February 7 & 8, 2025

8a - 5p

Elk Park Event Center

4747 E. Elk Park Dr, Columbia MO

Mark your calendars for February 7th & 8th, 2025, and join us at the annual Missouri Organic Conference as we celebrates sustainable, organic, and regenerative farming practices.

We’re excited to present a dynamic lineup of speakers covering topics such as sustainable farming, organic certification, row crops, agroforestry, livestock, and more. With two days of focused programming tracks, this conference offers valuable insights and practical knowledge for farmers, producers, and advocates.

Stay tuned to this page and our social media channels for updates on the location, schedule, and speaker announcements. All conference information will be available here, so check back often. We look forward to seeing you in February!

Click Here to Register

Registration

Registration Details

Who Can Register: Open to everyone, including MOA members and non-members.
Membership Perks: Members get discounted event tickets. Non-members can add a one-year MOA membership when buying tickets to enjoy the member discount.

Ticket Prices

Members:
- $130
Non-Members:
- $145
Membership + Discounted Ticket:
- $205

Sponsorship

Grow Your Reach & Help us Cultivate Success

Why Sponsor?
Put your business in front of an engaged audience passionate about organic farming, sustainability, and innovation. Sponsorship comes with exclusive perks that highlight your brand while helping us create a successful event. This is your chance to connect with potential customers, partners, and decision-makers in the industry.

Benefits for Sponsors:
Every sponsorship level is packed with benefits designed to give your business prime visibility and meaningful connections with attendees.

Become A Sponsor Today

2025 Featured Speakers

Adaptin Cattle Genetics to Your Environment

has spent the last several years transitioning his farming operation back to what he calls, “a more holistic, sensible and profitable approach that is both modern and historically-based in both concept and philosophy.” He is restoring the soils to their more natural state and has transformed commodity-driven cropland back into native pastures as well as adopted a mob-grazing approach to cattle raising.

7 Freebies & Cover Crop Species

Everyone loves free stuff and farmers are no exception! As farmers we have free access to sunlight, carbon, nitrogen, mineral nutrients, oxygen, soil biology and water - we just need to farm in a manner that allows us to take advantage of these Freebies! In his second presentation Keith will be covering the pros and cons of specific cover crops and how to implement them in your practice.

Regenerative Practices in Dairy Operations

David is a passionate advocate for sustainable dairy farming and a driving force behind Hemme Brothers Creamery in Sweet Springs, MO. Known for their artisan cheeses and commitment to quality, the Hemme family brings fresh, farm-to-table dairy products straight from their own herd of happy cows. David will share his journey of blending tradition with innovation in agriculture and how sustainable practices have played a role in the creamery's success.

Risk Management Strategies for Specialty Crops

Financial risks affect all farmers, but farms have different tools to address these risks. This session will focus on key financial risks facing specialty crop producers and walk participants through different responses. Specialty crop insurance is one tool, and this session will also provide an overview of current programs. Juo-Han Tsay is an agricultural economist who focuses on understanding production costs and how agricultural policies address farmers’ risk management issues. She has worked with specialty crop producers in both Taiwan and Missouri. She created a high-tunnel budgeting tool for Missouri tomato farmers and teaches a range of risk management strategies. Missouri Farm Service Agency will also join the presentation to answer questions about FSA provided specialty crop insurance programs.

Carbon Smart Soil Management

With a degree in Plant and Soil Sciences from the University of Missouri, Nick works to advance carbon-smart soil management practices that enhance productivity and sustainability. At Mitico, he collaborates with farmers to implement regenerative strategies like cover cropping, rotational grazing, and no-till systems. These practices improve soil health, sequester carbon, and reduce environmental impact, often leveraging NRCS funding to support adoption. Nick also co-owns Oaklee Rose Farms in Luebbering, Missouri, where he and his wife, Sara, practice sustainable farming through rotational grazing and diversifying with a market garden, chestnuts, and pastured livestock. Committed to education, Nick shares his expertise through workshops, conferences, and community events, inspiring others to embrace carbon-smart practices for resilient, thriving farms.

Organic Poultry

Ashley Swaffar is the Vice President of Compliance for Handsome Brook Farms. Handsome Brook Farms is a pioneer in pasture-raised organic egg production. Dedicated to acting handsomely in all aspects of operations, Handsome Brook Farms is committed to treating farmers, animals, and the land with the utmost respect. Ashley has previously worked for other pasture raised and free-range egg companies including Arkansas Egg Company and Vital Farms. Ashley also spent time as an organic and animal welfare inspector. Ashley was also appointed to the National Organic Standards Board from 2015-2020 where she chaired the livestock committee for 3 years. In her spare time Ashley owns and operates a small vegetable and flower farm in Arkansas.

Carbon Smart Soil Management

Payne has been in the regenerative ag scene for close to a decade, and his experience pretty much covers the spectrum. He started using cover crops in a conventional row crop operation. When he found out herbicides cause an anaphylactic reaction in his throat, Josh and his sister Jordan switched to a 1000 ewe adaptive grazing sheep flock, and have begun to stack their grazing land with chestnut orchards. Josh is the co-founder of Stacked Agroforestry, a company founded to help farmers and landowners grow their land vertically by reintroducing tree in landscapes to balance long-term profitability and environmental regeneration while maintaining current farming operations. Josh will discuss practical agroforestry through the lens of his Missouri based farm to help attendees determine how trees fit on their farms both now and in the future, as well as share practical systems to minimize labor in agroforestry systems using equipment most farms have on hand.

Grafting Tomatoes on a Small Farm

Bishop grew up in southwest Missouri around small family farms and has worked in the horticultural industry since the age of nine. In 2011 Shon graduated from College of the Ozarks in Branson, Missouri with a degree in Horticultural. From 2011 until 2022, he served as the Small Farm Specialist for the Innovative Small Farmers Outreach Program (ISFOP) in the southwest region of Missouri and was Co-PI for the Missouri AgrAbility Project. Shon currently owns and operates Bishop Gardens L.L.C. with his wife Heather, their three children, and parents, which sells early grafted tomatoes, blackberries, and strawberries to the public. This presentation is designed to inform farmers about a two-year Specialty Crop Block Grant aimed at understanding and expanding the economic potential of grafted tomatoes for local farms. Farmers will leave the session with a clear understanding of how to implement grafting techniques on their own farms, the economic benefits of this practice, and the potential to grow and sell grafted tomatoes locally.

Plant Protection of Specialty Crops in Organic Systems

Professor and Extension Specialist in Horticultural Entomology/Plant Protection, Department of Entomology, Kansas State University. Raymond will initially discuss the insect and mite pest complexes associated with organic production systems and then discuss the plant protection strategies, such as, cultural, physical, pesticidal, and biological, that can be implemented to mitigate problems with insect and mite pests.

Organic Fertility Management in Specialty Crops

Justin Keay has served as a Field Specialist in Horticulture with University of Missouri Extension since 2018, and is currently based in Pike County, MO. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Environmental Studies from Washington University, and an M.S. in Integrated Agricultural Systems from Lincoln University. In his work, Justin draws on previous experience as a vegetable farm owner/operator, organic farm inspector and as a Whole Foods Market buyer. Justin’s passion is supporting vegetable farmers in designing and managing organic cropping systems. This includes developing resilient soil and fertility management plans utilizing cover crop and no-till practices, and reduced input integrated pest management strategies.