I am completing my first term as a member of the Policy Committee and was honored to be part of OFA’s annual Advocacy Day on Capitol Hill in March. I have previously represented Sonoma County on the California Farm Bureau’s Marketing, Organics, and Produce Food Safety Issue Advisory Committee. Little Paradise Farm is located on a 33-acre site, with about two acres under cultivation. The farm supplies fruits and vegetables to local restaurants and regularly contributes fresh produce to community food banks. The farm has been CCOF certified since 2013 and Real Organic Project certified since 2021. The farm is proud to have received a Snail of Approval award from Slow Food USA.

I graduated from Ohio State University with a degree in Agribusiness and Applied Economics and a Crop Science minor. Recently, I completed The Executive Program for Ag Producers (TEPAP) at Texas A&M University. I have been involved with OFA and the Ohio Ecological Food and Farming Association (OEFFA), helping with policy work at the federal, state, and local levels relating to strengthening our organic and sustainable ag policies and programs, including the formation of the Ohio Soil Health Initiative. I have also worked to make crop insurance simpler and more accessible to organic farmers and continue to work to strengthen the enforcement of fraudulent imported organic grain. Through all this involvement, I have hosted politicians, media, and other visitors on our farm to see our sustainable organic ag practices first-hand. I have also participated in numerous lobbying opportunities with politicians at all levels of government organized by OEFFA, OFA, and the National Organic Coalition (NOC). Through this experience and my work with organic and sustainable ag practices first-hand on our farm, I feel I bring a wealth of expertise to OFA and represent all types and sizes of organic farmers.

He has more than a decade of experience working at the grassroots level of the organic and local food movement. He has served as a primary organizer for the last 12 OEFFA conferences and has worked with farmers of all different styles and scales throughout Ohio on educational programs, fundraising events, and advocacy. Throughout his time with the organization, Milo has been a key voice in OEFFA’s strategy for serving farmers and food system advocates across the state. Prior to coming to OEFFA, Milo worked for the natural grocery delivery service Green BEAN Delivery where he did everything from deliver groceries to lead its Central Ohio marketing efforts. Milo currently resides in his hometown of Columbus, Ohio, and holds a Bachelor of Arts in Music from The Ohio State University and a Master of Science in Arts Management from the University of Oregon. Formed in 1979, the Ohio Ecological Food and Farm Association (OEFFA) cultivates a future in which sustainable and organic farmers thrive, local food nourishes our communities, and agricultural practices protect and enhance our environment. OEFFA runs both an organic certification program which includes an organic transition program and an extensive farmer-education program.

I have been the Executive Director at Marbleseed since September 2020. Since joining Marbleseed, I led the organization through a rebrand and strategic planning process that centers ecosystem services for the regenerative and organic farm community. My background includes work related to community and environmental health, social justice, and food access. From 2014 to 2020, I left public sector work and brought all those things into focus opening a community-supported farm-to-table restaurant in New Glarus, WI. I live on a small farm near Monticello, WI, where my partner and I grow vegetables and raise chickens and goats.Formerly known as the Midwest Organic and Sustainable Education Service (MOSES), Marbleseed was established in 1995 as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit committed to supporting farmers in their transition toward sustainable, organic farming systems that are ecologically sound, economically viable, and socially just.  We work in community with human-scale farmers to support peer-to-peer learning with free and farmer-led programs, print and digital resources, and in-person events that support thriving regenerative and organic farms and food systems. Marbleseed is widely known for hosting the Marbleseed Organic Farming Conference. Established in 1989, it’s the largest organic farming conference in the United States. As the organic food and farming landscape continues to evolve and grow, Marbleseed remains committed to the roots of the organic farming movement: care for the planet, nourishment for communities, and support for regenerative and organic farmers who are working in relationship with the ecosystems that sustain us. 

