Source: ASIAN BUSINESS INSTITUTE AND RESOURCE CENTER submitted to
SOUTHEAST ASIAN (SEA) BEGINNING FARMER PROGRAM OF FRESNO
Sponsoring Institution
National Institute of Food and Agriculture
Project Status
ACTIVE
Funding Source
OTHER GRANTS
Reporting Frequency
Annual
Accession No.
1031296
Grant No.
2023-49400-40872
Cumulative Award Amt.
$381,166.00
Proposal No.
2023-04863
Multistate No.
(N/A)
Project Start Date
Sep 15, 2023
Project End Date
Sep 14, 2026
Grant Year
2023
Program Code
[BFRDA]- Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program, Standard
Project Director
Xiong, V.
Recipient Organization
ASIAN BUSINESS INSTITUTE AND RESOURCE CENTER
4903 E KINGS CANYON RD
FRESNO,CA 93727
Performing Department
(N/A)
Non Technical Summary
The Asian Business Institute and Resource Center (ABIRC), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, proposes the "Southeast Asian (SEA) Beginning Farmer Program of Fresno" to create a pilot study that will recruit a cohort of ten limited resource and socially disadvantaged SEA beginning farmers, with zero to three years of farming experience (i.e., category give), to (a) farm on 20 acres of land and (b) engage in a series of business development and farming workshops. The long-term goals of this proposed project include program participants having (a) capacity to lease or own a farming business operation and (b) the necessary skills and knowledge to successfully operate a farming business.
Animal Health Component
(N/A)
Research Effort Categories
Basic
(N/A)
Applied
(N/A)
Developmental
(N/A)
Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)Subject of Investigation (SOI)Field of Science (FOS)Percent
60101993020100%
Knowledge Area
601 - Economics of Agricultural Production and Farm Management;

Subject Of Investigation
0199 - Soil and land, general;

Field Of Science
3020 - Education;
Goals / Objectives
Goal #1: Asian Business Institute and Resource Center (ABIRC) will increase business knowledge among 10 SEA beginning farmers.Goal #2: ABIRC will increase agricultural knowledge among 10 SEA beginning farmers.Goal #3: ABIRC will ensure that program participants-the 10 SEA beginning farmers-demonstrate capacity to own or lease land after the project is completed.Goal #4: ABIRC will increase participation in USDA programs among the 10 program participants.
Project Methods
Dr. Yang Sao Xiong, an expert on Hmong Americans and Assistant Professor at California State University, Fresno, will serve as the Principal Investigator. An example of how he will achieve this is depicted in the form of a table below.Reporting MeasuresOutcomeTarget NumberHow MeasuredNumber of new farm start-ups8/10The Principal Investigator (PI) will work with ABIRC's Program Director (PD) and Program Specialist (PS) to develop an intake assessment. This assessment will have a question that asks SEA farmers if they are currently in business and if they are leasing or owning land. This assessment will be administered at the start and end of the project term.Number of new farmers who will increase their agricultural knowledge8/10The Principal Investigator (PI) will conduct a focus group with program participants to collect information about the types of agricultural knowledge they currently possess, the information they lack but would like to obtain, and the types of agricultural workshops they would like to participate in. With this data, the PI and ABIRC's PS will develop the agricultural workshops in conjunction with ABIRC's partner organizations, University of California Cooperative Extension and California State University, Fresno. The SEA farmers who attend these workshops will be administered pre- and post- surveys that will assess the change in their agricultural knowledge.Number of new farmers who will increase their business knowledge8/10The Principal Investigator (PI) will conduct a focus group with program participants to collect information about the types of business knowledge they currently possess, the information they lack but would like to obtain, and the types of business workshops they would like to participate in. With this data, the PI and PS will develop the business workshops in conjunction with ABIRC's PD. The SEA farmers who attend these workshops will be administered pre- and post- surveys that will assess the change in their business knowledge.Number of new farmers who will develop a business plan8/10The Principal Investigator (PI) will work with ABIRC's Program Director (PD) and Program Specialist (PS) to develop an intake assessment. This assessment will have a question that asks SEA farmers if they have developed a business plan. This assessment will be administered at the start and end of the project term.Number of new farmers who will adopt a new marketing practice8/10The Principal Investigator (PI) will work with ABIRC's Program Director (PD) and Program Specialist (PS) to develop an intake assessment. This assessment will have a question that asks SEA farmers about the types of marketing practices they currently engage in. This assessment will be administered at the start and end of the project term.All data collected and reported will be stored on ABIRC's software program, Social Solutions. A profile will be created for each farmer-participant. This profile will contain the farmer's information and intake assessments, as well as the pre- and post- surveys they complete for the business and agricultural workshops. This information will only be accessible to ABIRC project staff, as well as the Principal Investigator. Upon requests, ABIRC is willing to provide this data to the USDA.

Progress 09/15/23 to 09/14/24

Outputs
Target Audience:This past reporting period, which was from September 15, 2023, to September 14, 2024, project staff completed several activities. Project staff were able to outreach to 40 Southeast Asian (SEA) farmers about Asian Business Institute and Resource Center's (ABIRC) Beginning Farmer Program. They also released an online application to recruit SEA farmers. Despite these efforts, only five SEA farmers, all of whom have zero to three years of farming experience, joined ABIRC's cohort. These five farmers were able to engage in three business workshops on the following topics - financial literacy, recordkeeping, and business plan writing. Another main activity of ABIRC's project is agricultural workshops, which were unfortunately not conducted. This is due in part to the project partners, University of California Cooperative Extension and California State University, Fresno, expressing decreased capacity. Changes/Problems:This past year/reporting period, there were challenges with conducting the agricultural workshops. The project partners, California State University, Fresno and University of California Cooperative Extension, both shared that they have decreased capacity and would not be able to provide the support as needed. This is an ongoing conversation, and the Asian Business Institute and Resource Center is looking to address this issue. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Through this project, the Asian Business Institute and Resource Center's cohort of five farmers were able to engage in a series of business workshops on topics such as financial literacy, buisness plans, and recordkeeping. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Given that the project is only one of three years in, the results have not been disseminated to communities of interest. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?During the next reporting period, project staff will continue to recruit additional cohort members, coordinate business workshops and agricultural workshops, and provide technical assistance to the cohort of farmers so that they can further their capacity.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Under the first goal, the Asian Business Institute and Resource Center was able to increase business knowledge among 5 Southeast Asian beginning farmers. The other three goals have yet to be accomplished and see any progress.

Publications