Performing Department
(N/A)
Non Technical Summary
Consistent with national trends, the average age of NM farmers in 2022 was 59.8. Addressing this issue, Reunity has partnered with YouthWorks (YW) and the Santa Fe Community College (SFCC) Sustainable Technologies Program since 2019 to train BIPOC youth (ages 18-25) in regenerative, biodiverse, high desert agriculture. In addition, the seasonal farm crew are typically farmers with less than ten years experience. In our work with these groups, we know there are many who would pursue a career in farming if they had a degree of certainty they could make a living. After several years of informal collaboration, we are poised to begin the intentional planning necessary to create a holistic, supportive and impactful Sow & Grow: Training for New Land Stewards Program, providing the education, infrastructure and resources to pursue a career in farming.The objectives are: 1) Develop a well-rounded program curriculum that compliments and connects to Reunity's existing programs and resources, as well as those throughout the state, contributing to an economically and environmentally resilient regional food system, and 2) Determine the best organizational and operational approach to the program.The curriculum developed for this program addresses BFRDP priorities 1-7, 9 and 13-15. It will immediately address priority 8: Curriculum Development.100% of the federal funds requested are allocated to the community-based organization Reunity Resources. YouthWorks and SFCC have separate funding for the internship program that allows them to participate in the grant activities.Reunity Resources does not hold any existing or prior BFRDP funding.
Animal Health Component
30%
Research Effort Categories
Basic
30%
Applied
30%
Developmental
40%
Goals / Objectives
Goal: Develop a robust and holistic Sow & Grow: Training for New Land Stewards Program (Program) that compliments and connects to Reunity's existing programs and resources, as well as those throughout the state, contributing to an economically and environmentally resilient regional food system.Objective 1: Create a well-rounded and diverse program curriculum that spans lessons including, but not limited to, regenerative, high desert agriculture practices, (soil health, composting, biodiversity) to crop planning, business and marketing, and value-added product creation, connecting farmers to land, shared infrastructure and market channels so they can confidently manage a farm business independently.Objective 2: Determine the best organizational and operational approach to the program so that beginning farmers do not take on the initial entrepreneurial risk alone; rather that burden is shared with Reunity through a support system that connects program graduates to available land and assists with aggregation, distribution and sales (wholesale and retail) at Reunity. ?
Project Methods
Consistent with national trends, the average age of a NM farmer in 2022 was 59.81. To address this issue, since 2019 Reunity has partnered with YouthWorks (YW) and the Santa Fe Community College (SFCC) Sustainable Technologies Program to train 5-15 BIPOC youth (ages 18-25) in regenerative, biodiverse, high desert agriculture. In addition, the seasonal farm crew (4-5) are typically farmers with less than 10 years experience. Working with these groups, we know many who would pursue a career in farming if they had a degree of certainty they could make a living. After several years of informal collaboration, we are poised to begin the intentional planning necessary to create a holistic, supportive and impactful Sow & Grow: Training for New Land Stewards Program, providing the education, infrastructure and resources to pursue a career in farming.To encourage and build capacity among beginning farmers, they need the business skills to reasonably plan for production and harvest, as well as the associated financial acumen. Beyond that, there are many regulatory requirements for wholesale markets, such as the state's robust farm to institution program, NM Grown, which supplies NM raised produce to schools, senior and early childhood centers, as well as the Regional Farm to Food Box program. Reunity holds the approved supplier for NM Grown and would like to explore the potential of GroupGAP (or other) certification for each potential growing site, allowing crops to be washed, aggregated and stored at Reunity for distribution and sale into these robust institutional programs. Reunity's FMPP supported Saving Seconds: On Farm Food Rescue program is another avenue for ambitious farmers to explore value-added product creation through our certified kitchen and culinary staff. Finally, determining ways to connect farmers to available land in the region would provide the ultimate support between training and entrepreneurship. Creating linkages between Reunity's existing programs like food donations, certified kitchen, farm stand, food safety certification and infrastructure increases the odds that a beginning farmer program can succeed.Target