Progress 09/01/20 to 08/31/23
Outputs
Target Audience:Beginning, veteran, socially disadvantaged, and historically underserved farmers in the Upper Midwest. In year 3of the project, we reached 865beginning farmers through New Farmer U, the Farmer-to-Farmer mentorship program, and the 2023Organic Farming Conference. Additionally, the Covid Enhancement Supplemental funding reached 211 socially disadvantaged farmers through three socially disadvantaged organic farmer specialists working directly with their farming communities, the Advanced Mentorship Training, a BIPOC farmers networking space at the organic farming conference, as well as funding through the Farmer Advancement Fund. These funds went directly to historically underserved farmers to build their capacity to farm. Changes/Problems: Challenge: Our goal was to have 20 mentor pairs, and we had only 19 applicants despite both broad and targeted outreach about the program. Marbleseed's Farmer Advancement Coordinator reached out to all applicants, to schedule a call, and heard back from only 12 after multiple attempts. Based on the conversations we had with potential mentees, some applicants were not yet ready for a mentorship. Changes: Due to COVID impacting the first year of our project, we changed course (with the approval of Denis Ebodaghe) to fund some efforts that are in line with the Farner Advancement Program, but weren't specifically outlined in the original proposal. These are outlined in the Accomplishemnts section, and include: - Content development support for the Emerging Farmers Conference and the Upper Midwest Farmland Summit - Support for field days that benefited beginning farmers - The Breaking Ground podcast, highlighting the difficulties farmers of color experience when accessing land What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Training Activities: 1) Farmer-to-Farmer Mentorship Program, February 2023-February 2024 6 intermediate BFR mentee applicants were paired with mentors in their geographic area and with the production type on which they wanted to focus for the year long one-on-one mentorship program. These mentees worked with their mentors to set goals for the mentorship year, were in contact at least monthly, and visited each other's farms at least once during the year. The mentorship continues through February 2024. All mentorship program participants attended the 2023 Organic Farming Conference as part of the program. At the conference, mentor pairs from the 2022 group and the 2023 group gathered for a mentorship kick-off/close out event. Here outgoing pairs shared tips and advice with the incoming group. 2) Enhanced Mentorship Training, January 2023 We partnered with Renewing the Countryside to offer a 2-day "Enhanced Mentorship" training for farmers in Minneapolis, MN. As mentioned in the year 2 report, as part of the COVID Enhancement funding we received, we planned to train farmers to help other farmers access FSA and NRCS programs by creating a training and resource toolkit to develop true Farmer Advancement Advocates. Advocates will be skilled in accessing various USDA and community-based programs that will enable beginning farmers to thrive with their farm businesses and support their families, in addition to mentoring on production. We soon learned that Renewing the Countryside was already doing something similar so we partnered to plan and host the Enhanced Mentorship Training. This event brought together 48 farmer "connectors" (connecting other farmers with USDA programs) as well as 8 FSA and NRCS staff from MN and WI. Over 2 days, the group worked together to identify programs and funding that may be applicable to different types of farmers, worked with USDA staff to answer questions/clarify program information, and role-played visits to USDA Service Centers with farmers who had not yet interacted with the offices. A large component of the training also laid bare the inequities in the the USDA programs and how service center staff can help mitigate some of that; even something as simple as staying open in the evenings 1 day a week for increased accessibility. 100% of evaluation respondents reported increased knowledge of USDA programs and services for historically underserved farmers, including beginning, veteran, and socially disadvantaged. Additionally, 100% of respondents reported increased comfort in helping farmers access USDA programs and interacting with agency staff as well as increased confidence in supporting farmers in accessing these programs. Professional Development: 1) New Farmer U- Illinois, October 2022 48 intermediate beginning farmers (those farming for 3-6 years) gathered in Illinois for a 2 day retreat on farm business management. Day one offered a full day course based on the Marbleseed published book, Fearless Farm Finances. Day two included four1.5 hour sessions on topics related to farm business management. 