Non Technical Summary
Beginning farmers and those interested in starting a farm as a business in New Hampshire have been on the rise over the past several years. Since 2012, the number of beginning farmers has increased by 40%, according to the USDA Census of Agriculture. Beginning farmers have small farms in the state, with the average size farm at less than 50 acres. The majority of agricultural products that are produced in New Hampshire are sold directly to the end consumer.If demand falls or a market is eliminated, farmers need to quickly adapt to sell their products. This involves knowledge and preparation for the markets that exist and the ability to reach consumers who are seeking local food in their communities. Yet, the ability to draw a living wage from the farm is challenging with many beginning farmers relying on off-farm income to supplement their farm income. This challenge is exacerbated by the effects of weather-related events that impact farming each year. In 2023 alone, two freeze events and a rainy growing season contributed to statewide farm losses valued at $12.7 million. In fact, in a survey of beginning farmers who participated in training programs with University of New Hampshire Extension, 88% of those surveyed are unable to withstand any losses on their farm due to the weather, and still remain in business. Furthermore, the majority of respondents reported having little to no preparation for temperature fluctuations, changes in precipitation patterns, and animal disease outbreaks.This project willtrain 500 beginning farmers in New Hampshire to be "climate-ready", reducing their risk in crop and animal losses, preserving the resources they need to keep their farms viable, and maintaining or increasing a local supply of food to the public. This project will focus on training beginning farmers to develop a crop/animal loss and emergency response plan, and ensure they have adequate records to document those losses; connect beginning farmers with federal and state programs that will aid in converting their existing farming practices to climate smart practices that will minimize soil loss, food contamination, and increase their ability to overcome pest populations that can destroy crops and animal populations; and train beginning farmers to adapt to so they can sell their products quickly, or supplement their income when there is a natural disaster and they risk losing most if not all of their income. Through a series of on-farm demonstration and field day events, workshops, and webinars, this project will train beginning farmers in recordkeeping, pest management practices, food safety and other agriculture practices that protect animals and crops and minimize the impact of weather on the soil, farm property, and the safety of food products for consumers. Beginning farmers will be evaluated on what they learn, and the practices they implement as a result of this project through follow-up surveys and interviews with participants.

Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)	Subject of Investigation (SOI)	Field of Science (FOS)	Percent
807	0199	1060	25%
102	1499	1060	15%
102	1699	1060	15%
111	0420	1060	10%
307	0420	1060	10%
601	0001	3080	25%

Knowledge Area
807 - Disaster Preparedness, Mitigation, Response, and Recovery; 601 - Economics of Agricultural Production and Farm Management; 102 - Soil, Plant, Water, Nutrient Relationships; 111 - Conservation and Efficient Use of Water; 307 - Animal Management Systems;

Subject Of Investigation
1499 - Vegetables, general/other; 0420 - Weather; 1699 - Pasture and forage crops, general/other; 0199 - Soil and land, general; 0001 - Administration;

Field Of Science
1060 - Biology (whole systems); 3080 - Sociology;

Goals / Objectives
This project is intended to enhance the skills and knowledge of beginning farmers who have already established a farming operation with the intent to make a profit. The goal of the project is to educate 500 beginning farmers who have already established a farming operation, providing training and outreach activities that will bolster their resilience to climate-related disaster events to meet the following objectives:1) Train beginning farmers to develop a crop/animal loss and emergency response plan, and ensure they have adequate records to document those losses. Throughoutreach events,200 beginning farmers will learn how to identify vulnerable areas on their farms, and practices that will minimize crop and animal losses. 50 beginning farmers will develop a crop or emergency response plan at the end of the project period.200 beginning farmers will understand best practices, particularly after extreme weather events, state and federal regulations, and how to develop adequate food safety records. 100 beginning farmers will change a practice on their farm to reduce food contamination incidence on their farm. 50 beginning farmers will develop a food safety plan and implement at least one practice.2) Connect beginning farmers with programs that will convert existing production and infrastructure to climate-smart practices that will minimize soil loss, food contamination, the ability to overcome pest populations, and these other things that typically happen when there is a natural disaster event that happens due to the changing climate. 200 beginning farmers will learn of the state and federal programs available to them in becoming more climate resilient. 100 beginning farmers will utilize state and federal climate resiliency programs. Through outreach events50 beginning farmers will have developed and implemented an integrated pest management plan.200 beginning farmers will learn how to set up their recordkeeping system and the records that are necessary to participate in state and federal conservation programs.100 beginning farmers will use their recordkeeping system to apply for state and federal climate resiliency programs that will improve their climate readiness.3) Train beginning farmers to adapt to markets or supplement their income when there is a natural disaster and they lose most if not all of their income due to weather-related disasters. Through outreach events 100 beginning farmers will use their records to identify price points when setting their prices.100 beginning farmers will establish a recordkeeping system that calculates costs of production and identifies breakeven price points. 200 beginning farmers will learn how to conduct market research, identify their breakeven point, and available and innovative marketing strategies. 100 beginning farmers will adopt at least one practice to diversify their revenue.?

