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2 CapitalPress.com December 1, 2017 People & Places Organic manager a natural fit Brenda Book has led WSDA’s program since 2011 By DON JENKINS Western Innovator Capital Press As a college student, Bren- da Book took a summer job at an organic herb farm in Iowa. That, she says, is ultimate- ly why she now manages the Washington State Department of Agriculture’s organic pro- gram. She grew up on what she describes as a “typical Mid- west farm” — corn, soybeans, hogs, cattle. “I did all the ste- reotypical Iowa farm girl ac- tivities,” she said. She was studying botany at the University of Iowa. A summer job at the Frontier Co-op in Norway, Iowa, was her introduction to organic farming, and she’s never left the field. She began as an in- tern in WSDA’s organic pro- gram in 2002 and became the manager in 2011. And yes, she eats organic food. “I do support our farmers,” she said. Growing sector Book, 41, works with a sector of agriculture that has been growing in sales, and rules. Washington was a pi- oneer in certifying organic farms and in the beginning, in 1985, the regulations fit on a notebook-sized piece of paper. The Organic Foods Pro- duction Act of 1990 autho- rized federal standards. “It’s way more than an 8 1/2-by-11 piece of paper now,” Book said. WSDA enforces the fed- eral standards and constant- ly updates a list of approved organic inputs such as fertil- izers, herbicides and insec- ticides. The current list has more than 1,000 products and fills 75 pages. At stake is the virtue of what the USDA reports is a fast-growing industry. U.S. farms and ranches sold $7.6 Brenda Book Age: 41 Position: Washington State Department of Agriculture organic program manager Education: The Evergreen State College, degree in sus- tainable agriculture; studied botany at the University of Iowa. Don Jenkins/Capital Press Brenda Book, manager of the Washington State Department of Agriculture organic program. “We rarely deny certification on the first go-round because it’s a process,” she says. “There’s back and forth. There’s dialogue.” billion in organic products in 2016, a 23 percent increase over 2015, according to a USDA survey released in September. Growth in Washington sales was a modest 1.5 per- cent, but the state still ranks third in sales, $636 million. It was far behind No. 1 Califor- nia, close to No. 2 Pennsylva- nia and comfortably ahead of No.4 Oregon. The lull in sales growth may be temporary. The num- ber of certified organic farms grew by 11 percent to 677 and the number of organic acres increased by 8.8 percent to 78,739. Help available “We’re seeing that growth because (organic farmers) are having success,” Book said. “It’s a sign of the strength of the industry.” In addition to certifying organic operations, WSDA has a program to help farmers convert to organic production. It’s voluntary and costs a few hundred dollars, but it’s meant to help growers stay within the rules during the mandatory three-year transition period. “We do it as a customer service, so you’re not out there on your own,” Book said. “We can’t get involved in telling you how to do things, just if what you’re doing is meeting the requirements, and we can help lead you to resources. “It gives you the opportu- nity to work with us through- out the process,” she said. “So when you get to the year you want to establish yourself as organic, you’re not caught off-guard by something you did two years ago.” The big danger is applying a chemical not approved for organic production. That re- sets the clock. “The application of pro- hibited material, there’s not really a way to mitigate that,” she said. On other aspects of organ- ic production, such as buffers for conventionally farmed fields, the rules are more flex- ible, she said. Some fields may be ready for organic certification, even if other fields aren’t, she said. “A lot of farmers worry, ‘Am I going to pass?’” Book said. “We rarely deny certi- fication on the first go-round because it’s a process. There’s back and forth. There’s dia- logue.” In November, Book gave back-to-back presentations at a conference in Vancouver or- ganized by the Tilth Alliance, a group focused on organic agriculture. ‘Organic’ marijuana? About a dozen people at- tended the first workshop, which was on the transitional program, “a service that is of- ten under-utilized throughout the state,” Book