Stay Informed

Purdue Extension's Indiana Beginning Farmer program is offering two workshops covering a range of food safety and marketing topics useful to anyone who is new to farming or thinking about starting a farm.

The program’s northwest regional workshop will be 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Nov. 15 in the Home Economics Building at the Tippecanoe County Fairgrounds, 1406 Teal Road, Lafayette.

Its northeast workshop will be 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Nov. 19 at Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne, 2101 E. Coliseum Blvd.

Sessions will be presented by extension specialists and local farmers. Topics for both workshops include:

• Fresh produce safety and the Food Safety Modernization Act.
• Regulations for processing and marketing meat, poultry and eggs.
• Technical and financial resources for beginning farmers.
• Identifying market opportunities.

The Lafayette workshop will also include a panel of farmers discussing the proper equipment for farms of various sizes. The Fort Wayne workshop will feature a session on aquaponics.

The workshops are free but space is limited and advance registration is recommended. Lunch and refreshments will be served.

To sign up for either workshop, go to https://edustore.purdue.edu/ and click on the link for workshops. A subsequent link will take you to a full list of Beginning Farmer Program events.

For more information on the workshops or the Indiana Beginning Farmer program, contact Tamara Benjamin at 765-496-1930, tamara17@purdue.edu.