Project Methods
Effort:10 on-farm demonstrations over the grant period of three years, two of these on-farm events will be held at locations that specifically serve the immigrant or socially underserved population. Topic areas to include, but not limited to:Participantslearn recordkeeping practices necessary for applying for federal and state grant programs.Participants learn the implications of extreme weather events on the food safety of their productsParticipants learn about integrated pest management-what is integrated pest management, common pests and those of immediate threat due to changing climate, and tools available in an intergrated pest management approach.Participants learn infrastructure components that will minimize crop and animal losses on the farm due to climate events.Specific topic area needs will be selected based on the needs assesment of beginning farmers completed in year one of the project.Evaluation includes a pre and post event evaluation of participants, surveying knowledge before the on-farm field day/demonstration and knowledge gain after these events. Pre event evaluation could include survey questions to complete at time of registration, or on-site questionnaire at the start of each event for those events that do not require pre-registration.Follow-up evaluation or interviews to follow in year 3 of the project to evaluate behavior change among participants. Specific outcomes to measure include number of beginning farmers that enter into conservation program contracts with NRCS, and/or apply for climate resiliency program grants in New Hampshire; number ofunderserved beginning farmers participate in NRCS program and/or a state-level conservation grant program; number beginning farmers who develop an integrated pest management plan and adopt at least one practice in the plan; number of beginning farmers who change a practice on their farm to meet best practices for food safety; number of beginning farmers who upgrade equipment or infrastructure due to programs and education they received.Ten in-person classroom events will include presentations that highlight the necessity of crop/animal loss and emergency planning and how to develop these plans. In addition, topics to be included but not limited to:recordkeeping practices necessary to make informed production and financial decisions, as well as records needsfor applying for federal and state grant programs.how to adapt to changing markets, innovate approaches to marketing, and how to keep records that that can be used to demonstrate losses and when to make management decisions that will impact revenues, due to unforeseen climate-related events.Specific topic area needs will be selected based on the needs assesment of beginning farmers completed in year one of the project.Evaluation includes pre and post class evaluations to measure knowledge prior to the event and knowledge gained after the event. Pre-class evaluations will measure current knowledge of these topics at the time of registration. Post class evaluations include a survey of participants at the conclusion of the event to measure increase in knowledge at the conclusion of the workshop. Evaluation to measure behavior change will occur in year 3 of the project through surveys and interviews of select participants. Specific outcomes to measure behavior change in year 3 of the project include, but no limited to number of beginning farmers who adopt at least one practice to diversify their revenue; number of beginning farmers who implement a recordkeeping system that can be used to apply for federal and state climate resiliency grant programs; number of beginning farmers that change a practice on their farm to meet best practices for food safety; number of beginning farmers who develop an integrated pest management plan and adopt at least one practice in the plan; number of beginning farmers who enter into conservation program contracts with NRCS, and/or apply for climate resiliency program grants in New Hampshire; number ofunderserved beginning farmers participate in NRCS program and/or a state-level conservation grant program. Program participation is complete or in progress;number of beginning farmers who have developed a crop loss plan coupled with an emergency response plan, as well as number of beginning farmers who have implemented that plan.Ten webinars will be held over the grant period that highlight areas to address in a crop/animal loss and emergency response plan. Other topics to be addressed include but not limited to:At least three webinar events will showcase NRCS programs available to beginning farmers, with time reserved for NRCS representatives to attend these events.how to adapt to changing markets, innovate approaches to marketing, and how to keep records that that can be used to demonstrate losses and when to make management decisions that will impact revenues, due to unforeseen climate-related events.Integrated pest management practices.Infrastructure and conservation practices and programs available to beginning farmers in New Hampshire.Food safety practices used to protect crops and animal products before and after weather-related events occur.Specific topic area needs will be selected based on the needs assesment of beginning farmers completed in year one of the project.Evaluation includes a pre-webinar evaluation at the time of registration for the webinar to gauge participants level of knowledge before the webinars. Poll questions during the webinar and at the conclusion of the webinar will measure knowledge gained. Evaluation follow-up in year 3 of the project will measure behavior change through surveys and interviews of selected participants. Specific outcomes to measure behavior change include, but not limited to number ofbeginning farmers who develop an integrated pest management plan and adopt at least one practice in the plan; number of beginning farmers who adopt at least one practice to diversify their revenue; number ofbeginning farmers implement a recordkeeping system that can be used to apply for federal and state climate resiliency grant programs; number ofbeginning farmers upgrade equipment or infrastructure due to programs and education they received.A document will be compiled that summarizes information presented in each of these formats that can then be published on the UNH Extension website and can be used as a guide in developing an emergency response plan for farm businesses. This document will be printed upon request and interpreted for any individuals requesting a language other than English. Evaluation will be based on number of downloads from UNH website, and during year 3 evaluation of behavior change, with questions asked of past participants if they downloaded or used this guide during the project duration.Post event evaluation in year 3 will evaluate number of beginner farmers that have completed or partially completed an emergency response plan, as well as number ofbeginning farmers implemented that plan during the project period.