2019 Plenary Sessions & Speakers
Kate Edwards
Fred Kirschenmann
Jan Joannides
David Bachhuber
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Tera Johnson
Monica Rainge
Julia Freedgood
Patrice Bailey
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Sarah Lloyd
Ed Eiffler Jaramillo
Ela Chapin
Dan Cornelius
|
Rodrigo Cala
Bev Durgan
Bryce & Jen Reimer
Tanya Murray
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Tuesday, October 22, 12:30-1:30pm - Welcome and Opening Remarks: Welcome to the Region!
Welcome to Minnesota and the upper Midwest! Our opening plenary panel and speakers shared the current state of the agricultural sector here in the region, market trends and challenges affecting farm viability, emerging farm business models and opportunities on the horizon. We kicked off the conference with a strong sense of what is happening in agriculture in the region as it relates to farm viability, with representatives from a diverse set of agricultural communities and support organizations.
Welcome:
Jan Joannides, Renewing the Countryside, Minnesota
Ela Chapin, Vermont Farm & Forest Viability Program
Opening Plenary:
Patrice Bailey, Minnesota Department of Agriculture (Facilitator)
Dan Cornelius, Intertribal Agriculture Council, Wisconsin
Bev Durgan, University of Minnesota Extension
Kate Edwards, Wildwood Farms/Renewing the Countryside, Minnesota
Fred Kirschenmann, Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture, Iowa
Sarah Lloyd, Wisconsin Farmers Union
Wednesday, October 23, 8:30-9:30am - Plenary Panel: Farmers as Entrepreneurs
Unprecedented change is upon us in Agriculture. A five year farm recession, variability in weather and the political climate are pushing farmers to explore new business models to ensure their future viability. At the same time, consumer food preferences are changing at an unprecedented rate. Survival in this business environment requires the ability to adapt quickly and fail fast forward to address customer needs with profitable products and to create a farm business that can work financially. This is the domain of entrepreneurs; it is not the domain of farmers who grow what they know and do the same thing every year as efficiently as possible. How are we adapting to this new environment?
Tera Johnson, Food Finance Institute, Wisconsin
Jen & Bryce Riemer, Riemer Family Farm, Wisconsin
David Bachhuber, Lovefood Farm, Wisconsin
Ed Eiffler Jaramillo, Shared Ground Farmers' Cooperative, Minnesota
Rodrigo Cala, Cala Farm, Minnesota
Thursday, October 24, 11:30-12:30 - Closing Remarks: Conference Themes and Insights for the Future
With a range of topics and trainings addressed at the conference, our closing panel reflected on the themes and ideas that emerged during the time together, and shared key insights into what the future of agriculture may bring. How can our organizations and networks best support agricultural businesses as they adapt, grow and change?
Closing remarks:
Chuck Ackman, Senator Klobuchar's office
Panel:
Ela Chapin, Vermont Farm & Forest Viability Program (Facilitator)
Julia Freedgood, American Farmland Trust
Tanya Murray, Oregon Tilth
Greg Padget, Practical Farmers of Iowa
Monica Rainge, Federation of Southern Cooperatives, Georgia
Paul Dietmann, Compeer Financial, Minnesota
Speaker Bios
David Bachhuber, Lovefood Farm, Wisconsin
Lovefood Farm is a family business, owned and operated by David and Abby Bachhuber, along with their 10 year old daughter, Soleia. David and Abby started their farm 5 years ago with a devotion to the land, a passion for science, and a whole lot of love for growing healthy flavorful food. Together they produce fresh, certified organic vegetables and herbs in Stoughton, Wisconsin, and market products through farmer’s markets, an alternative model CSA, grocery stores, restaurants, and as an ingredient supplier to local, value added food businesses. The Bachhubers are first generation farmers, choosing to live in partnership with nature, creating community now by bringing healthy food options to their area, and participating in restorative and sustainable practices to do their part in protecting the planet and food supply for future generations.
Patrice Bailey, Minnesota Department of Agriculture
Patrice Bailey was appointed to the position of Assistant Commissioner in June 2019. Bailey oversees Outreach, Agricultural Marketing and Development, Dairy and Meat Inspection, and Food and Feed Safety for the MDA. Bailey, a native of Harlem, New York, holds a B.S. in Agriculture Education from Prairie View A&M University (Texas) and has a Master’s Degree in Agriculture from Iowa State University. He has served the Twin Cities in several positions focused on bridging underrepresented communities of color to various available resources and advocating for them legislatively at the Capitol. Most recently, he served as the Outreach Director for the Council for Minnesotans of African Heritage.
