Livestock Specialist to Speak at Unity Grazing Conference August 27
Contact: Dee Potter (207) 834-3905 dpotter@umext.maine.edu, The Maine Grass Farmers Network at mgfn@prexar.com or visit www.umaine.edu/umext.mgfn
The Maine Grass Farmers Network will hold its second annual Grazing Conference August 27 at the MOFGA’s Common Ground in Unity.
The conference will feature Temple Grandin, associate professor of livestock behavior at Colorado State University and an internationally recognized authority and pioneer in the field. Grandin’s keynote presentation will be on the grazing behavior of livestock. She also will participate in the animal handling session being offered on the program agenda.
Ridge Shinn, well known regionally as a specialist in the production and marketing of grass fed livestock will be the second keynote presenter. Ridge will describe the European style of livestock marketing, as well as offer a session on beef genetics for grazing. Along with the keynote presentations a series of concurrent sessions will be held on topics that include horses on pasture, Katahdin sheep and parasite resistance, economics and dairy ration management on pasture, forages and pasture improvement, pastured poultry and a panel discussion on direct marketing.
The Maine Grass Farmers Network is a NESARE (Northeast Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education) project and is coordinated by producers, Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners (MOFGA) staff and staff of the University of Maine Cooperative Extension and the Maine Department of Agriculture.
Registration for the conference is $20 per farm and $10 per person for lunch. There also will be a tradeshow and equipment displays. A conference brochure, which includes the full schedule, registration information and travel directions is available by contacting Sonia Antunes at santunes@umext.maine.edu or by calling (207) 342-5971.