Washington Organic Week

Washington Organic Week. I'm Greg Martin with today's Line On Agriculture. A lot of attention has been given to organic food production in the last several years and according to Kelsey Maki, program assistant at Tilth Producers of Washington even a weak economy hasn't affected organics. MAKI: We're seeing a lot of consumer interest in organics certainly and our understanding based on the research and things we pursue organics are sustaining their market even in a down economy so even though people are maybe struggling financially in some ways they're still choosing to support organic products and that means a lot for farmers and organic farmers in particular. Recent data from the USDA demonstrated that the nation's organic farms and ranches enjoyed higher average sales in 2008, with 44 percent of sales taking place less than 100 miles from the farm, keeping that money in the local economy instead of sending it elsewhere. MAKI: I think the reason we're seeing that is because people recognize that often pursuing those products feeds back into their own local economy, it's making an investment in the environment and it's making an investment in health in a way that is more palatable and better understood than maybe it used to be. Washington Organic Week is just one of a number of events here in the northwest to highlight organics and was the brainchild of Tilth Producers of Washington. MAKI: We've partnered with a lot of other sort of organic stakeholders in the area and the state so one thing that is really exciting is we have restaurants all across the state who are participating in "Eat out for Farmers" night. Restaurants that source their food from organic growers that are members of Tilth Producers are donating 10% of their proceeds back to Tilth Producers so we can continue to support our educational programming. Agriculture really began as organic production and Maki feels that eventually we will come full circle. MAKI: Personally I think that what we are going to see is more farmers engaging with organic methods and finding new avenues to include those methods in their work. And I also think that what I hope we will see is public discussion about what organics are and what they really mean. Because I think there's some pretty deep misconceptions about what organics are, where they come from, how something's labeled, how to make a choice about what to purchase and I think that in time we will see people feeling more confident about those answers. That's today's Line On Agriculture. I'm Greg Martin on the Ag Information Network.