Rodrigo Cala, Cala Farm, Minnesota
Rodrigo was born on a small family farm in Mexico City, and moved to Minnesota in 2004. In 2005, he joined the Minnesota Food Association where he successfully completed the Big River Farms Immigrant & Minority Farmer training. The training is focused in organic farming and Good Agriculture Practice (GAP) training. In 2008, Rodrigo and his brother Juan Carlos purchased their farm: Cala Farm "Origenes" LLC, in Turtle Lake WI. They sell certified organic produce to various customers in Minneapolis-St. Paul. He also works as a trainer for the Latino Economic Development Center; he is founder member of Shared Ground Farmers Marketing Cooperative, a multicultural farmers-owned marketing business base in St. Paul, MN.
Ela Chapin, Vermont Farm & Forest Viability Program (Conference Host)
Ela Chapin has been the Program Director for the Vermont Housing & Conservation Board's Farm & Forest Viability Program since 2006. She has been instrumental in facilitating expansion of the program, improving and creating new partnerships and driving significant quality improvement of program services. Under Ela’s leadership the program has expanded professional development trainings for agricultural service providers in Vermont and beyond, including dozens of trainings and networking events, and she is the co-founder of the National Farm Viability Conference. Ela earned her MA in Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning from Tufts University. She is an avid gardener, a dancer, and lives in East Montpelier, Vermont.
Dan Cornelius, Intertribal Agriculture Council, Wisconsin
Dan Cornelius, a member of the Oneida Nation of Wisconsin, has worked as the Intertribal Agriculture Council’s Technical Assistance Specialist for the Great Lakes Region since April 2011. He has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Puget Sound in history and a J.D. from the University of Wisconsin Law School. Among other areas, Mr. Cornelius’ work has focused on expanding value added production, enhanced partnerships and networks, and new market opportunities for Tribal agricultural producers. Highlights of Intertribal Agriculture Council’s work in the Great Lakes Region also include comprehensive food summits hosted by each of the four states with federally-recognized Tribes, numerous hands-on workshops, and launch of a Mobile Farmers Market to help highlight Native-produced food products and support coordinated distribution and marketing. Mr. Cornelius continues to advance these priorities while providing expanded support for cooperative development, farm business planning, and conservation planning at individual and Tribal levels.
Paul Dietmann, Compeer Financial, Minnesota
Paul Dietmann is a Senior Lending Officer in the Mission Financing group at Compeer Financial, a member-owned rural lending cooperative and Farm Credit System institution serving Illinois, Minnesota, and Wisconsin. Paul and his colleague, Sai Thao, are responsible for Compeer’s Emerging Markets Loan Program, which provides loans and technical assistance to farmers who market their products through local food systems. Prior to joining the staff at Compeer, Paul spent 16 years with the State of Wisconsin; eleven years as a county agriculture agent with the University of Wisconsin-Extension and five years as director of the Wisconsin Farm Center, which is the farmers’ assistance program in the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP). He served as Wisconsin’s Deputy Secretary of Agriculture in 2010. Dietmann holds a Bachelor of Science in Agricultural Economics from the University of Illinois, and a Master’s Degree from UW-Madison.
Bev Durgan, University of Minnesota Extension
Beverly R. Durgan has dedicated her career to connecting Extension and research with the citizens of Minnesota. As Dean of University of Minnesota Extension, Durgan leads a team of more than 800 employees who deliver practical and useful research-based education and information to Minnesotans. Before becoming Dean in 2005, Durgan oversaw agricultural research and Extension in several administrative roles at the University. She holds a faculty appointment in the Department of Agronomy and Plant Genetics, where she is a weed scientist focused on small grains and specialty crops. Dean Durgan is widely known as a national leader in her academic discipline as well as in Extension and academic organizations. A native of Montana, she was raised on an irrigated corn and small-grain farm. She earned a bachelor’s degree in business management at Montana State University and master’s and doctorate degrees in agronomy from North Dakota State University.
