News

The CT NOFA Winter Conference educational slate of workshops is made possible thanks to the interest and enthusiasm of our knowledgeable community members. Are you an expert on a topic that would be of interest to conference attendees? We’d love to hear from you.

Does your business or organization offer products or services that would be of interest to our conference attendees? Then join us at CT NOFA's 44th annual Winter Conference on March 7, 2026 to connect with 300+ farmers, home gardeners, and organic advocates from across the region.

Much happened for CT NOFA advocacy on the state level last week, including a strategy session for the Connecticut Environmental Rights Amendment, the annual meeting of the Working Lands Alliance with the Connecticut Commissioner of Agriculture, and a special session of the Connecticut General Assembly.

The organic agriculture movement may not be a new phenomena, but it is a vital one. Help support that movement by becoming a sponsor of our 2026 Winter Conference. In addition to helping us continue the fight for organic agriculture, you’ll enjoy numerous benefits leading up to and at the conference.

We're excited to announce that our 44th annual winter conference will be taking place March 7, 2026, at Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut. It will be proceeded by 3 days of virtual workshops, March 3-5. Tickets are available now!

UConn Extension is partnering with CT DoAg (Connecticut Grown) to improve farm marketing capacity for Connecticut organic farms through free, one-on-one technical assistance. This assistance, available to certified organic and transitioning organic farm businesses, will aid in marketing and branding, and will inform you of the best ways to increase consumer awareness of the value of your USDA certified organic products.

Earlier this year, CT NOFA faced a critical funding crossroads. Well into our budgeted programming for the year, we faced sudden and substantial cuts to federally funded programming that constituted the majority of our work for 2025. But then, something moving happened.

Two federal judges have ordered the Trump administration to stop blocking the funding of SNAP using emergency funds. The Trump administration has agreed to partially fund SNAP benefits. It is not clear how much SNAP beneficiaries will receive or how long it will take to load the partial benefits onto their EBT (Electronic Benefit Transfer) cards.

If the Federal government shutdown continues, on November 1 the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) will halt for the 10% of Connecticut residents who rely on it. SNAP serves about 360,000 people in our state.

The seven Northeast Organic Farming Association chapters (CT-NOFA, NOFA-MA, NOFA-NH, NOFA-NJ, NOFA-NY, NOFA-RI and NOFA-VT), and the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association (MOFGA) are documenting the impacts of the current government shutdown, and the expiration of the enhanced Affordable Care Act tax credits, on farmers and farm workers in our region.

Joanne Charon, owner of Autumn Harvest Orchard, is proud to be able to provide organic produce for her community. “It gives people a choice to purchase and enjoy fresh CT Grown Organic produce, which is totally different than what’s in the big box store,” she says. “Fresh, organic produce is higher in vitamin and mineral properties, and we are committed to growing all fruits, berries, herbs, nuts, and vegetables in healthy soil using ORMI fertilizers and pest control measures.”

Who is in charge here? The human beings or the machines and the corporations that profit from them? Are we going to dig up every crumb of coal and uranium to feed the AI beast? Are we going to pollute the air we breathe? Destroy the climate that allows us and all of nature to thrive? Give away all our water? And then what?