said. The next workshop was on certifying marijuana as organ- ic. Attendance quadrupled, and the room became more crowded. Washington was a pioneer in legal recreational marijua- na. In that pioneering spirit, the Legislature has approved a proposal by WSDA to cer- tify organic marijuana farms. WSDA has just started to develop the rules. Interest ap- pears keen. WSDA plans to start certifying organic mar- ijuana in 2019. If so, Wash- ington likely will be the first state to have certified organic marijuana. The first rule with organic marijuana will be not to call it “organic marijuana.” The USDA has a lock on “organic” to describe food produced in a certain way. Since marijuana is still illegal under federal law, Washington will need to come up with another word or term to signal to users that their marijuana is organic. “The industry needs to come up with a term that they want that means the same thing,” Book said. “The term has to be something the indus- try is behind.” Retailers already make ad- vertising claims about having “organic” marijuana. “There are a lot of claims that are happening out there now,” Book said. “We are protecting the organic claim.” Capital Press Established 1928 Board of directors Mike Forrester Steve Forrester Kathryn Brown Susan Rana Mike Omeg Corporate Officer Heidi Wright Chief Operating Officer Capital Press Managers Joe Beach ..................Editor & Publisher Elizabeth Yutzie Sell .... Advertising Director Carl Sampson ................Managing Editor Jessica Boone ........ Production Manager Samantha McLaren .... Circulation Manager Entire contents copyright © 2017 EO Media Group dba Capital Press An independent newspaper published every Friday. Capital Press (ISSN 0740-3704) is published weekly by EO Media Group, 1400 Broadway St. NE, Salem OR 97301. Periodicals postage paid at Portland, OR, and at additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: send address changes to Capital Press, P.O. Box 2048 Salem, OR 97308-2048. To Reach Us Circulation ......................... 800-882-6789 Email ........ Circulation@capitalpress.com Main line ........................... 503-364-4431 Fax ................................... 503-370-4383 Advertising Fax ................ 503-364-2692 News Staff Idaho Carol Ryan Dumas .......... 208-860-3898 Boise Sean Ellis .......................... 208-914-8264 Cent. Washington Dan Wheat ........................ 509-699-9099 W. 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The Pocatello resident’s artwork, woven from wheat straw, has been given as gifts during Idaho trade trips worldwide. “I feel honored that my pieces are hanging in offic- es in China, South Korea, Taiwan, and Mexico,” says Zweigart, 65, who learned the ancient folk art in 1986. “It’s fascinating to think of how something as brittle as a piece of straw can be trans- formed into something beau- tiful,” she says of the craft that was developed in agrarian so- cieties to symbolize goodness and to ensure prosperous har- vests. After her pieces won awards at art shows spon- sored by the Idaho Grain Producers Association, state officials asked her to make five-pointed stars and other Calendar Dianna Troyer/For the Capital Press Toni Zweigart weaves wheat straw into many shapes. decorations for gifts. “They told me to not place the pieces of straw in group- ings of 4, 13, or 14 because those numbers are considered Sponsored by: To submit an event go to the Community Events calendar on the home page of our website at www.capitalpress.com and click on “Submit an Event.” Calendar items can also be mailed to Capi- tal Press, 1400 Broadway St. NE, Salem, OR 97301 or emailed to newsroom@capitalpress.com. Write “Calendar” in the subject line. Saturday, Dec. 2 NE Washington Haygrowers Association 2017 annual meet- ing. 8:30 a.m.-3 p.m. Deer Park Diesel, 4608 Wallbridge Road, Clayton, Wash. Two pesticide applicator recertification credits available. Cost: $20-$30. Sunday-Wednesday Dec. 3-6 California Farm Bureau Annual Meeting. Hyatt Regency Orange County, 11999 Harbor Blvd., Gar- den Grove. Website: http://www.cfbf. com/am2017 Monday-Thursday Dec. 4-7 How to Raise Free-Range or Pasture Poultry. 9:30 a.m.