Kate Edwards, Wildwood Farms & Renewing the Countryside, Minnesota
Kate Edwards owns and operates Wild Woods Farm, a 7-acre vegetable farm in Johnson County, Iowa. She runs a vegetable Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) that feeds 200 families in her community. While her grandparent farmed, she was a generation removed from farming, but almost a decade ago left a career as an environmental engineer to start a career in farming. In addition to farming, Kate is a Farmland Access Navigator with Renewing the Countryside, where she help other farmers access land.
Julia Freedgood, American Farmland Trust
Julia Freedgood is a national expert in farmland protection, agricultural viability, and food systems who heads AFT’s efforts to support the future of farming by increasing land access and supporting next-generation farmers. She co-authored “Cultivating the Next Generation: Resources and Policies to Help Beginning Farmers Succeed in Agriculture,” and leads AFT’s efforts to train trainers and build a network of service providers to help beginners secure land and succeed in agriculture. Freedgood co-authored AFT’s “Farms Under Threat” report and published “Growing Local: A Community Guide to Planning for Agriculture and Food Systems” to strengthen local economies and improve community food security. Freedgood served on USDA’s Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program Grant Review Board and the USDA-Secretary Vilsack’s Land Tenure Advisory Committee. She is also a founding member of North American Food Systems Network and serves on the Advisory Board and Editorial Committee of the Journal of Agriculture Food Systems and Community Development and the Network Committee of Food Solutions New England.
Ed Eiffler Jaramillo, Shared Ground Farmers' Cooperative, Minnesota
Ed Eiffler Jaramillo is the former Executive Director of Shared Ground Farmers’ Cooperative and business developer whose focus is on creating and developing markets for farmers and people of color. While the Executive Director of Shared Ground Farmers’ Cooperative, he introduced the most successful product the cooperative has ever sold and maintained regional markets for an entire growing season. Prior to working at this coop, Ed prepared international contracts for Fortune 500s in Latin America.
Jan Joannides, Renewing the Countryside, Minnesota (Conference Host)
Jan Joannides is the Executive Director and co-founder of Renewing the Countryside. For the past fifteen years, she has been an advocate and organizer for rural communities and citizens who are working to stimulate economic growth and enhance their communities through sustainable uses of their landscapes and resources. Jan also holds an appointment as Senior Fellow at the Minnesota Institute for Sustainable Agriculture. Prior to her work with Renewing the Countryside, Jan coordinated the Community Assistantship Program at the University of Minnesota and helped found and directed the Center for Integrated Natural Resources and Agricultural Management. Jan holds a master's degree in natural resources from the University of Minnesota. She lives in Zumbro Falls, Minnesota with her husband Brett, daughter Olivia, and son Axel.
Tera Johnson, Food Finance Institute, Wisconsin
Tera Johnson is a serial entrepreneur whose mission is to create the next generation of environmentally and economically regenerative food and farming businesses. The founder of teraswhey® and host of the Edible-Alpha® podcast, Tera participated in the full arc of creating a successful investor-financed company. Now the founder and Director of the Food Finance Institute and recipient of the University of Wisconsin Extension Chancellor’s 2017 Wisconsin Idea Award, Tera is a frequent speaker, teacher and financial consultant to sustainable food and farming businesses, social venture funds and investors.
Fred Kirschenmann, Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture, Iowa
Fred Kirschenmann is a professor in the Iowa State University Department of Religion and Philosophy and holds a doctorate in philosophy from the University of Chicago. A longtime national and international leader in sustainable agriculture, Kirschenmann shares an appointment as Distinguished Fellow for the Leopold Center and as President of Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture in Pocantico Hills, New York. He has held numerous appointments, including the USDA's National Organic Standards Board and the National Commission on Industrial Farm Animal Production operated by the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health and funded by Pew Charitable Trusts. Kirschenmann also served as the Leopold Center's second director from July 2000 to November 2005 and has been recognized widely for his work. In 2014 Kirschenmann received the One World Award for Lifetime Achievement and was one of the first 10 recipients of the James F. Beard Foundation Leadership awards in 2011. Kirschenmann also continues to manage his family's 1,800-acre certified organic farm in south central North Dakota.
Sarah Lloyd, Wisconsin Farmers Union
Sarah Lloyd farms with her husband Nels Nelson and his family on the 400-cow Nelson dairy farm outside of Wisconsin Dells, WI in Columbia County. Sarah works off-farm for the Wisconsin Farmers Union (WFU) and the Wisconsin Food Hub Cooperative. In these positions she works with farmers on building their farm enterprises and gaining access to better markets for their products.
