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PFAS are manufactured chemicals that have been in use for decades. Some examples of common consumer and industrial products that may contain PFAS include carpeting, upholstery, waterproof clothing, food packaging, cookware, and fire-fighting foam. PFAS can be released into the environment during the production, use, and disposal of PFAS-containing products.

Research into the effects of PFAS on human health is ongoing. Visit the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) website for information on PFAS and Health.

In 2023, the Legislature passed two bills with significant language on PFAS, SF 1955 and HF 2310. These bills outline the process for prohibiting the sale and distribution of products containing intentionally added PFAS. The MDA and the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) will work in partnership to implement portions of these new laws. Minnesota’s PFAS Blueprint (pdf), developed by multiple state agencies, further identifies strategies for preventing, managing, and cleaning up PFAS found throughout the state.

In recent years, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has outlined a number of key actions to address PFAS. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is also taking steps to better understand PFAS in foods and food packaging, processing, and cookware. Read more about their work studying PFAS as environmental contaminants in food. The FDA has also worked with manufacturers to phase out production and use of certain food packaging products containing PFAS.

There are no established recommendations specific to consumption of meat, poultry, dairy, or eggs for avoiding PFAS exposure because there are no currently established safe tolerance levels for PFAS in these products. The MDH Fish Consumption Guidance, updated in April of 2025, sets water body specific safe-eating guidelines that take into consideration the presence of PFAS in different Minnesota lakes and rivers. More generally, the EPA offers information on meaningful and achievable steps you can take to reduce your risk from PFAS exposure.

Thursday, January 5, 2023

8:00 AM Registration and continental breakfast

Sponsored by OCIA MN #1

9:00 AM Breakout sessions

• Ecosystem Services: Credit Where Due – Matthew Fitzgerald & Wendy Johnson (sponsored by Grain Place Foods, Inc.)
• Interpreting the Origin of Livestock Rule – Mary Capehart
• Strawberry Fields Forever: Growing Organically in Minnesota – Mary Rogers & Gigi DiGiacomo
• Farm Marketing 101 – Sarah Carroll & Sarah Wescott
• A Better You for A Better Farm – Emily Krekelberg
• A Pair with Potential: Hybrid Rye + Swine – Carmen Fernholz, Yuzhi Li, & Andrew VanDerPol

10:00 AM Trade show and break

Sponsored by OCIA MN #1

10:45 AM General session

• Conference welcome – MDA Assistant Commissioner Patrice Bailey
• Keynote “Strength from the Soil: How Organic Farmers and Sound Public Policy Can Straighten the Whiffletree of U.S. Agriculture” – Sarah Vogel (sponsored by North Star Hemp DBA Carpe Diem CBD)

11:45 AM Lunch and trade show

Sponsored by Garratt Industries Ltd.

1:15 PM Breakout sessions

• Putting Organic Dairy Research to Work – Brad Heins & Sabrina Portner (sponsored by Sustainable Farming Association of Minnesota)
• Worms, Germs, and Nasty Things – Jeff Bender & Colin Yoder
• Improving High Tunnel Soils with Cover Crops – Julie Grossman & Hannah Walsh
• Unleash Biology! The Benefits of Soil Microbes – Adria Fernandez & Marie Schaedel (sponsored by Solar Farm, LLC)
• Keeping Organic Soybean Fields Clean – Jonathan Olson (sponsored by Minnesota Crop Improvement Association)
• Crop Insurance for the Conservation-Minded – Kate Hansen & Megan Vaith

2:15 PM Trade show and break

3:00 PM Breakout sessions

• Grazing for Grassland: Conservation Grazing into the Future – Stephen Thomforde (sponsored by Compeer Financial)
• The Nuts and Bolts of Productive Family Farm Meetings – Alma Jorgensen
• Farm Scale Deep Winter Greenhouses for Market Growers – Claire Cambray, Dan Handeen, & Crispin Phillips
• Small But Profitable: Organic Farm Financial Performance in the Upper Midwest – Gigi DiGiacomo, Erik Heimark, Kevin Knoblach, & Angela & Nate Walter (sponsored by Mountain High Organics)
• Covers That Pay: Kernza®, Camelina, and Other New For-Profit Cover Crops – Carmen Fernholz, Mitch Hunter, & Anne Schwagerl (sponsored by MISA & MN SARE)
• Gaining Market Power and Competitive Advantage through Cooperatives – Kevin Edberg & Mike Schulist (sponsored by Organic Farmers Agency for Relationship Marketing)

4:30 PM Reception and evening social

Sponsored by Minnesota Farmers Union

Friday, January 6, 2023

7:30 AM Registration and continental breakfast

Sponsored by F.W. Cobs Company

8:00 AM Breakout sessions

• Building Organic Grain Markets – Mark Schoenfeld (sponsored by Cargill, Inc.)
• Transitioning to Organic – Nic Podoll (sponsored by Minnesota Ag Water Quality Certification Program)
• Weed Management for Organic Fruits & Vegetables – Erik Heimark
• Organic Dairy Can Store Carbon: Strategies for the Future – Rebecca Larson (sponsored by Cashton Farm Supply – CFS Specialties)
• Organic Hemp and CBD Production: Healthy Business and Healthy Self – Brock Friesen, Neil Hultgren, & Ben Lipkin
• Building a Sustainable Direct-to-Market Farm Business – James Maiocco, & Valerie & Jared Luhman

9:00 AM Trade show and break

Sponsored by F.W. Cobs Company

9:45 AM Breakout sessions

• Nutrient Management Basics for Organic Farms – Glen Borgerding (sponsored by Marbleseed)
• Organic Isn’t Organic if You Can’t Document It – Kenn Jenkins & Pete Kapustka
• Ask a Vet: Grazing Season Health Issues – Greg Brickner (sponsored by Organic Valley – CROPP Cooperative)
• Planning for Change: Are Organic Soybeans and Corn Right for You? – Shane Frederick
• Farming and Food Systems in Uncertain Times: A Conversation – Kathy Draeger
• From Basement to Business: Scaling Our Mushroom Company – Nick Robinson

10:45 AM Trade show and break

11:30 AM Keynote address

• Keynote “Everyone has a Role” – Carmen Fernholz

12:30 PM Lunch and trade show

Sponsored by MOSA Certified Organic

2:00 PM Breakout sessions

• Facing the Future: Marketing Organic Agricultural Products – Discussion group
• Organic or Regenerative or Sustainable: What's in a Name? – Discussion group
• ANOTHER Disease or Pest? Where do we go from here? – Discussion group
• What's New at the U? How can we make research “sexy”? – Discussion group
• Agriculture in a Changing Climate: What's Next? – Discussion group