2018 Oregon State University PDP Project

Project Overview

WSP17-013
Project Type: PDP State Program
Funds awarded in 2017: $37,708.00
Projected End Date: 12/31/2019
Grant Recipient: Oregon State University
Region: Western
State: Oregon
State Coordinator:
Maud Powell
OSU Extension

Commodities

  • Agronomic: clovers, grass (misc. perennial), hay
  • Fruits: cherries
  • Nuts: hazelnuts
  • Vegetables: beans, beets, broccoli, brussel sprouts, cabbages, carrots, cauliflower, celery, cucurbits, eggplant, garlic, greens (leafy), greens (lettuces), leeks, onions, parsnips, peas (culinary), peppers, radishes (culinary), rutabagas, sweet corn, tomatoes, turnips
  • Animals: bees, bovine, sheep
  • Animal Products: meat

Practices

  • Animal Production: animal protection and health, feed/forage, grazing management, grazing - rotational, meat processing, meat processing facilities, parasite control, preventive practices, rangeland/pasture management
  • Crop Production: cropping systems, nurseries, pollination, pollinator health
  • Education and Training: decision support system, demonstration, extension, networking, workshop
  • Farm Business Management: budgets/cost and returns
  • Pest Management: cultivation, cultural control, genetic resistance, integrated pest management
  • Production Systems: integrated crop and livestock systems, organic agriculture
  • Sustainable Communities: infrastructure analysis

    Proposal abstract:

    Topic(s) -- what topics do you anticipate covering in the next year?
    In Oregon we manage these SARE funds via a call for proposals (CFP) every three years. In the summer of 2015 we will be doing our second such CFP, so we cannot list specific topics these mini-grants will address in 2016 yet. The 2015 CFP will be extended to farmer and rancher projects rather than just PDP projects. The Oregon SARE Advisory Committee is our mini-grant selection committee.
    Projects funded from 2016-2018 illustrate recent projects funded by our advisory committee:

    No. Title Amount Project leader
    1 Travel to summer meeting $1000/yr Andrews & Powell
    2 Facilitating Oregon Farmstead Cheese Makers Implementation of the Food Safety Modernization Act $4000/yr Lisbeth Goddik
    3 Oregon State University Small Farms Conference $3100/yr Garry Stephenson
    4 3-D Mummy Berry Printing $1500/yr Jay W. Pscheidt
    5 Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Integration into Produced Christmas Management Practices $3100/yr Chal Landgren
    6 Growing Resilience: Water Management Workshop Series $3944 Amy Garrett
    7 Launching a Sustainable Rangeland-Based Beef Production Video Library to Educate Agricultural Professionals $4000 Sergio Arispe

    b) Context, justification and assumptions
    Growth of the organic food and agriculture industries in Oregon slowed during the recession, but remained positive, and is increasing rapidly as the economy recovers. Organic food companies report that the limited supply of organic ingredients is restricting their growth and forcing them to purchase organic agricultural products from overseas. Market incentives, farmer values, regulatory pressure and incentive programs continue to enhance conventional and organic farmer’s interest in sustainable agriculture (SA). Leading farmers and other agricultural professionals seek ongoing opportunities to increase their knowledge of SA methods.
       Our state stakeholder advisory group reviews the WSARE State/Protectorate CFP and awards funds to applicants which are consistent with WSARE goals and address priority SA topics in Oregon. Eastern and Western Oregon have very different climates. Oregon also has highly diverse farms and ranches. During the mini-grant CFP and review process we reach out to Extension faculty serving these diverse regions and audiences, and accept the highest quality
    proposals that serve a variety of production systems and biomes.

    c) Stakeholder and partner involvement
    The Oregon SARE Advisory Committee includes staff from Benton County Soil & Water Conservation District, Oregon Environmental Council, four OSU Extension faculty. Starting in 2015 the Advisory Committee was expanded to include at least one Family and Community Health (FCH) Extension faculty, and at least one farmer or rancher. Committee members have expertise in conservation, small farms, field crops, livestock, horticulture, organic and other certification standards, marketing and Extension administration. The Advisory Committee selects mini-grant projects every three years. When grantees deliver high quality programs and demonstrate strong impacts, they are invited to continue the program for three years pending continued funding from WSARE. In 2016 we are in the first year of the projects listed in section a, and are revising our CFP for release this summer. Mini-grant proposals are expected to strengthen project-based partnerships between agencies, non-profits and/or farms and ranches. In the event that a mini-grant performance is unsatisfactory, the Oregon SARE Advisory Committee will solicit alternative projects for the reainder of the three-year period. Methods and Results section: The SARE Logic Model – posted at the Western SARE website  https://wsaregrants.usu.edu/grants/docs/AppendBpdp.pdf -- is the reference point and framework for preparing a state/protectorate proposal. Please use Attachment B on page 7 in preparing and summarizing your proposal. Please use your narrative to more completely explain your program, focusing on the four areas below:

    d) Inputs
    SARE resources will pay for travel, supplies, honoraria and coordinator salaries. Coordinators will plan educational events and conduct evaluations. OSU faculty time used to develop curriculum and teach is not included in proposed budgets. University facilities will be used to host trainings. Partnerships with other organizations are encouraged but not required of project leaders. In the previous round of projects, projects 3 and 4 are both funded primarily from registration fees and sponsorships from other supporting organizations, projects 2 and 5 leveraged information from other WSARE-funded projects.

    e) Outputs
    Projects listed in section a) were funded from 2016-2018, and illustrate the programs our
    Advisory Committee prioritized then. These projects were chosen for their potential to generate impacts during the three years of potential funding. Target audiences include Extension faculty, SWCD and NRCS staff, Oregon Department of Agriculture and DEQ staff, the staff of nonprofit organizations working in sustainable agriculture including Oregon Tilth and the Oregon Food Bank, and staff from local governments working on relevant issues. In 2017 this audience will be extended to farmers, ranchers and food businesses. Activities will include workshops with classroom and hands-on activities and/or field days. Project coordinators will develop printed resources and websites that address a broad selection of sustainable agriculture topics.

    Some funded projects conduct broad outreach activities to large audiences, others offer more focused workshops designed to deliver more detailed and specific information to smaller audiences.

    Project objectives from proposal:

    Western SARE strives to increase awareness, knowledge and skill levels and the
    intent of trainees to apply what they’ve learned, and to increase new programming in
    sustainable agriculture or the incorporation of sustainable ag into existing educational
    programs or products.

    Please outline what changes in knowledge, skills, awareness and intention you anticipate your project will have. We expect mini-grant projects to enhance the knowledge and influence the behavior of 200-1000 farmers and other agricultural professionals each year. Participants learn new information on a variety of topics related to sustainable agriculture. They will strengthen their understanding of scientific principles fundamental to SA, and practices utilized by successful sustainable farms, ranches and food businesses. We anticipate that some participants will put this new information into action when interacting with farmers and students or managing their farm or food business.

    While we cannot list specific topics before reviewing applications, we are aware of interest in increasing knowledge on food safety, dry-land farming, IPM, soil management, vegetable flavor and nutrition, small-scale produce and meat packing, Extension education methods, farm systems management, animal health, pasture management and other topics.

    Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of the U.S. Department of Agriculture or SARE.