Tanya Murray, Oregon Tilth
Tanya Murray is an Organic Education Specialist at Oregon Tilth. She works through a partnership with Oregon State University’s Center for Small Farms and Community Food Systems to develop and deliver educational programming aimed at supporting farmers to run more viable businesses. Tanya has an MBA from Portland State University and a BA in Education for Sustainable Agriculture from Prescott College. Tanya spent the early part of her professional career working on and managing organic vegetable farms.
Greg Padget, Practical Farmers of Iowa
Greg joined Practical Farmers of Iowa in 2016. He oversees the Next Generations programming ensuring resources, events and learning opportunities are available for beginning farmers and farmers looking to transition their farm and land. He manages the Savings Incentive Program and helps plan many events and workshops. He was raised on his family farm in Eastern Iowa. After graduating in agriculture business from Kirkwood Community College and obtaining his bachelor’s degree in marketing from Mt. Mercy College, he moved to Des Moines to pursue his love for agriculture. Working at places such as Living History Farms and Whole Foods Market gave him a diverse background in many aspects of farming and marketing food. Greg continues to build on his passion for gardening and growing local food with his family on their farm in Newton, Iowa.
Monica Rainge, Federation of Southern Cooperatives, Georgia
Monica A. Rainge, an agricultural lawyer, serves as the Director of Land Retention and Advocacy for The Federation of Southern Cooperatives/ Land Assistance Fund. Attorney Rainge leads the development and implementation of regional land retention and advocacy initiatives which support and advance the membership of FSC/LAF. She has worked in the public and private agricultural sectors for over 20 years, and previously served as the Florida State Coordinator for The Federation of Southern Cooperatives/Land Assistance Fund.
Jen & Bryce Riemer, Riemer Family Farm, Wisconsin
Jen and Bryce Riemer are family owners of Riemer Family Farm in Brodhead, Wisconsin. Jen and Bryce moved back to the family farm a decade ago seeking the opportunity to raise their family and their food in accordance with the land and their faith. Together, the Riemer family seeks to promote community and practice stewardship in a way that regenerates the landscape, starting with the soil and continuing with the treatment of the animals - both domestic and wild - to result in a healthier world, a healthier food system, and a healthier people for a brighter future. Jen and Bryce are the third generation of the Riemer family to farm this land in South Central Wisconsin, dating back to 1927.
Welcome to Minnesota and the upper Midwest! Our opening plenary panel and speakers shared the current state of the agricultural sector here in the region, market trends and challenges affecting farm viability, emerging farm business models and opportunities on the horizon. We kicked off the conference with a strong sense of what is happening in agriculture in the region as it relates to farm viability, with representatives from a diverse set of agricultural communities and support organizations.
Welcome:
Jan Joannides, Renewing the Countryside, Minnesota
Ela Chapin, Vermont Farm & Forest Viability Program
Opening Plenary:
Patrice Bailey, Minnesota Department of Agriculture (Facilitator)
Dan Cornelius, Intertribal Agriculture Council, Wisconsin
Bev Durgan, University of Minnesota Extension
Kate Edwards, Wildwood Farms/Renewing the Countryside, Minnesota
Fred Kirschenmann, Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture, Iowa
Sarah Lloyd, Wisconsin Farmers Union
Wednesday, October 23, 8:30-9:30am - Plenary Panel: Farmers as Entrepreneurs
Unprecedented change is upon us in Agriculture. A five year farm recession, variability in weather and the political climate are pushing farmers to explore new business models to ensure their future viability. At the same time, consumer food preferences are changing at an unprecedented rate. Survival in this business environment requires the ability to adapt quickly and fail fast forward to address customer needs with profitable products and to create a farm business that can work financially. This is the domain of entrepreneurs; it is not the domain of farmers who grow what they know and do the same thing every year as efficiently as possible. How are we adapting to this new environment?
Tera Johnson, Food Finance Institute, Wisconsin
Jen & Bryce Riemer, Riemer Family Farm, Wisconsin
David Bachhuber, Lovefood Farm, Wisconsin
Ed Eiffler Jaramillo, Shared Ground Farmers' Cooperative, Minnesota
Rodrigo Cala, Cala Farm, Minnesota
Thursday, October 24, 11:30-12:30 - Closing Remarks: Conference Themes and Insights for the Future
With a range of topics and trainings addressed at the conference, our closing panel reflected on the themes and ideas that emerged during the time together, and shared key insights into what the future of agriculture may bring. How can our organizations and networks best support agricultural businesses as they adapt, grow and change?
