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12 CapitalPress.com October 16, 2015 Greatest challenge is financial hurdle of transition period ORGANIC from Page 1 And it’s not for everyone,” he said. “You’ve got to be present in the field, and tim- ing is everything. It’s hard to fix a wreck once you get started.” And there’s a lot of paper- work. Every single thing has to be documented, he said. The impetus for going organic has to be more than money. It’s about producing a healthy product, he said. Help wanted Demand for organic food is booming with no sign of slow- ing, far outstripping on-farm production and boosting U.S. organic farm gate sales 72 per- cent since 2008. On-farm organic sales reached nearly $5.5 billion in 2014, the USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service reported in its 2014 Organic Survey, which was released last month. Given the growing appe- tite for organic products, the Photos by Carol Ryan Dumas/Capital Press industry could move well Founded in 1904, Sunset Butte Ranch is transitioning to the next generation. beyond claiming just 5 per- cent of the U.S. food supply, own on the family farm that is according to the Organic Trade being transitioned to his fiancee. Association. Townsend said he knew a To say there’s abundant op- bit about farming and that crops portunity for farmers is a “gross should be rotated to care for the understatement,” said Nate soil but he can’t imagine going Lewis, OTA senior crop and into organics without a mentor. livestock specialist. Heath invited him to learn U.S. organic sales, including from the mistakes he has made non-food products, hit $39.1 bil- in more than 25 years of organ- lion in 2014. That’s an 11.3 per- ic production, and the learning cent increase year over year, no- curve wasn’t so steep — al- ticeably outshining the 3 percent though this year was harder than increase in comparable conven- last year, he said. He realizes his transition tional sales, according to OTA. “Demand is far outstripping into organic is unique. He didn’t supply, especially for grain and have to weather the three-year transition period and didn’t pulses,” Lewis said. But there are significant ob- have as tough a learning curve stacles to getting into organic as most, but it is demanding, he said. production, he said. “You really have to be on top The greatest challenge is the financial hurdle of the three- of it. If you get behind, you re- year transition period. Without ally don’t have anything to fall Tim Cornie discusses beneficial bugs in his corn crop with Darcy the use of conventional fertiliz- back on. The weeds are the big Sexton, a student of soil microbiology who is helping him analyze ers and pesticides, the producer thing. If you get behind, it’s go- and build soil health on his farm in Buhl, Idaho. is faced with lower yields but is ing to hurt your yield and make farmers into agriculture, he said. there,” he said. not yet able to benefit from the a mess of things,” he said. OTA is addressing all these “We need to be meeting pro- higher prices organic crops gen- Roadblocks ducers where they are. We need issues on the national and re- erally bring, said. Playing into that is a lack of Healthy price premiums are that on-ramp. What gets com- gional basis, he said. organic-specific technical as- creating a lot of interest in or- plicated is how to build that on- Veteran advice sistance, which runs the gamut ganic farming, more than OTA ramp,” he said. The industry needs to share Given current strong de- from USDA agencies to uni- has previously seen. But there versity extension specialists, he aren’t many farmers making in that financial hurdle. Some mand and high prices, longtime said. In addition, crop insurance the move, which underscores food companies do that through organic growers anticipate more has largely been unavailable for the financial barrier and lack of a direct relationship with the entrants into their industry. But technical assistance, Lewis said. producers who will be sup- it’s not for everyone, they warn. organic production, he said. “Despite prices, if you can’t plying the companies, and it’s It takes commitment and a “Support and a safety net different style of management, have been lacking in the organic make it through that three years working well, he said. The industry also needs to and there are no quick fixes, (of transition), it’s not a viable sector,” he said. institutionalize transitional cer- Heath, the organic farmer, said. option,” he said. Easing in For instance, there is a dire tification, perhaps through US- Some get out as quickly as Some transitioning farmers need for organic grains — re- DA’s Process Verified Program, they get in, feeling it’s just not have it a little easier than others. flective of the drastic increase to enable transitioning produc- worth it, he said. It takes talent, and there are Matt Townsend’s transition into in organic corn and soybean ers