Audience: Initially, we aim to work with aspiring farmers (interns) from YW and SFCC. These are established relationships with organizations serving mostly BIPOC youth who qualify as socially disadvantaged. These interns will be an integral part of our planning and curriculum development, providing feedback as specific lessons, needs, opportunities and gaps are identified. We will also reach out to our broad network of agriculture, education, environmental and food access partners (SF Indigenous Center, SF Farmers' Market, NM Acequia Assn, NM Farmers' Marketing Assn, Quivira Coalition, Food Depot, and so many more) to solicit their advice and feedback. As with other Reunity programs, planning is iterative and progressive, allowing for flexibility and adaptation based on lessons learned throughout the process.Need/Critical Barriers: The saying "No farms, no food" is an apt observation for our times.Stresses on the food system and economy in New Mexico have resulted in a rate of 17% of households not knowing where their next meal is coming from2. In our state, 97% of the actual food (by volume, weight) is estimated to be imported from outside the state, harming both our food security and our state economy2. Beyond this, preserving the land for food production is a critical step. New Mexico lost 3 million farm/ranch acres between 1997 and 20073.One generation ago, one in four Americans worked the land; today, it's fewer than two in 1004. In New Mexico, farmers face a shortage of affordable arable land with water rights. Anecdotally, we know of a few fallow parcels. With appropriate planning, Reunity could potentially act as a legitimizing entity to help farmers access land. We need to identify these fields and establish agreements with owners, be they private or municipal, without the beginning farmer assuming an unreasonable financial risk. By preserving this farmland, we're maintaining a historic cultural characteristic; acequias are traditional irrigation ditches, community-held water rights bound to agricultural land that provide essential habitat and biodiversity, which has been part of the state for hundreds of years.For the most part, the high desert geography of northern New Mexico can only support small-scale farming, meaning the primary source of income for most small farmers is through direct sales at farmers' markets5. Providing wrap-around services for farmers who graduate from a Reunity program would provide them wholesale sales through the Farm Stand, value-added product creation, as well as aggregation for institutional sales, diversifying their income.In a report to the Mayor of Santa Fe, the Food Depot's Food Security Task Force made it very clear: "If a family lacks the income and financial resources to meet all its basic living requirements, it is very likely to suffer from having insufficient food, especially nutritious foods such as fresh fruits and vegetables."6 Tackling food insecurity in our community will take more than just "growing more food." Add to that lack of affordable land for farming, food safety requirements to sell into wholesale markets, and limited infrastructure, and the solution becomes more complex than simply growing more food. If farming is not a viable occupation due to prohibitive costs of land, skewed value of harvests to labor invested, lack of markets and distribution support, and lack of education and professional development in the field, then our fragile food system may crumble.Long-term goals: We want to see meaningful systemic change in our regional food system and the policies that have led to an inequitable distribution of resources for farmers and eaters.Reunity's goal is to become a mid-level food hub that is a successful model for adaptation and replication, providing the education, infrastructure and advocacy needed to make this achievable. This vision is based on years of conversations with neighbors, food access program participants, public school educators, indigenous leaders, experienced and aspiring farmers, policy experts, government leaders, and recent immigrants about their needs and dreams for a secure local food system. Effective, inclusive collaborations and shared infrastructure were cited as fundamental. As such, we share greenhouse space and supplies, labor, land/field space, compost, wash stations, certified kitchen, refrigeration, community gathering space, a sales outlet and food donation coordination with family farms, community organizations, government agencies, and students.Food hubs can be the lynchpin to a localized, resilient, and nourishing food system, where all people have equitable access to locally grown and produced foods. We envision many people becoming skilled in land regeneration, water conservation, and climate adaptive farming, as well as having access to resources needed to create food security from the soil up. Our solution is multifaceted: we need more farmers, farmers need land, and the whole system needs support infrastructure. Reunity is positioned at this nexus point.