With people becoming more aware of environmental issues and the focus shifting to a healthier lifestyle, the number of organic farms has been steadily increasing. At present, Minnesota alone has 700 certified organic farms. In order to encourage farmers to opt for organic measures, the Minnesota Department of Agriculture has come up with a program to offer assistance to farmers with regard to the same.

New Program to Teach Agriculturists About Organic Farmers

Many farmers would like to opt for organic farming but are often faced with the dilemma of a long wait clubbed with high costs.

The whole process to convert a farm to an organic one takes 36 months, which is a long time. During this time, farmers are often left wondering if they are following the right procedure. This is especially true since framers are expected to follow the rules for organic farming but the inspection takes place only after three years. This point was brought up by the Minnesota Department of Agriculture's Principal Administrator – Meg Moynihan based on conversations with several farmers. The program introduced by the Minnesota Department of Agriculture addresses these issues.

As mentioned earlier, the cost of transition to an organic farm amounts to a relatively large sum. The organic transition cost share program provides farmers with a rebate of up to 75 percent on costs that include working with organic certifying agencies and soil testing during the conversion period. This is subject to a maximum reimbursement of 750 dollars for each year of the three year transition period.

Moynihan stated that the farmers were still learning about organic farming. So, in order to encourage them to do so, the program also reduced the cost of educational conferences so that they could attend them. These educational conferences are an ideal platform for new farmers to meet other successful organic farmers. Moynihan also commented that they weren't aware of any other country that had adopted such an initiative.

The program is being funded by the state and the last date to send in applications for the 2013 program is the 14th of February, 2014.

Combining Organic Farmers and Eco-Friendly Promotional Items

Our environment is facing grave danger because of the increasing levels of pollution and the thoughtless nature of companies and individuals alike. However, we as a community can make a great difference by just coming together to stand up for our planet.

Switching to an organic lifestyle, which focuses on the preservation of our natural resources, is the first step in achieving the goals of a cleaner and greener environment. Opting for the use of eco friendly promotional items can also prove to be extremely beneficial in promoting environmental preservation and can go a long way in making our planet a better place to live on.

Source: http://kstp.com/news/stories/S3121850.shtml?cat=1