http://www.bangordailynews.com/news/t/news.aspx?articleid=148182&zoneid=500UNITY — A noted author and organic farmer told the second annual Local and Sustainable Food Conference that rising oil prices will result in the resurgence of the family farm.
Shepherd Ogden, author of "The Cook’s Garden: Step By Step Organic Vegetables," predicted it was inevitable that the growing cost of energy will undercut the ability of large corporations to continue to operate industrial farms.
Once that happens, he said, the family farm that has been a fixture in Maine for generations would flourish once again, provided developers have not gobbled up all of the farmland in the meantime. Until then, Maine must remain vigilant to the importation of genetically modified seeds and organisms, he said.
"When fuel gets more expensive, we’ll have regional agriculture again," Ogden told the approximately 100 people who attended Saturday’s conference at the Unity Center for the Performing Arts. The all-day event featured information tables by groups working on food issues in Maine, samples of locally raised and produced foods, and forums and workshops geared toward creating local solutions to growing food.
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