40 farmers attended the Friday Session, and 48 attended the Saturday sessions. Fearless Farm Finances Taught by Paul Dietmann, lender with Compeer Financial and co-author of "Fearless Farm Finances", and Andy Larson from the Food Finance Institute, this full-day workshop will provide instructions, tips, and tools for setting up and managing a farm's financial system, including sample data to show how forms and records should look. All attendees received a copy of the Marbleseed published Fearless Farm Finances book. New Farmer U Illinois 2022 workshops: Federal Insurance Options for Beginning and Specialty Crop Growers Labor Challenges and Solutions Keep your customers coming back Traditional and non-traditional financing options 2) 2023 Marbleseed Organic Farming Conference, February 2023 As part of the conference, we hosted eleven 90-minute workshops specifically geared toward beginning farmers. Additionally, we hosted longer "conversations" with one specifically for farmers looking to transition out of farming and those newer to farming seeking land. Land access has proven to be a major barrier to historically underserved farmers. Conference Scholarships/BFR attendance: 779 conference attendees identified as beginning farmers 168 scholarships were awarded to the conference for beginning farmers, 142 conference attendees identified as BIPOC Interpretation: We had 8 Spanish speakers and 10Hmong speakers use interpretation services offered at the conference. Additionally, we purchased new interpretation equipment to replace outdated equipment and support the increase in farmers requesting interpretation for the conference. BIPOC Farmer Networking Space: A room set aside for BIPOC farmers to connect with each other and learn about programs specifically for them. As a result of this space, the BIPOC Leadership Group was formed by a group of farmers who are helping Marbleseed guide their planning to better serve farmers of color. New Farmer Mixer: Roughly 80 beginning farmers attended an evening networking event at the conference. Beginning Farmer Workshops and Attendance Introduction to Growing Pears Attendance: 98 Managed Grazing 101 Attendance: 55 Pastured Pigs for Beginners Attendance: 68 Organic Apples 101 Attendance: 100 Choosing the Right Equipment for Your Farm Attendance: 32 Creative Land Access for Beginning Farmers Attendance: 63 Organic Transition 101 Attendance: 30 Soil Nutrient Management 101 Attendance: 115 Weed Management for Organic Field Crops 101 Attendance: 155 5 Legal Best Practices for Every Farm Business Attendance: 42 Urban Growers Collective: Reclaiming Ancestral Knowledge, Dismantling Structural Racism Attendance: 30 Funding Your Farm with Little to No Debt - Grants and Creative Fundraising Strategies For Farmers Attendance: 145 Organic University at the 2023 Organic Farming Conference: Two full day courses were offered for beginning farmers. Postharvest Handling: Farmers Are Food Handlers PresentersLAtina Diffley, Organic Farming Works LLC Laura Frerichs, Loon Organics Farm Attendance: 30 Farm Business Basics: Strengthen Your Foundation By Building Business Acumen Presenters: Rachel Armstrong, Farm Commons Paul Dietmann, Compeer Financial Attendance: 33 All attendees received copies of 2 books: Marbleseed published Fearless Farm Finances and The Farmers Guide to Business Structures 3) New Farmer U Wisconsin, April 2023 32 intermediate beginning farmers (those farming for 3-6 years) gathered in Wisconsin for a 2 day retreat on farm business management. Day one offered a full day course based on the Marbleseed published book, Fearless Farm Finances. Day two included four1.5 hour sessions on topics related to farm business management. 32 farmers attended the Friday Session, and 30attended the Saturday sessions. Fearless Farm Finances Taught by Paul Dietmann, lender with Compeer Financial and co-author of Fearless Farm Finances, and Andy Larson from the Food Finance Institute, this full-day workshop will provide instructions, tips, and tools for setting up and managing a farm's financial system, including sample data to show how forms and records should look. All attendees received a copy of the Marbleseed published Fearless Farm Finances book. New Farmer U 1.5 hour workshops: Finance Your Farm Creatively Make Farm Records Work For You: Starting Small for Meaningful Data How to Tell Your Farm's Story Establishing Legal Resilience How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?We have shared program evaluation results with partner organizations, namely Renewing the Countryside, The Land Connection, and Wisconsin Farmers Union. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?