to market their crops at some premium, he said. always “ins” and “outs” and organic is with himself and not imports. While USDA is genuinely spikes in bad years for conven- But with the price plummet with the land, which is already in the conventional sector drag- interested in extending the safe- tional agriculture, said Nate certified. Taking an early buyout ging down organic prices too, ty net to organic producers and Jones, who has run a diversified from United Airlines, where he those farmers might not be in a has made some recent improve- organic operation at King Hill, worked for 27 years as a me- financial position to weather the ments, it’ll take a fundamental Idaho, for more than 25 years. shift in the agency — from crop People get in, have a bad chanic, he had planned to farm transition period, he said. Oats, wheat, corn and soy- insurance to conservation pro- year, think it’s too much of a on a small conventional farm headache and get out, he said. he purchased near Wilder, Ida- beans are in the greatest demand grams, he said. “You can’t just add the word The two veteran growers, ho. That plan changed when he right now, with some wheat met and became engaged to an contracts at four times conven- ‘organic’ and have it work,” he however, are ready to help new- tional prices and some corn and said. comers to organic production organic farmer’s daughter. Other areas of need include — which they say is as much He spent two summers soybean contracts at three times organic research aimed at philosophy as it is practice. working for his fiancee’s father, conventional prices, he said. “The premium is dangling a weeds, pests, plant breeding, ap- The hardest part is the tran- Mike Heath, in Buhl. He farmed with him last year and has just carrot on the stick. But it’s so far prenticeship programs, a stable sition phase, and the best way completed his first year on his away, they can’t see how to get labor force and bringing young to go about it is to grow alfalfa. Police delayed announcing deaths of wolves WOLF from Page 1 went to the area the following day and found the male wolf dead as well. Police have said the wolves’ bodies were within 50 yards of each other. State police and ODFW did not announce the deaths until Sept. 16. OSP spokesman Lt. Bill Fugate said at the time that investigators delayed disclosing the information because they did not want to tip their hand. The pair had pups that would have been about 5 months old when the adult wolves died. An ODFW spokeswoman said the pups have not been seen, but they should be weaned at this point and are most likely “free-ranging” and able to fend for themselves. Police ask that anyone with information about the case contact Coggins at 541-426- 3049, call the TIP Hotline at 1-800-452-788 or email TIP@ state.or.us. New organic grower Matt Townsend prepares to start a tractor at Sunset Butte Ranch in Buhl, Idaho. Organic farms, land in production, 2014 * Item U.S. Calif. Farms – 2014 14,093 2,805 – 2008 14,540 2,714 Acres – 2014 3.7 million 687,168 – 2008 4.1 million 470,903 Transitional acres ** – 2014 172,863 19,642 Ore. 525 657 204,166 105,605 Idaho 161 254 125,141 148,425 Wash. 716 887 73,841 82,216 5,637 4,688 2,955 * Includes exempt organic — farms that follow the National Organic Standards and have less than $5,000 in annual sales can be exempt from certification. **Includes organic, exempt organic and non-organic farms. Source: USDA NASS It’s easy to sell and take care of, offers good weed control and soil fertility, and insects can be controlled by timing cuttings, Heath said. Ground coming out of con- ventional production might not support other crops, and three years of alfalfa will result in good soil condition, he said. The best thing to put in is pasture and grass and graze it so the soil builds up. But alfal- fa is great because it cleans up any weed problem and gives the ground a rest from tillage, Jones said. It’s less temperamental than row crops and with the obvious learning curve in going organ- ic, it will give a grower time to learn and research before jump- ing into row crops, he said. “Take advantage of those three years” of transition, he ad- vised. Aside from getting the ground in good, fertile condi- tion, composting and crop rota- tion, Heath advises newcomers to learn to live with a certain amount of weed pressure and come up with a good crop. “Learn to control them to a point but don’t get too excit- ed; there are ways to deal with weeds,” he said. In the long run, a good or- ganic system will have fewer weeds and insects, he said. Jones agrees, saying that yields will improve over time and producers will benefit from fewer inputs. Heath also advises new growers to know the rules and regulations of certification and to do everything properly. Cer- Capital Press graphic tification is important to get the bonuses, he said. Growing organic demands a lot of record keeping, and opera- tions are subject to