Contact:

MIKEY AZZARA, NOFA-NJ
PHONE: 609-737-6848
mazzara@nofanj.ORG

Conference to focus on healthy farms, food and gardens

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 3, 2008

PENNINGTON -“Local” and “Organic,” not to mention “Sustainable,” are the buzz words in the food and farming world. Put them all together and what do you get? Good health!

This will be the underlying theme at the Northeast Organic Farming Association of New Jersey’s 18th Annual Winter Conference, “Greener Fields, Greener Pastures: Growing for Good Health,” to be held on Saturday, January 26, from 8:00am to 5:00pm at Rutgers University’s Hickman Hall in New Brunswick.

“This year’s event,” according to Mikey Azzara, NOFA’s Outreach Director, “will offer practical tools for all of us, whether a farmer, gardener, market manager, consumer or chef, to work towards a healthy future in New Jersey.”

A unique mix of farming, gardening, marketing, nutrition, and policy topics, this day-long conference includes workshops on a wide spectrum of sustainable approaches to food and agriculture, complete with a new farmers market manager track, and thirty sessions on topics as varied as egg production, bee-keeping, composting, crop rotation, and nutrition education in schools to preserving foods, artisan cheese-making, transitioning to organic, pest-free fruits, healthy restaurants and more!

According to Azzara, “This is the one event that brings together all of the stakeholders in the food system. Together, we can work for a healthy future, for our land, our food, and our future generations.”

For the full conference brochure and registration, call the NOFA-NJ office at 609-737-6848 or visit the NOFA-NJ website, www.nofanj.org. Major conference support is provided by Rutgers Cooperative Research & Extension, Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, Suzanne’s Specialties, and Whole Foods Market NJ stores.