WSU Cultivates the Future of Organics

PULLMAN, Wash. — Organic farming techniques are proven to be profitable, environmentally friendly, resource conscious, healthy and socially responsible.

Sales of organic foods in the United States have grown at least 20 percent a year for the past decade, according to a 2002 U.S. Department of Agriculture report. As this market segment grows in the state, nation and world, so does the need for research and information.

Responding to that need, Washington State University is leading a movement among universities nationwide to offer organic farming courses in the curriculum. This fall, WSU becomes the first university in the country to offer a major in organic agricultural systems. Spearheading the effort is John Reganold, Regents Professor of Soil Science and a world leader on sustainable agriculture.

Reganold will present “Getting Back to Basics: Farming’s Organic Future” from noon to 1:30 p.m. Sept. 13 at The Rainier Club, 840 4^th Ave., Seattle. Tickets are $30 per person and include lunch from noon to 1:30 p.m., with registration to begin at 11:30 a.m. To reserve a spot, visit https://www.wsu.edu/theinnovators/. Registration will continue until capacity is reached.

Reganold’s reputation as one of the premier scientists in the world in sustainable agriculture is underscored by his publications in Science, Nature, and the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. He published what many consider to be the seminal article on sustainable agriculture in Scientific American magazine.

“WSU has been conducting research in organics for more than 25-30 years,” Reganold said. “It seemed only natural to have a program in it.”

Organic agriculture systems, which are significantly different than conventional agriculture, are expected to appeal not only to organic farmers but also to people interested in industries such as global marketing, direct marketing or organic food.

The growing public interest in organic products reflects a demand for food grown without the use of synthetic pesticides and synthetic fertilizers, antibiotics, hormones or genetic engineering. Organics represent two percent of the current market, Reganold said, with dairy the fastest growing. That figure is expected to double by 2010.

Reganold earned a bachelor’s and master’s degree from University of California, Berkeley, and a doctoral degree from University of California, Davis.