptake.

- Ecological succession, annuals vs perennials, fungal:bacterial balance.

- Mycorrhizal fungi – nutrient cycling, soil aggregation, management.

- Managing soil organic carbon.

2:15 – 2:30 Coffee Break

2:30 – 3:15 Organic prices market outlook – Brenda Tjaden - wheat, durum, feedgrains, oats, peas, chickpeas, beans/lentils, flax, rye, hemp, mustard

3:15 - 4:00 Rethinking Soil Chemistry – Joel Williams

- Nutrient management from a biological perspective.

- Total, exchangeable, soluble nutrient pools – nutrients for plants vs nutrients for biology.

- Nutrient behaviour, synergies and antagonisms.

- Increasing nutrient use efficiencies and protecting soil life with carbon-nutrient complexes.

4:00 - 5:00 Minimum tillage options in organic systems – facilitated by Terry Aberhart, Aberhart Farms and Sure Growth Technologies

5:00 – 7:00 Cocktail Hour

February 12

8:30 - 9:30 Plant Management – Joel

- Seed treatment – minerals, microbes and carbon.

- Foliars – tips for a top foliar formulation.

- Biofertilisers & Biostimulants.

- IPM – understanding the foundation of plant health and resilience.

9:30 - 10:30 Managing the transition years – Farmer Panel facilitated by Terry Betker, Backswath Management

10:30 - 10:45 Coffee Break

10:45 - 11:30 Soil and Tissue Interpretation case study and class discussion - Joel

11:30 – 12:15 The sales process for organic grains - Brenda

- Liquidity, relationships and market development

- Quality and residue testing

- Forward planning and acreage-based production contracts

- Transportation and logistics considerations

- Rejection risk and payment terms

12:15 – 1: 00 Lunch

1:00 – 2:00 Economic thresholds – Farmer Panel facilitated by Garth Rempel, RBC

2:00 - 3:00 System Redesign

ESR – efficiency, substitution, redesign.

- Designing with diversity – intercropping, cover crops and impacts on soil biota.

- Breeding next generation varieties for regenerative production systems - linking together plant genomes, phytobiomes and soil microbiomes.

- Agroecology – integrating ecology into agronomy.

- Integrating agroecology into economic sustainability and long-term ROI potential

3 – 3:30 Coffee and final Q&A with Joel

3:30 – 5 Facilitator Q&A Panel: Brenda to facilitate group discussion with panelists Terry Aberhart, Terry Betker an Garth Rempel

- Managing the agronomy of transitioning and organic farms

- Transition issues – working with neighbours, financiers and service providers

- Financing options and long-term financial planning