routine audits and inspections by the certifying agency and USDA. Jones recommends newbies get help in figuring out how to fill out all the paperwork, which requires a basic understanding of nutrient management and weed control. Certification Certification costs vary widely, depending on the cer- tifying agent and the size, type and complexity of the farm. Certification costs may range from a few hundred to several thousand dollars, according to USDA Agricultural Marketing Service. Typically, there is an applica- tion fee, annual renewal fee, as- sessment on annual production or sales and inspection fees. Once certified, producers can apply for assistance from the USDA Organic Certification Cost-Share Program — which can reimburse eligible opera- tions up to 75 percent of their certification costs. Nearly 80 agents nationwide are currently authorized to certi- fy organic farms. Longtime organic growers also advise new growers to seek out a mentor and network with others in the business. Things can be a little scary that first year or two. Most or- ganic growers are happy to help novice growers, and the impor- tance of that networking can’t be overstated, he said. ‘You can’t have 13 states where it doesn’t apply and 37 where it does’ WOTUS from Page 1 A federal district judge in North Dakota in August blocked the rule in 13 states, including Idaho. The judge declined to extend the rul- ing to other states, pending a review by the 6th Circuit. Meanwhile, the EPA said the rule was in effect in 37 states, including Washing- ton, Oregon and California. Washington State Dairy Federation policy director Jay Gordon said the 6th Cir- cuit was right to keep the country under one rule. “You can’t have 13 states where it doesn’t apply and 37 where it does,” he said. “We are the United States of America, not parceled up. It made perfect sense to me.” The 6th Circuit, in its ruling, said a “whirlwind of confusion” surrounds the law. Gordon said meet- ings with regulators to try to understand the new rule has left him frustrated. “You always leave the meetings “Folks should not let off on the phone calls and emails to legislators.’ Jack Field, executive vice president of Washington Cattle- men’s Association thinking, ‘I don’t think I got my questions answered.’” Some 18 states sought the injunction in the 6th Circuit. Seven states, in- cluding Washington and Oregon, intervened and asked the court to deny the motion. Several environmental groups also asked the court to let the new rule stand. The 18 opposing states argued that the EPA’s new definition of “waters of the United States” overextends the reach of the Clean Water Act and spoils the federal and state collaboration in protecting waters. States that support the new rule argued they will be harmed if upriver states were lax about protecting waters. In the 2-1 ruling, the court said the opponents have raised enough objec- tions to suggest they might have a winning case. Judge David McKeague said granting the stay “honors the policy of cooperation” between states and the fed- eral government on the Clean Water Act. “The sheer breadth of the ripple effects caused by the rule’s definitional changes counsels strongly in favor of maintaining the status quo for the time being,” McKeague wrote. “A stay allows for a more deliberate determination whether this exercise of ex- ecutive power … is proper under the dictates of feder- al law,” he wrote. “A stay temporarily silences the whirlwind of confusion that springs from uncertainty about the requirements of the new rule and whether they will survive legal test- ing.” Lawsuits have been filed against the new rule in federal courts across the country. The Washington Cattlemen’s Association is the lead plaintiff in a suit pending in the U.S. Dis- trict Court for Minnesota. The association’s executive vice president, Jack Field, called the 6th Circuit ruling “wonderful news,” but said the rule’s opponents should continue lobbying Congress to repeal it. “Folks should not let off on the phone calls and emails to legislators, letting them know how important it is we kill the rule and start over,” he said. The Washington Farm Bureau made the same ap- peal in an email to its mem- bers Oct. 9. “Today’s action is only a temporary reprieve, and getting to a final court rul- ing will take years, at great cost to all involved,” the email stated. The Judicial Panel on Multi-District Litigation referred the case to the 6th Circuit for initial review. McKeague and Judge Rich- ard Griffin said they were satisfied the issue was prop- erly before them. The dissenting judge, Damon Keith, said the court should first rule it has exclusive juris- diction before issuing a stay. The court will make a ruling on its jurisdiction in a “matter of weeks,” McK- eague wrote. Meacham said the rul- ing doesn’t foreshadow a eventual victory for the rule opponents. “We believe we will prevail in the long run because we’re right,” she said.