Nothing Reported
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
With 865 beginning farmers, including 162socially disadvantaged farmers being reached in year 3of the project, multiple relationships were formed between beginning farmers and mentees and mentors. These relationships help build much-needed support systems for beginning farmers. Objective 1 - Identify beginning farmers/ranchers in our project states and coordinate appropriate programming with project partners. In year three we partnered with The Land Connection in IL as well as Wisconsin Farmers Union in WI to host the 2nd and 3rd regional New Farmer U events. These 2-day retreats geared toward farmers 3-6 years into their farming business, focused on farm business management strategies. Between the 2 events we had 80 attendees. 100%of evaluation respondents reported they gained knowledge in farm business management while 93% reported that they planned to add or change at least one farm business management practice based on what they learned at New Farmer U. Additionally, 100% of respondents reported that they made valuable connections with other farmers. These connections will allow them support each other as they move forward in their farming careers. Objective 2 - Build sustainability of farming operations and careers of farmers by providing educational opportunities and matching experienced farmers and experts with beginning farmers to share knowledge, experiences, and skills. Per post-event/program evaluations, in year 3, as a result of the mentorship program, the organic farming conference, and New Farmer U: 181BFRs reported they gained knowledge in organic production 168 BFRs reported they will implement a new organic production practice on their farm 144 BFRs reported they gained knowledge in farm business management 116 BFRs reported they plan to add or change at least one farm business management practice 182 BFRs reported making valuable connections with other farmers, and will contact at least one of them about farming issues The Farmer Advancement Fund helped build the sustainability of farming operations for 49farmers through funding to help their farms move forward. While we originally had $10,000 per year in our COVID Enhancement budget for these funds, after the first year offering the funds, it was clear that more was needed. In order to address the additional need, we sought private support to supplement the funds. In the end, we were able to provide $500 each to 49 historically underserved farmers in the Upper Midwest. Moving forward, Marbleseed is committed to continuing the Farmer Advancement Fund through private funders. See below for impact stories: Taproute Urban Gardens. Learn more at https://www.taprouteurbangardens.com/ Taproute Urban Gardens is a market garden in Minneapolis, MN that has been selling fresh produce through farmers markets and CSA subscriptions since 2019. Receiving the Farmer Advancement Funds made a huge difference to our operation by helping us to streamline the harvest and packing process with new harvest crates and packing totes. We also used the funds to buy t-posts for trellising tomatoes which took less time to set up than our previous system, were sturdier, and ultimately led to healthier plants and a better harvest. Better Greens, LLC. Learn more at https://www.facebook.com/organichealthyvegies/ The Farmer Advancement Funds helped our farm weather some of the challenges posed by the drought conditions we experienced in the past two farming seasons. More was needed to help irrigate our crops and the funds did come in handy for that. Johnson Family Pastures With the Farmer Advancement Funds we were able to purchase fencing materials to expand our hog pasture within our oak savanna woodlots - as well as subdivide to paddocks to better manage our hog pasture and prevent parasites. The Toad Garden https://www.thetoadgarden.com/ We used the grant from the Farmer Advancement Fund to invest in more harvest containers. One of the weak links in our operation was the efficiency of our harvest. Between new harvest containers and better harvesting tools, we were able to drastically decrease the amount of time we spent on harvesting. Tsehaynesh Abebe,Waterloo/Cedar Falls, Iowa With the Farmer Advancement Funds we have been able to incorporate formally in the State of Iowa! We were recently accepted into a local farmer's market, and will be selling organic ready-to-fruit mushroom blocks to the community, so they can fruit at home and help normalize mushrooms (similar to how someone may have a basil plant on their counter). We will be the first to do this at the farmer's market, and we're excited! We're planning a lot of education around mushrooms to encourage people to try/eat mushrooms! In preparation for the farmer's market, the remaining funding will help us with purchasing high-quality substrate and related supplies. Ama's Farm https://www.facebook.com/AmasFarmMN/ ?Our 4th year of running Ama's Farm The funds we received allowed us to purchase more fencing for our farm, and created a shady pasture area for our animals to access during the warmest months of the summer. The goats not onlyhave cool shady