Closing remarks:
Chuck Ackman, Senator Klobuchar's office
Panel:
Ela Chapin, Vermont Farm & Forest Viability Program (Facilitator)
Julia Freedgood, American Farmland Trust
Tanya Murray, Oregon Tilth
Greg Padget, Practical Farmers of Iowa
Monica Rainge, Federation of Southern Cooperatives, Georgia
Paul Dietmann, Compeer Financial, Minnesota
Speaker Bios
David Bachhuber, Lovefood Farm, Wisconsin
Lovefood Farm is a family business, owned and operated by David and Abby Bachhuber, along with their 10 year old daughter, Soleia. David and Abby started their farm 5 years ago with a devotion to the land, a passion for science, and a whole lot of love for growing healthy flavorful food. Together they produce fresh, certified organic vegetables and herbs in Stoughton, Wisconsin, and market products through farmer’s markets, an alternative model CSA, grocery stores, restaurants, and as an ingredient supplier to local, value added food businesses. The Bachhubers are first generation farmers, choosing to live in partnership with nature, creating community now by bringing healthy food options to their area, and participating in restorative and sustainable practices to do their part in protecting the planet and food supply for future generations.
Patrice Bailey, Minnesota Department of Agriculture
Patrice Bailey was appointed to the position of Assistant Commissioner in June 2019. Bailey oversees Outreach, Agricultural Marketing and Development, Dairy and Meat Inspection, and Food and Feed Safety for the MDA. Bailey, a native of Harlem, New York, holds a B.S. in Agriculture Education from Prairie View A&M University (Texas) and has a Master’s Degree in Agriculture from Iowa State University. He has served the Twin Cities in several positions focused on bridging underrepresented communities of color to various available resources and advocating for them legislatively at the Capitol. Most recently, he served as the Outreach Director for the Council for Minnesotans of African Heritage.
Rodrigo Cala, Cala Farm, Minnesota
Rodrigo was born on a small family farm in Mexico City, and moved to Minnesota in 2004. In 2005, he joined the Minnesota Food Association where he successfully completed the Big River Farms Immigrant & Minority Farmer training. The training is focused in organic farming and Good Agriculture Practice (GAP) training. In 2008, Rodrigo and his brother Juan Carlos purchased their farm: Cala Farm "Origenes" LLC, in Turtle Lake WI. They sell certified organic produce to various customers in Minneapolis-St. Paul. He also works as a trainer for the Latino Economic Development Center; he is founder member of Shared Ground Farmers Marketing Cooperative, a multicultural farmers-owned marketing business base in St. Paul, MN.
Ela Chapin, Vermont Farm & Forest Viability Program (Conference Host)
Ela Chapin has been the Program Director for the Vermont Housing & Conservation Board's Farm & Forest Viability Program since 2006. She has been instrumental in facilitating expansion of the program, improving and creating new partnerships and driving significant quality improvement of program services. Under Ela’s leadership the program has expanded professional development trainings for agricultural service providers in Vermont and beyond, including dozens of trainings and networking events, and she is the co-founder of the National Farm Viability Conference. Ela earned her MA in Urban and Environmental Policy and Planning from Tufts University. She is an avid gardener, a dancer, and lives in East Montpelier, Vermont.
Dan Cornelius, Intertribal Agriculture Council, Wisconsin
Dan Cornelius, a member of the Oneida Nation of Wisconsin, has worked as the Intertribal Agriculture Council’s Technical Assistance Specialist for the Great Lakes Region since April 2011. He has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Puget Sound in history and a J.D. from the University of Wisconsin Law School. Among other areas, Mr. Cornelius’ work has focused on expanding value added production, enhanced partnerships and networks, and new market opportunities for Tribal agricultural producers. Highlights of Intertribal Agriculture Council’s work in the Great Lakes Region also include comprehensive food summits hosted by each of the four states with federally-recognized Tribes, numerous hands-on workshops, and launch of a Mobile Farmers Market to help highlight Native-produced food products and support coordinated distribution and marketing. Mr. Cornelius continues to advance these priorities while providing expanded support for cooperative development, farm business planning, and conservation planning at individual and Tribal levels.