I started transitioning into organic production in 2017. Not having a clue what I was doing, I started searching on social media to find other organic farmers who would be willing to share their successes and failures in organic practices. It was difficult to find a group of organic farmers or an organic Facebook page that was more than just vegetable farmers in third world countries. I decided to start a page, Modern Organic Row Crop Producers. This started out with me and three guys I knew, and has now grown to nearly 2000 members. This has built an amazing platform to serve as a sounding board for ideas and innovations in modern organic production. The recent issue of clawback in regard to the Global Processing bankruptcy is one example of where the site proved to be effective to bring together a large group of farmers affected by this issue. Together we have built a network of people, organizations and legal counsel to take this on as a group instead of just on our own. As one man stated: “This is how armies are made” Through this process I realized that with my background of serving 22 years with Iowa Farm Bureau at the grassroots level, we have the connections and ability to have our voices heard to make a difference. These laws need to be changed, and we need advocacy for our industry.We run a diversified row crop and small grains operation consisting of 700 acres conventional and 700 acres organic. I have been active in production agriculture since I graduated from Iowa State University in 2002. I took over the entire farming operation in 2017 and began transitioning to organic row crop at that time. We have multiple hog confinement sites that allow us access to hog manure, which we apply with our umbilical system. We also do drainage tiling on our own ground as well as some custom tiling, custom harvesting, trucking and manure application. We have implemented several different practices into our operation including strip till, no till, cover crops, inter cropping as well as conventional tillage. Organic farming has been an exciting and rewarding experience and I take great pride in my operation and my crew. I give much credit to my success to the network of friends and mentors that I have met through the Modern Row Crop Organic Producers Facebook Page I started in 2020. This has become a sounding board for ideas, practices and processes that many farmers have come to rely on for information in an industry that simply “has no written playbook” This has been an incredible journey and I look forward to many more years of my farming career and networking with other farmers across the nation and the world.

Ben Bowell currently serves as the Organizational representative for the Western Region on the Governing Council and would like to run for another term. He is the Education and Advocacy Director at Oregon Tilth where he has worked for over 11 years. Ben oversees all educational programs and partnerships which are focused on conservation, transition to organic, and farm viability. Prior to this role, he led Oregon Tilth’s national partnership with USDA NRCS. Before joining Oregon Tilth, Ben worked for American Farmland Trust advocating for the protection and sustainability of working lands. He has a B.A. from Wake Forest University and a M.S. from Tufts University’s Agriculture, Food, and Environment Program. Ben lives in Portland, OR. Oregon Tilth is a leading nonprofit certifier, educator, and advocate for organic agriculture and products. Since 1974, we have worked to build a brighter food future for all by balancing the needs of people and the planet. Our mission is to make our food system and agriculture biologically sound and socially equitable. Oregon Tilth shaped the first organic standards, created programs to support the adoption of organic climate smart practices, and directly works with thousands of farmers. Oregon Tilth is an Accredited Certifying Agent for the USDA’s National Organic Program.

I am a certified organic grain and beef cattle producer located in Bozeman, MT. As a first-generation farmer and rancher, I started my operation in 2004 and received organic certification in 2009. From my original leased 10 acres in 2004 my operation today consists of 806 acres on which I produce organic small grains and grass-finished beef cattle. Over the past several years we have identified ways to increase the market options for our crops and provide additional market outlets for our neighbor farmers. To this end, we have added certified organic processing to our operation and produce pelletized organic poultry, hog and layer feed as well as alfalfa pellets. In addition to my work as a farmer, I currently serve in the farmer seat on the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB). I have testified on behalf of organic farming before the US House of Representatives (2019) and work closely on policy solutions to help improve the integrity of the organic seal while fighting to make sure organic farming remains profitable for US producers. Since 2011 I have worked as an organic inspector, and as of 2024 have inspected over 3,000 operations in 48 states. I currently serve as a lead training for the International Organic Inspectors Association.

