ATTRA - National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service

Providing free technical information to producers and information providers on a wide variety of sustainable farming topics

Program Basics
ATTRA, the National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service, provides information to those engaged in or serving commercial agriculture, such as farmers, ranchers, extension agents, farm organizations, and farm-based businesses. Clients can call in requests on a toll-free telephone line, use the website that features regular updates, and learn about workshops featuring technical presentations by staff.

ATTRA offers a wide variety of information on sustainable agriculture, from horticultural and agronomic crops to livestock and farming systems. ATTRA's services seek to help U.S. farmers increase profitability and provide more healthful food for consumers while becoming better stewards of the natural resources and environment of America's farmlands.

Since its inception in 1987, the agriculture program specialists working on the ATTRA project have responded to more than 300,000 requests from callers on how to:

• Improve farm income with a diversity of crops and livestock
• Reduce dependence on costly off-farm inputs
• Assess new marketing methods
• Produce alternative crops and livestock
• Institute organic farming practices
• Incorporate value-added and farm-processed products
• Improve soil fertility and water quality
• Rejuvenate rural America through agricultural enterprises

Information Available
ATTRA specializes in responding to questions about specific sustainable enterprises or practices. Agriculture program specialists working on the ATTRA project will research the question, summarize findings in writing, and compile supporting literature as appropriate to accompany the report, which a caller receives by mail. Publications based on frequently requested topics are also available. ATTRA also provides more than 300 topic-specific publications on its website, covering a wide variety of topics related to organic and sustainable agriculture.

ATTRA also provides a free weekly electronic newsletter on national events and advances in sustainable agriculture. A bimonthly newsletter on a specific sustainable agriculture topic is also available. Both of these newsletters may be subscribed to at no charge via the ATTRA website (www.attra.ncat.org).

Financial Information
Funding for fiscal year 2010 is $2.8 million through USDA’s Rural Business-Cooperative Service. This funding supports the informational and educational work of more than 30 staff assigned to the ATTRA program. The program is managed by the nonprofit National Center for Appropriate Technology (NCAT), which has offices in Montana, Arkansas, California, Pennsylvania, and Iowa. NCAT's organizational website is www.ncat.org.

Eligibility, Uses, and Restrictions
ATTRA provides technical assistance and information to anyone involved in U.S. commercial agriculture. This includes farmers, ranchers, extension agents, farm organizations, farm-based businesses, information providers, and others who serve farmers. All of ATTRA's publications and multimedia information (including webinar broadcasts) are available for free download to anyone with internet access.

Website
www.attra.ncat.org

Contact
People involved in commercial agriculture in the United States may request information by calling (800) 346-9140 from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. (Central Time) Monday through Friday, or by visiting the ATTRA website. A Spanish-language helpline is also available at 800-411-3222.