pasture, but can also now help us by eating the unwanted tree sprouts and low hanging branches Ever Favor Farms https://everfavorfarms.com/ How did the Farmer Advancement Funds impact your farm?: Ever Favor Farms' mission is to promote food security and sustainability by producing humanely-raised meat products with superior taste and quality. We raise organic pastured poultry with a focus on heritage breeds. Over 500 pounds of the poultry we produced in 2022 benefitted food-insecure communities in the greater Chicago area. Farmer Advancement Funds were used to purchase a 21.7 cubic foot chest freezer to safely store our meat products. Additionally: Marbleseed provided support for content development at the Emerging Farmers Conference in Nov. 2023, a gathering of 221 Emerging Farmers in Shoreview, MN, for a workshop on Measuring Profitability to help educatefarmers on farm business management. Marbleseed provided content development support for the2023 Upper Midwest Farmland Summit in Nov. 2023, through a workshop entitled "The Historical Context of Land Access in the Western Great Lakes & Modern Impacts on Indigenous Peoples" presented by Marbleseed staff and Farmer Advancement Program Coordinator Alex Bagwajinini Kmett. Workshop Description: Bagwaj will briefly describe the relationship between Indigenous nations and settler-colonial states that sets up the legal basis for continued occupation, treaties, and actions that have impacted Indigenous land access and intergenerational wealth. As an individual entwined in that history, he will describe his own story about how he has been impacted by the cascading effects of historical events. Alex also served on a panel, "Land Stories: Experiences & Challenges in Accessing Land" Workshop Description: Emerging farmers representing diverse backgrounds will share their personal stories of trying to access land. They will share the challenges they have faced and speak to the broader historical and cultural contexts that have impacted their journeys. The Marbelseed podcast, "Breaking Ground" was released in August of 2023. In Her Boots presents: Breaking Ground a two-part audio story from Marbleseed that follows a journey for farmland financing with farmers Dria Price and Halima Salazar and their diversified farming operation, Justevia Teas. Alongside farming food system advocates, Breaking Ground uncovers the barriers and solutions that can help get new and beginning farmers on the land. Marbleseed is a Midwest organic farming resource organization. This podcast was made possible by the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition, Regenerative Agriculture Foundation & Beginning Farmer & Rancher Development Program.
Publications
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Progress 09/01/21 to 08/31/22
Outputs
Target Audience:Target Audience: Beginning, veteran, socially disadvantaged, and historically underserved farmers in the Upper Midwest. In year 2 of the project, we reached 357 beginning farmers through New Farmer U, the Farmer-to-Farmer mentorship program, and the 2022 Organic Farming Conference. Additionally, the Covid Enhancement Supplemental funding reached 116socially disadvantaged farmers through three socially disadvantagedorganic farmer specialists working directly with their farming communities, a BIPOC farmers listening session at the organic farming conference, as well asfunding through the Farmer Advancement Fund. These funds went directly to historically underserved farmers to build their capacity to farm. Efforts: 1) New Farmer U October 2021, Minnesota Year twoof the Farmer Advancement Program kicked off with New Farmer U in MN, co-hosted with Renewing the Countryside. This 1.5 day retreat focused on Farm Business Management for intermediate beginning farmers (those 3-6 years into their farming career) drew50 farmers from MN and WI. Friday: Fearless Farm Finances half-day course. Attendance: 39 Taught by Paul Dietmann, lender withCompeer Financialand co-author of "Fearless Farm Finances", this half-day workshop provided instructions, tips, and tools for setting up and managing a farm's financial system, including sample data to show how forms and records should look. Topics covered:Why detailed numbers are crucial to farming success,Techniques for data collection,How to set up and use a bookkeeping system,Computer bookkeeping program tips,Step-by-step development of the three primary financial statements,How to use numbers to make product mix, market, and pricing decisions. All attendees received a copy of the Marbleseed published Fearless Farm Finances book. Saturday, New Farmer U workshops.Six 90-minuteworkshops offered throughout the day, plus a 90-minute Keynote session. Attendance: 45 Two sessions were offered at the same time, but all sessions were recorded and distributed to attendees after the event. They are also available on the Marbleseed Youtube Channel The Program can be found here. Attendees were assigned "pre-work" in advance of the retreat so that they could be better prepared to engage with the content. This work included everything from filling out a balance sheetto assessing their marketing efforts. New Farmer