Tilth Alliance works in community with Washington’s farmers, gardeners and eaters for a more sustainable, healthy and equitable food future. Our strategic priorities include advancing organic, regenerative and sustainable growing practices, to increase demand for healthy food grown in Washington using organic, regenerative and sustainable growing practices, and to raise awareness of the critical relationship between food production and climate change. Our membership base is composed primarily of certified organic farmers. We serve our base through advocacy at the state and county level, by providing training opportunities, by directly connecting organic farmers to consumers through the Washington Farm and Food Finder, and by producing an annual conference where organic farmers from Washington can convene to learn, network and socialize. Melissa Spear has worked at the intersection of conservation and agriculture for the past 15 years. She started out at The Trust for Public Land, successfully protecting a number of iconic farms in Connecticut. She then spent 9 years as Executive Director of a non-profit organic urban farm and environmental education center serving the city of New Haven, CT. She served as the vice-chair of the Working Lands Alliance in Connecticut, an advocacy organization working to ensure farming remained a viable enterprise in the state. She moved to Seattle and became Executive Director of Tilth Alliance in 2018 where her focus is squarely on promoting and supporting the adoption of organic practices. Under her leadership, Tilth Alliance helped form a Coalition for Organic and Regenerative Agriculture that will advocate for organic farmers and farming practices both here in Washington state and in Washington D.C.

Steven is a first generation farmer that has been selling organic produce since 2008 from a small market garden at tailgate markets and has, along with his business partners, built a year round vertically integrated East Coast Organic vegetable brand. Steven started farming specifically to be an organic grower and has been committed to the organic movement since before he started farming. Steven also raised pastured poultry and pork for a number of years. He has experience and understanding in a diversity of organic farming scales because he started out with a small market garden selling at tailgate markets and now is a commercial scale organic grower packer shipper servicing large retail chains and distributors. TendWell Farm participates in the H2A visa program and has more than 75 employees. He understands the importance of policy and the way it affects the marketability and viability of real organic farming. Steven is one of the owners of TendWell Farm which grows about 600 acres of Organic vegetables in North Carolina and Florida. We supply organic squash, tomatoes, kale, lettuce, dandelion greens, and more to retailers and distributors on the East Coast year round. Steven started selling produce from a 1/16 of an acre market garden at local tailgate markets in 2008.

Roland grew up in Columbia, Missouri. His grandmother was a longtime subscriber to Organic Gardening; his family raised its own layer and fryer chickens, as well as grew most of their own vegetables. The family home was surrounded by conventional corn and soybean fields. Roland is a licensed attorney, and after the births of his children, he decided to devote his legal training and business experience to the service of promoting healthy agriculture for future generations. Roland lives in Pittsboro, North Carolina. Since 1979, CFSA has worked to unite farmers, consumers, and businesses from North Carolina and South Carolina to build a healthy, just, and sustainable food and farming system. CFSC provides farmers and food hubs with the tools, resources, and technical assistance they need to be resilient, profitable, and productive. They host conferences, workshops, meetups, and farm tours to keep stakeholders informed about the latest in local, organic food and farming. CFSC is also active in policy, driving local, state, and national policies to build a better food system.

Katie Baildon, Policy Manager has worked on advocating for strong organic policy with NOFA-NY for three years. She works on behalf of NOFA-NY membership and the 1900+ certified organic operations in NY. In addition to fighting for organic integrity, NOFA-NY also certifies about 1000 organic operations and administers NY’s TOPP programming and partners in the Climate Smart Farming and Marketing Program. Founded in 1983, NOFA-NY is the premier organization growing a strong organic regenerative agriculture movement in New York State. We provide farmer-to-farmer educational programming and technical assistance to NYS farmers, connect consumers with local and organic products, and advocate for a sustainable and fair food and farm system. NOFA-NY provides USDA-accredited organic certification services to over 1,100 of NY’s organic farms and businesses.

Seth is 51 and his wife and he have two children in their late teens who have grown up on the farm. His farming career began as a summer hand on a small organic farm in coastal California. Moving east with his graduate school bound wife, he worked and managed farms in Massachusetts and New York before landing in Maine and starting Crystal Spring Farm almost 20 years ago. In his training as a farmer, he worked with and learned from the founding generation of organic growers who created a brand to support their belief that there is a better way to grow food. OFA consistently represents the organic issues he believes need to be heard in Washington DC. In addition to his experience as a certified grower, Seth has lobbied in DC for the farm bill, worked with both state and federal congressional staff on ag issues and spoken/presented at local and regional farm conferences.