Medium- and small-scale farmers will gather Saturday and Sunday, Jan. 10 and 11, in Kelseyville, Lake County, for "2004 -- Solutions for Today's Farmers," a conference focused on agricultural diversification and marketing.

The conference, coordinated by UC Cooperative Extension farm advisors and specialists, will focus on a wide range of possible solutions to the complex problems faced by specialty- crop growers, who must adapt to the challenges posed by retail consolidation, global trade and changing consumer demands.

"We will be looking at a wide variety of options to support local agriculture, such as agri-tourism, crop diversification, organic production, staying ahead of culinary trends, marketing to institutions and forming marketing partnership," said Rachel Elkins, a Lake County Cooperative Extension farm advisor.

Speakers will include agricultural economists from UC Davis and UC Berkeley, commodity group representatives, farmers and chefs.

The conference is designed for medium- and small-scale specialty-crop growers, as well as food marketing and processing professionals throughout Northern California. It will be held Saturday from 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. and Sunday from 8:30 a.m. to noon at the Gard Street Elementary School in Kelseyville. Registration fee is $20.