U workshops: 1st session Income Diversification: Reining it in - 30 Land Access and Financing - 15 2nd session: Farm Employment Law - 23 Online Marketing - 24 Keynote Panel: Growth, Profitability, Balance, & Success - 40 3rd session- some people left to get home before too late Relevant Recordkeeping - 20 Developing Wholesale Markets - 13 2) Farmer-to-Farmer Mentorship Program 12intermediate beginning farmer mentee applicants were paired with mentors in their geographic area and with the production type on which they wanted to focus for the year long one-on-one mentorship program for the2022 program year. These mentees worked with their mentors to set goals for the mentorship year, were in contact at least monthly, and visited each other's farms at least once during the year. The mentorship continues through February 2023at which point we'll have evaluation information. We awarded sixscholarships for the 2022mentorship program, including to threesocially disadvantaged BFRs, and three additional BFRs. At the organic farming conference in February 2022, mentor pairs from the 2021 group and the 2022 group gathered for a mentorhsip kick-off/close out event. Here outgoing pairs shared tips and advice with the incoming group. Additionally, one of our mentees co-hosted a fieldday where she farms at the Gitigaaning Farm as part of their Producer Training Program. Different farmers in that program have been mentees for the past 5 years. Their mentoralso attended, along with 47 other farmers and ag professionals. August 20, 2022 Cloquet, MN. 3) February 2022 MOSES Organic Farming Conference Hosted nine90-minute in-person workshops geared toward beginning farmers at the country'slargest organic farming conference in La Crosse, WI. Beginning Farmer Workshops and Attendance TIPS ON AVOIDING OBSTACLES AND DELAYS IN THE ORGANIC CERTIFICATION PROCESS Attandance: 21 LAND ACCESS: 127 EASY STEPS TO FINDING FARMLAND Attendance: 68 VEGETABLE CROP ROTATION ON SMALL FARMS Attendance: 110 SOIL FERTILITY 101 Attendance: 190 RIGHT ANIMAL, RIGHT PLACE, RIGHT TIME Attendance: 55 WHAT DO I NEED TO START A U-PICK? Attendance: 60 INTEGRATE LIVESTOCK INTO YOUR VEGETABLE PRODUCTION Attendance: 74 FROM DREAM TO REALITY: BUYING YOUR FIRST FARM Attendance: 50 EFFECTIVE AND RESPONSIBLE USE OF COMPOST FOR VEGETABLE GROWERS Attendance: 50 Organic University: Full day course on Holistic Financial Management geared toward intermedate beginning farmers. Attendance: 25 Values-Based Decision-Making Using Holistic Financial Planning Join Cree Bradley to learn unique concepts around wealth and expenses, such as social, biological and paper wealth, weak links, and wealth-generating expenses in order to get you thinking differently about what is important, what is needed, and what is desired. Using her experience and education as a practitioner of Holistic Management, Cree will share how to create an annual financial plan that serves as a dynamic cashflow statement, builds profit into the plan upfront, puts you in control of your financials throughout the year, and prioritizes reinvestments that help move towards farm, personal, and family goals using your financials as a tool. Conference Scholarships/BFR attendance: 307 conference attendees identified as beginning farmers 124 scholarships were awarded to the conference for beginning farmers, including 6veterans.and 38Socially Disadvantaged farmers Interpretation: We had 9Spanish speakers and 6Hmong speakers use interpretation services offered at the conference. Some Spanish and Hmong speaking attendees brought their own interpreters not realizing they were available. Hmong Farmer Resource Room: A space at the conference for Hmong growers to gather and connect, access information in their language, speak to Extensionand NRCS agents in Hmong, and consult with a Hmong speaking ag lender from Compeer. Over the course of the conference about 15 Hmong farmers utilized the space. BIPOC Farmer Listening Session: Hosted by Tiffany LaShea and KaZoua Berry, this session was designed to be a space where BIPOC farmers could share their experiences and challenges in accessing programs, funding, land, etc with folks from agencies and organizations. It was slated for an hour, but lasted over 2 hours and had about 50 folks in the room, 10 of them agency and org staff. New Farmer Mixer: Roughly 60 beginning farmers attended an evening networking event at the conference. 