Organically Grown & Small Farm School

Organically Grown & Small Farm School. I'm Greg Martin with today's Northwest Report.

This is National Organic Harvest Month and a recent report shows that organic production is on the rise. Oregon ranks fourth in the nation for organic sales of about 237-million dollars. Lindsay Eng of the Oregon Department of Agriculture says the state's organic growers are supplying the local market, the domestic market, and the international market.

ENG: The more that people see organic agriculture being incorporated into all of ag and being incorporated not just in the natural food section, or they don't have to go to a different store– we see a lot of our regional retailers incorporating it throughout the store. We have a lot more businesses, restaurants, retail stores that focus on the organic sector. So I would say, per capita, the percentage of people that have incorporated organic products into their diet and into their daily buying habits is higher than other parts of the country.

Oregon is also stepping up to the plate when it comes to increasing the number of new small farms. So 175 people recently registered for OSU's one-day Small Farm School. Classes offered through the day ranged from horse and sheep handling and emergency veterinary care to pasture management, small engine basics and how to grow blueberries. OSU has noted an intense, growing interest, especially from urban areas for education of where food comes from and how it's produced.

That's today's Northwest Report. I'm Greg Martin on the Ag Information Network of the West.