Grants Grow Organic Farming, Community Food Systems

The University of California Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program has announced it will help fund a crop of projects ranging from an analysis of non-chemical methods to control a rice pest to creating a food security council aimed at revitalizing west Oakland.

The eight awards, worth a combined $156,431, are divided into two categories: half support organic and biologically integrated farming systems and half support the development of sustainable community food systems.

"We are very pleased to be funding these projects emphasizing research into sustainable and organic production systems and community food systems development," said SAREP Director Sean L. Swezey. "Our grants program continues to stress the creation of successful environmental, economic and social models for a sustainable agriculture and food system."

Projects are selected through a review process that includes faculty and other peers on SAREP's public and technical advisory committees. The four projects chosen in the "optimizing organic and biologically integrated farming systems" category are:

• Rice Straw Management as a Means to Control Weed and Pest Pressure in California Rice Fields. Chris van Kessel, UC Davis Department of Agronomy and Range Science, will explore the use of alternative straw management practices as a stimulant for biological pest and weed control in rice fields; $37,956 over two years.
  
  
• Protecting Groundwater Quality on Dairies by Proper Lagoon Nutrient Management. Marsha Campbell Mathews, UC Cooperative Extension, Stanislaus County, will continue to study the precise application of dairy lagoon water as a primary nutrient source for crops and its impact on groundwater quality; $21,580 over two years.
  
  
• The Organic Effect in Desert Vegetable Production. Milton McGiffin, Jr., UC Riverside Department of Botany and Plant Sciences -- will quantify "the organic effect" (positive changes that result from the transition to organic production practices); $20,000 for one year.
  
  
• Management of Corrals and Pastures to Reduce Pollutant Loading to Coastal Watersheds. David Lewis, UC Cooperative Extension, Sonoma County watershed management advisor, will evaluate the effectiveness of animal waste management practices (vegetative buffers, dry lot and corral management, pasture management) to reduce pollution into coastal watersheds; $16,623 for one year.

The four projects in the "sustainable community food systems" category are:

• Perspectives and Strategies of Alternative Food Initiatives in California. Patricia Allen, assistant director, UC Santa Cruz Center for Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems, will examine new California organizations addressing alternative food systems issues and evaluate their impact on community health and quality of life; $19,360 for one year.
  
  
• Linking Education, Agriculture and Food Service (LEAF) . Toni Martin, food service director, Winters Joint Unified School District, will test the feasibility of a "farm to school salad bar" at a local school to extend direct marketing options for local farmers, to improve students' food choices and to educate students and parents about the relationship of food to agriculture; $15,872 for one year.
  
  
• West Oakland Food Security Council Model. Dana Harvey, director, Environmental Science Institute, Oakland, will develop a food security council with representatives from community agencies and seven West Oakland neighborhoods. Its objectives include bringing sustainable agriculture projects into the community and the development of improved access to food; $15,040 for one year.
  
  
• Davis Joint Unified School District Farm-to-School Program. Aaron Shonk, resource manager, Davis Joint Unified School District, will examine ways to integrate the new farm-to-school salad bar at one Davis school into a district-wide nutritional services program, to educate the public at the farmers' market, and to engage in public outreach and development of a district-wide school food policy; $10,000 for one year.

The University of California's Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program, created by UC in response to 1986 state legislation, is the statewide special program within UC to provide leadership and support for scientific research and education for California agriculture that is environmentally and economically sound and socially responsible.

Funded projects fall into several categories -- biologically integrated farming systems, alternatives to methyl bromide, production and community development/public policy projects, educational events, and graduate awards.

For more information about current or past projects, contact SAREP at 530-752-7556 or access the project database at http://www.sarep.ucdavis.edu/grants/database/.