4)Farmer Advancement Fund In the COVID Enhacement Supplemental funding, we included the Farmer Advancement Fund:Funding provided stipends through an application process for HU beginning farmers and ranchers to address needs identified; theseincluded travel to training, attending educational events, and infrastructure needs on their farms--particularly for those on rented or leased land. The organic farmer specialists/consultants worked with the Farmer Advancement Program Coordinatorto design, promote, and lead this process. We had $10,000 to distribute and had198 total applicants asking for a total of $323,188. We were able to move some money from other places in the budget so that we had a total of $22,900 to award. The majority of requests were for around $2,000, the max award. In order to provide more awards, the review committee decided to award $500 to 46 famers, spread out by state, production type, and demographics. Two of those awards were for emergency funds.The application was designed to be simple and accessible, and can be found here. Changes/Problems:Change: The planfor the training for the Farmer Advancement Advocates has been changed. After submitting our proposal for the COVID Enhancement Supplement, we learned that an organization in ourregion with whom we partner regularly (Renewing the Countryside) had already been doing some of this work through FSA and USDA Navigators/Connectors- Working closely with local FSA nad NRCS staff to trainfarmers to help other farmers navigate the programs and applications, while at the same time advisingFSA and NRCS as to how their offices, procedures, and programs can be more accessible to socially disadvantaged producers. We have joined forces with them to expand their reach and are considering it an "Enhanced Mentorship". In January 2023, 50 farmers andag professionals will be trained to be FSA and USDA Connectors over a 2-day course. More information will be reported in our final year report.This project will have the original intendedimpact and outcome, but will be delivered ina different manner. Challenge: Whileour goal was to have 20 mentor pairs htis year, we have only 12. We had planty of applicants, some of whom did not qualify for hte program as they hadn't been farming for at least 1 year, and there were some for whom we were unable to find mentors. We have worked to expand our base of mentors in order to avoid this problem in the future. Challenge: The Farmer Advancement Fund had so many applicants and our pool of money was so limited, that we were able to fund very few farmers. With the knowledge that funds such as these are so needed, we are putting together a farmer mini grant program funded by donors to address this need moving forward. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Training Activities: Farmer-to-Farmer Mentorship Program: 12intermediate beginning farmer mentee applicants were paired with mentors in their geographic area and with the production type on which they wanted to focus for the year long one-on-one mentorship program. These mentees worked with their mentors to set goals for the mentorship year, were in contact at least monthly, and visited eachother's farms at least once during the year. The mentorship continues through February 2023at which point we'll have evaluation information. We awarded sixscholarships for the 2022mentorship program, including to three socially disadvantaged BFRs,and three additional BFRs. All mentorship program participants attended the 2022Organic Farming Conference as part of the program.. At the conference, mentor pairs from the 2021 group and the 2022 group gathered for a mentorship kick-off/close out event. Here outgoing pairs shared tips and advice with the incoming group. Professional Development: New Farmer U, MN, October 2021 50 intermediate beginning farmers (those farming for 3-6 years) gathered in Northern MN for a 1.5 day retreat on farm business management. Friday: Fearless Farm Finances half-day course. Attendance: 39 Taught by Paul Dietmann, lender withCompeer Financialand co-author of Fearless Farm Finances, half-day workshop providedinstructions, tips, and tools for setting up and managing a farm's financial system, including sample data to show how forms and records should look. Topicsaddressed: Why detailed numbers are crucial to farming success,Techniques for data collection,How to set up and use a bookkeeping system,Computer bookkeeping program tips,Step-by-step development of the three primary financial statements,How to use numbers to make product mix, market, and pricing decisions,Plus much more to help you improve farm profits All attendees received a copy of the Marbleseed publishedFearless Farm Financesbook. Saturday, New Farmer U workshops.Six 90-minuteworkshops offered throughout the day, plus a 90-minute Keynote session. Attendance: 45 Two sessions were offered at the same time, but all sessions were recorded and distributed to attendees after the event. They are also available on the Marbleseed Youtube ChannelThe Program can be found here. Attendees were assigned "pre-work" in advance of the retreat so that they could be better prepared to engage with the content. This work included everything from filling out a balance sheet, to assessing their marketing program. New Farmer U workshops: 1st session Income Diversification: Reining it in - 30 Land Access and Financing - 15 2nd session: Farm Employment Law - 23 Online Marketing - 24 Keynote Panel: Growth, Profitability, Balance, & Success - 40 3rd session- some people left to get home before too late Relevant Recordkeeping - 20 Developing Wholesale Markets - 13 2022MOSES Organic Farming Conference, February 2022 The conference was back in-person. As part of the conference, we hosted nine90-minute workshops specifically geared toward beginning farmers. Beginning Farmer Workshops and Attendance TIPS ON AVOIDING OBSTACLES AND DELAYS IN THE ORGANIC CERTIFICATION