FARMERS' FORUM: APRIL 26, 2006
The Farmer Forum
hosted by Vermont Soy was a huge success
with over 100 attending the event
Listen to the panelists below by clicking on the panelist's name or the Question and Answers.
Catering provided by:
Catering Vermont, Serving local and organic foods mostly raised on their farm in Westmore (802) 525-3833
THE PANELISTS:
Steve Patterson, Executive Director of Northeastern Vermont Development Association in St. Johnsbury, NVDA owns the Hardwick Industrial Park www.nvda.net (802) 748-5181 spatterson@nvda.net
Dan Hill, Hardwick Town Manager, Received a 2004 Vermont Community Development Program (VCDP) Planning Grant to conduct “A Feasibility Study for Soy Processing in the Hardwick Industrial Park”(802) 472-6120 hardwick@vtlink.net
Andrew Meyer, Co-owner of Vermont Soy LLC in Hardwick, Organic dairy farmer with Meyer Family Farm/North Hardwick Dairy in Hardwick
Todd Pinkham, Co-owner of Vermont Soy LLC in Hardwick, Master soy technician www.vermontsoy.com (802) 472-8500 info@vermontsoy.com
Willie Gibson, Organic Dairy and Livestock Technical Assistance Advisor fo Northeast Organic Farming Association of Vermont in Richmond, Great resource for organic certification www.nofavt.org/ (802) 434-4122 info@nofavt.org
Tom Stearns, Owner of High Mowing Seeds in Wolcott, Stearns is experienced with soybean varieties, processing and cleaning, and creating effective farmers networks www.highmowingseeds.com (802) 472-6174 tom@highmowingseeds.com
Les Morrison, Morrison’s Custom Feeds Inc in Barnet, Purchaser of soybeans for livestock feed & grain www.nofavt.org/farms.php?a=full (802) 633-4387
Steve Justis, VT Agency of Agriculture, Food & Markets, Agricultural Development Division, Senior Ag Development Coordinator, Primary contact for technical details & assistance with growing soybeans in Vermont and networking soy growers www.vermontagriculture.com (802) 828-3827 stevej@agr.state.vt.us
Chuck Mitchell, USDA-NRCS in Morrisville office, District Conservationist; Organizer of North Country Farming Network - recipient of a Heifer Project International (HPI) grant to revive and maintain the agricultural base of small farms in Lamoille County www.vt.nrcs.usda.gov/ (802) 888-4935 ext 12 Charles.Mitchell@vt.usda.gov
Heather Darby, UVM Extension in St. Albans office, Field Crops & Nutrient Management Specialist, Organizer of Vermont Grain Growers Group www.uvm.edu/~uvmext/ (802) 524-6501 ext 206 heather.darby@uvm.edu
Louis and Bernard Rainville, Rainbow View Dairy in Highgate Center, Farm has grown organic edible soybeans for the past two years www.nofavt.org/farms.php?a=full (802) 868-7535 rainbowview@surfglobal.net
Question and Answer Period 1