Paul Dietmann, Compeer Financial, Minnesota
Paul Dietmann is a Senior Lending Officer in the Mission Financing group at Compeer Financial, a member-owned rural lending cooperative and Farm Credit System institution serving Illinois, Minnesota, and Wisconsin. Paul and his colleague, Sai Thao, are responsible for Compeer’s Emerging Markets Loan Program, which provides loans and technical assistance to farmers who market their products through local food systems. Prior to joining the staff at Compeer, Paul spent 16 years with the State of Wisconsin; eleven years as a county agriculture agent with the University of Wisconsin-Extension and five years as director of the Wisconsin Farm Center, which is the farmers’ assistance program in the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP). He served as Wisconsin’s Deputy Secretary of Agriculture in 2010. Dietmann holds a Bachelor of Science in Agricultural Economics from the University of Illinois, and a Master’s Degree from UW-Madison.
Bev Durgan, University of Minnesota Extension
Beverly R. Durgan has dedicated her career to connecting Extension and research with the citizens of Minnesota. As Dean of University of Minnesota Extension, Durgan leads a team of more than 800 employees who deliver practical and useful research-based education and information to Minnesotans. Before becoming Dean in 2005, Durgan oversaw agricultural research and Extension in several administrative roles at the University. She holds a faculty appointment in the Department of Agronomy and Plant Genetics, where she is a weed scientist focused on small grains and specialty crops. Dean Durgan is widely known as a national leader in her academic discipline as well as in Extension and academic organizations. A native of Montana, she was raised on an irrigated corn and small-grain farm. She earned a bachelor’s degree in business management at Montana State University and master’s and doctorate degrees in agronomy from North Dakota State University.
Kate Edwards, Wildwood Farms & Renewing the Countryside, Minnesota
Kate Edwards owns and operates Wild Woods Farm, a 7-acre vegetable farm in Johnson County, Iowa. She runs a vegetable Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) that feeds 200 families in her community. While her grandparent farmed, she was a generation removed from farming, but almost a decade ago left a career as an environmental engineer to start a career in farming. In addition to farming, Kate is a Farmland Access Navigator with Renewing the Countryside, where she help other farmers access land.
Julia Freedgood, American Farmland Trust
Julia Freedgood is a national expert in farmland protection, agricultural viability, and food systems who heads AFT’s efforts to support the future of farming by increasing land access and supporting next-generation farmers. She co-authored “Cultivating the Next Generation: Resources and Policies to Help Beginning Farmers Succeed in Agriculture,” and leads AFT’s efforts to train trainers and build a network of service providers to help beginners secure land and succeed in agriculture. Freedgood co-authored AFT’s “Farms Under Threat” report and published “Growing Local: A Community Guide to Planning for Agriculture and Food Systems” to strengthen local economies and improve community food security. Freedgood served on USDA’s Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program Grant Review Board and the USDA-Secretary Vilsack’s Land Tenure Advisory Committee. She is also a founding member of North American Food Systems Network and serves on the Advisory Board and Editorial Committee of the Journal of Agriculture Food Systems and Community Development and the Network Committee of Food Solutions New England.
Ed Eiffler Jaramillo, Shared Ground Farmers' Cooperative, Minnesota
Ed Eiffler Jaramillo is the former Executive Director of Shared Ground Farmers’ Cooperative and business developer whose focus is on creating and developing markets for farmers and people of color. While the Executive Director of Shared Ground Farmers’ Cooperative, he introduced the most successful product the cooperative has ever sold and maintained regional markets for an entire growing season. Prior to working at this coop, Ed prepared international contracts for Fortune 500s in Latin America.
Jan Joannides, Renewing the Countryside, Minnesota (Conference Host)
Jan Joannides is the Executive Director and co-founder of Renewing the Countryside. For the past fifteen years, she has been an advocate and organizer for rural communities and citizens who are working to stimulate economic growth and enhance their communities through sustainable uses of their landscapes and resources. Jan also holds an appointment as Senior Fellow at the Minnesota Institute for Sustainable Agriculture. Prior to her work with Renewing the Countryside, Jan coordinated the Community Assistantship Program at the University of Minnesota and helped found and directed the Center for Integrated Natural Resources and Agricultural Management. Jan holds a master's degree in natural resources from the University of Minnesota. She lives in Zumbro Falls, Minnesota with her husband Brett, daughter Olivia, and son Axel.
