(NAFB) — The Rodale Institute will launch a new organic research and training center in Georgia this fall. The Southeast Organic Center aims to innovate agriculture and increase healthy food access in the region, according to the organization. The regional resource center will focus on the unique challenges of farmers in the southeast United States, at Many Fold Farm, outside Atlanta, Georgia.
Farm owner Rebecca Williams says research and education at the center will “validate and expand truly sustainable agricultural practices.” The 300-acre farm in the Chattahoochee Hills will be home to research seeking to increase the number of farms and acres in organic production in the region.
Despite organic having grown to a $50 billion industry annually in the United States, according to the 2017 Census of Agriculture, Georgia has only 88 certified organic farms, representing just 0.5 percent of organic farms in the United States.
The center is Rodale Institute’s second regional resource center. They opened the Midwest Organic Center in Marion, Iowa, earlier this year.
Source: National Association of Farm Broadcasters