On this exciting season 2 finale, we explore the world of cooperatives and the co-operative advantage with the longstanding and pioneering Ashland Food Co-op in Ashland, Oregon. With produce manager Joe Reyes and cooperative expert Annie Hoy, we talk AFC's origin story and evolution, how they developed into the northwest's first Certified Organic Retailer, the many parallels between food safety and certified organic standards, and so much more!

Seven Cooperative Principles

Ashland Food Coop

Co-Op Development Resources:

Northwest Cooperative Development Center

California Co-op Development Center

National Co-op Business Association/CLUSA

Food Co-Op Initiative

University of Wisconsin Center for Cooperatives

With the recent 2024 final rollout of FSMA's Produce Safety Rule on Pre-Harvest Agricultural Water (Subpart E), there's been a lot of chatter and some confusion about what growers need to do to comply. We got the dish from Michigan State University extension educator and on-farm food safety statewide coordinator Phil Tocco. Hear what Phil has to say about water hazards, risks, and assessing your own ag water as he distills technical regulatory language into an accessible pool of knowledge that empowers growers.

Risk Prioritization Tool for Agricultural Water

Past, future, and present visions of ancient grains all intersect in Southern Oregon's Rogue Valley Heritage Grain Project--farmer Chris Hardy's pursuit of ancient, nutrient dense grains and legumes that will thrive in the increasingly arid bio-region of lower Cascadia. Starting with a spoonful of seeds, to embarking on a worldwide search for rare and resilient heritage cultivars, back to the inner-mountain valleys of Oregon, RVHGP has amassed one of the largest "Living Seed Banks" in the western United States. Hear from farmers Chris Hardy and Steve Fry, owner of one of the Rogue Valley's largest diversified organic farms, as they recount the origins of this project, how they've adopted dry farming practices, why good grain is a food safety & public health matter, and much more!

Learn more about the Rogue Valley Heritage Grain Project!