Names & Notes

Cost: $100; members $50; $50 more at the door. Registration: www.pgcoc.org.

Safeway promotes twoin Lanham office

Safeway has promoted two company veterans to district manager in its Eastern division offices in Lanham.

Both Jeff Demarais and Peter Neff previously worked in the company’s Portland, Ore., division.

Demarais will oversee operations of 18 supermarkets, mostly near the Capital Beltway in Prince George’s and Montgomery counties, with two in Washington, D.C.

Neff will be responsible for 17 stores, mostly in Northern Virginia.

New Web site targetsMaryland farmers

The Maryland Agricultural Exchange in College Park offers the first Web site to provide Maryland farmers with a free online marketplace to exchange manure, compost, hay, fruits, vegetables, livestock and equipment. The site also includes a business directory, calendar of events and regional agricultural news.

Accessible at www.agtrader.org, the site functions as a sort of ‘‘Craig’s List” for agriculture, with all trades made strictly between the buyer and seller, according to its sponsor, the Environment Finance Center at the University of Maryland, part of the National Center for Smart Growth and Research.

‘‘This seems to make sense. It eliminates the cost of hosting a whole farmers’ market or setting up a roadside stand,” said Joanne Throwe, assistant director of the Environmental Finance Center, in a statement. ‘‘I want this to be a place where farmers go to exchange information.”

Names & Notes reports news of startups, new developments, key personnel changes and trends affecting county business. Items may be mailed to Lindsey Robbins, The Gazette, 13501 Virginia Manor Road, Laurel, MD 20707; faxed to 240-473-7501; or e-mailed to lrobbins@gazette.net.