Officials in Washington state have announced an ambitious plan to open what they're billing as “the world's first organic food processing eco-industrial park.” The facility will be sited within the Port of Columbia, in the small town of Dayton, and will be called Blue Mountain Station. Port officials have teamed up with specialists in food production to develop an integrated, Certified Organic food facility connecting the many links that stretch from farmer to retailer. Small, artisinal companies working under the Blue Mountain Station umbrella will have access to certification expertise as well. Companies seeking to go USDA Certified Organic can tap professional assistance during the transition, according to Port of Columbia officials. In fact, Washington State University, in nearby Pullman, created the first organic farming degree offered in the United States.