Tera Johnson, Food Finance Institute, Wisconsin
Tera Johnson is a serial entrepreneur whose mission is to create the next generation of environmentally and economically regenerative food and farming businesses. The founder of teraswhey® and host of the Edible-Alpha® podcast, Tera participated in the full arc of creating a successful investor-financed company. Now the founder and Director of the Food Finance Institute and recipient of the University of Wisconsin Extension Chancellor’s 2017 Wisconsin Idea Award, Tera is a frequent speaker, teacher and financial consultant to sustainable food and farming businesses, social venture funds and investors.
Fred Kirschenmann, Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture, Iowa
Fred Kirschenmann is a professor in the Iowa State University Department of Religion and Philosophy and holds a doctorate in philosophy from the University of Chicago. A longtime national and international leader in sustainable agriculture, Kirschenmann shares an appointment as Distinguished Fellow for the Leopold Center and as President of Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture in Pocantico Hills, New York. He has held numerous appointments, including the USDA's National Organic Standards Board and the National Commission on Industrial Farm Animal Production operated by the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health and funded by Pew Charitable Trusts. Kirschenmann also served as the Leopold Center's second director from July 2000 to November 2005 and has been recognized widely for his work. In 2014 Kirschenmann received the One World Award for Lifetime Achievement and was one of the first 10 recipients of the James F. Beard Foundation Leadership awards in 2011. Kirschenmann also continues to manage his family's 1,800-acre certified organic farm in south central North Dakota.
Sarah Lloyd, Wisconsin Farmers Union
Sarah Lloyd farms with her husband Nels Nelson and his family on the 400-cow Nelson dairy farm outside of Wisconsin Dells, WI in Columbia County. Sarah works off-farm for the Wisconsin Farmers Union (WFU) and the Wisconsin Food Hub Cooperative. In these positions she works with farmers on building their farm enterprises and gaining access to better markets for their products.
Tanya Murray, Oregon Tilth
Tanya Murray is an Organic Education Specialist at Oregon Tilth. She works through a partnership with Oregon State University’s Center for Small Farms and Community Food Systems to develop and deliver educational programming aimed at supporting farmers to run more viable businesses. Tanya has an MBA from Portland State University and a BA in Education for Sustainable Agriculture from Prescott College. Tanya spent the early part of her professional career working on and managing organic vegetable farms.
Greg Padget, Practical Farmers of Iowa
Greg joined Practical Farmers of Iowa in 2016. He oversees the Next Generations programming ensuring resources, events and learning opportunities are available for beginning farmers and farmers looking to transition their farm and land. He manages the Savings Incentive Program and helps plan many events and workshops. He was raised on his family farm in Eastern Iowa. After graduating in agriculture business from Kirkwood Community College and obtaining his bachelor’s degree in marketing from Mt. Mercy College, he moved to Des Moines to pursue his love for agriculture. Working at places such as Living History Farms and Whole Foods Market gave him a diverse background in many aspects of farming and marketing food. Greg continues to build on his passion for gardening and growing local food with his family on their farm in Newton, Iowa.
Monica Rainge, Federation of Southern Cooperatives, Georgia
Monica A. Rainge, an agricultural lawyer, serves as the Director of Land Retention and Advocacy for The Federation of Southern Cooperatives/ Land Assistance Fund. Attorney Rainge leads the development and implementation of regional land retention and advocacy initiatives which support and advance the membership of FSC/LAF. She has worked in the public and private agricultural sectors for over 20 years, and previously served as the Florida State Coordinator for The Federation of Southern Cooperatives/Land Assistance Fund.
Jen & Bryce Riemer, Riemer Family Farm, Wisconsin
Jen and Bryce Riemer are family owners of Riemer Family Farm in Brodhead, Wisconsin. Jen and Bryce moved back to the family farm a decade ago seeking the opportunity to raise their family and their food in accordance with the land and their faith. Together, the Riemer family seeks to promote community and practice stewardship in a way that regenerates the landscape, starting with the soil and continuing with the treatment of the animals - both domestic and wild - to result in a healthier world, a healthier food system, and a healthier people for a brighter future. Jen and Bryce are the third generation of the Riemer family to farm this land in South Central Wisconsin, dating back to 1927.