-4 p.m. Univer- sity of California-Davis. Prospective, begin- ner or intermediate farmers are invited. The lessons will apply to both egg-laying hens and broilers. UC Agriculture and Natural Resources, the National Center for Appro- priate Technology and the Farmer Veteran Coalition have partnered to provide training unlucky in some Asian coun- tries, so I put the grain heads in groups of 15.” Her woven artwork was framed and placed under glass for protection. She kept a star for herself and placed it on her living room wall beside a cross, heart and a wreath. Her wo- ven wheat ornaments adorn a small Christmas tree set up for her grandchildren. Zweigart’s interest in wheat weaving was kindled after she saw a wreath at a craft store. She bought the wreath and learned the local person who had made it also taught classes. “I signed up and still re- member our first lesson of making a simple two-plait weave. It was discourag- ing because I couldn’t get both straws even and tight. I thought I’d never learn, but my persistence eventually paid off.” She became proficient with a variety of techniques including spiral weaves and flat weaves done on a table- top. She also learned the tech- niques of marquetry, in which the straw is cut, ironed, and inlaid in patterns. To start a project, she sorts pieces of straw to find those with a uniform diameter and grain-head size. “To make a five-pointed star, I need 75 straws,” she said. “It takes about three or four hours to sort out the right ones, which is about the same amount of time it takes to make the star.” Once she has selected the pieces, she soaks them in hot water for 45 minutes to an hour to make them soft and pliable. She has also used strands of barley. “A woman from Grace asked me to make something from the barley they raised,” she says. “I made a heart using a push-pull plait technique.” Zweigart accepts commis- sions and also will teach a few people, depending on how much spare time she has af- ter working at America’s Best Contacts and Eyeglasses. “It’s relaxing to do,” she says. Examples of wheat weav- ing techniques are shown at the National Association of Wheat Weavers’ website, www.nawwstraw.org. GASES / WELDING / SAFETY / FIRE www.oxarc.com 20 Northwest Locations for military veterans who are embarking on careers in farming, but all farmers are wel- come. Cost: $80 and includes lunch. Web- site: http://ucanr.edu/newpoultryfarmer edu/lane/farms Tuesday, Dec. 5 Oregon Farm Bureau Annual Meeting. Pendleton Convention Center, 1601 West- gate, Pendleton, Ore. Among the speakers will be Zippy Duvall, president of the Amer- ican Farm Bureau Federation. Website: http://oregonfb.org/convention/ Wheat U. 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m.Spokane Convention Center, 334 W. Spokane Falls Blvd., Spokane, Wash. Wheat U is a farm- er-focused event that provides resources to make informed production decisions. Sponsored by BASF, Capital Press, High Country Journal. Website: wheatu.com CORE Pesticide Training. 8 a.m.- 12:15 p.m. OSU Extension, Lane County, 996 Jefferson St., Eugene, Ore. Includes presentations on worker protection stan- dards, safety data sheets, spray applica- tion technologies and preventing drift. Cost: $40. Website: http://extension.oregonstate. Tuesday-Thursday Dec. 5-7 Idaho Farm Bureau Annual Meeting. Fort Hall Convention Cen- ter, Fort Hall, Idaho. Website: https:// www.idahofb.org/events#event-17 Wednesday, Dec. 13 Developing or Expanding Your Farm Stand or Agritourism Operation, Part 2. 9 a.m.-4 p.m. OSU Extension, Auditori- 1-800-765-9055 um, SOREC, 569 Hanley Road, Central Point, Ore. Social Media Training for Small Farms. Website: http://bit.ly/JacksonSmall- Farms Thursday, Dec. 14 Four-Part Farm and Ranch Succession Workshop 6-8:30 p.m. Online or Clackamas Community College Harmony Campus, 7738 SE Harmon Road, Milwaukie, Ore. Learn from an attorney, an accoun- tant, an appraiser, a banker, the di- rector of Oregon State University’s Austin Family Business Program and farmers who’ve been through the process. Receive free one-on- one succession counseling sessions between each event. Part four of four parts. Cost: Free. Website: http://bit. 1 year U.S. ...................................$49.99 2 years U.S. .................................$89.99 1 year other countries ......... call for quote 1 year Internet only .......................$49.99 1 year 4-H, FFA students and teachers ....$30 9 months 4-H, FFA students & teachers .....$25 Visa and Mastercard accepted To get information published Mailing address: Capital Press P.O. 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