Wallaces Farmer

Virtual conference will feature workshops for fruit and vegetable growers and the wine industry.

December 30, 2020

1 Min Read
red barn and vineyard filled with grapes
SPECIALTY CROP FOCUS: Breakout sessions at the Specialty Producers Conference will focus on fruits, vegetables, viticulture, enology and other specialty crops. DarcyMaulsby/Getty Images

The Iowa Specialty Producers Conference is scheduled Jan. 19-20. This second joint gathering of the Iowa Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association and the Iowa Wine Growers Association will take place entirely online.

Keynote speaker Hugh McPherson will share best practices for incorporating “agri-tainment” into a farming operation. He owns Maize Quest Fun Park near York, Pa., and advises a network of over 80 agritourism farms in the U.S., Canada and the United Kingdom.

Five breakout sessions will focus on fruits, vegetables, viticulture (wine-grape growing), enology (wine-making) and other specialty crops. Speakers include producers, industry experts and specialists from Iowa State University Extension.

The lineup from ISU Extension includes:

  • Lina Rodriguez-Salamanca, plant pathology diagnostician

  • Joe Hannan, commercial horticulture specialist

  • Ajay Nair, associate professor in horticulture and Extension vegetable production specialist

The event also will feature virtual exhibitors offering products and services of interest to Iowa's specialty producers.

“We are excited for the opportunity to offer this year's conference virtually to our members and specialty producers in our state and beyond. We have a great lineup of speakers giving talks on a wide variety of specialty crop management, business and marketing,” says Kendra Meyer, an Extension specialist with Farm, Food and Enterprise Development.

For information on sponsoring, contact Christie Jensen at [email protected].

Source: Iowa State University Extension, which is responsible for the information provided and is wholly owned by the source. Informa Business Media and its subsidiaries aren't responsible for any of the content contained in this information asset.

 

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