PROCESS Attandance: 21 LAND ACCESS: 127 EASY STEPS TO FINDING FARMLAND Attendance: 68 VEGETABLE CROP ROTATION ON SMALL FARMS Attendance: 110 SOIL FERTILITY 101 Attendance: 190 RIGHT ANIMAL, RIGHT PLACE, RIGHT TIME Attendance: 55 WHAT DO I NEED TO START A U-PICK? Attendance: 60 INTEGRATE LIVESTOCK INTO YOUR VEGETABLE PRODUCTION Attendance: 74 FROM DREAM TO REALITY: BUYING YOUR FIRST FARM Attendance: 50 EFFECTIVE AND RESPONSIBLE USE OF COMPOST FOR VEGETABLE GROWERS Attendance: 50 Organic University at the2022 Organic Farming Confererence: Full day course on Holistic Financial Management geared toward intermedate beginning farmers. Attendance: 25 Values-Based Decision-Making Using Holistic Financial Planning Join Cree Bradley to learn unique concepts around wealth and expenses, such as social, biological and paper wealth, weak links, and wealth-generating expenses in order to get you thinking differently about what is important, what is needed, and what is desired. Using her experience and education as a practitioner of Holistic Management, Cree will share how to create an annual financial plan that serves as a dynamic cashflow statement, builds profit into the plan upfront, puts you in control of your financials throughout the year, and prioritizes reinvestments that help move towards farm, personal, and family goals using your financials as a tool. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?We have shared program evaluation results with partner organizations, namely Renewing the Countryside for year 2 of the grant. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Objective 1 -Identify beginning farmers/ranchers in our project states and coordinate appropriate programming with project partners. Wehosted the 2nd New Farmer U in IL with The Land Connection in October 2022, and the 3rd will be in April 2023 with Wisconsin Farmers Union. Objective 2- Build sustainability of farming operations and careers of farmers by providing educational opportunities and matching experienced farmers and experts with beginning farmers to share knowledge, experiences, and skills. We will host the Organic Farming COnference in February 2022 where we will have workshops designed specifically for beginning farmers, host a New farmer Mixer, and have 2 Organic University Courses geared toward beginning farmers, We will pair 20 mentees with mentors for the 2023 farmer-to-farmer mentorship program. We will co-host a training with Renewing the Countryside for "enhanced mentors" to assist socially disadvantaged farmers in accessing and navigating FSA and NRCS programs.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
With 357 beginning farmers plus 116 socially disadvantaged farmers being reached in year 2 of theproject, multiple relationships were formed between beginning farmers andmentees and mentors. These relationships help build much-neededsupport system for farmers. Objective 1 -Identify beginning farmers/ranchers in our project states and coordinate appropriate programming with project partners. In year two we partnered with Renewing the Countryside in MN to host the first of 3 regional New Farmer U events. 89% of evaluation respondents reported theygained knowledge in farm business managament while 89% reported that they planned to add or change at least onefarm business management practicebased on what theylearned at New Farmer U. Additionally, connections were made betweenfarmers that will allowthem support eachother as they move forward in their farming careers. Objective 2- Build sustainability of farming operations and careers of farmers by providing educational opportunities and matching experienced farmers and experts with beginning farmers to share knowledge, experiences, and skills. As a result of the mentorship program, the organic farming conference, and two field days: 40 beginning farmers reported they gained knowledge in organic production ofc 37 50 beginning farmers reported they will implement a neworganic production practice on their farm OFC 48 45 beginning farmers reported they gained knowledge in farm business managementOFC-26 nfu 16 18 beginning farmers reported they planto add or change at least onefarm business management practice nfu 16 64 reported makingvaluable connections with other farmers, and will contactat least one of them about farming issuesOFC 47 nfu 17 From a BFR conference scholarship recipient: "I thoroughly enjoyed the information offered through the conference and I will apply the organic practices to my future farm."
Publications
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Progress 09/01/20 to 08/31/21
Outputs
Target Audience:Target Audience: Beginning farmers In year one of the grant the project reached 349 self-identified beginning farmers as attendeesat the 2021 virtual organic farming conference. 13of those farmers were paired with mentors in the farmer-to-farmer mentorship program. Efforts: 1) MOSES Organic Farming Conference inFebruary 2021: Hosted ten virtual workshops specifically geared toward beginning farmers covering organic production and farm business management, plus a virtual roundtable networking session for beginning farmers. Beginning Farmer workshops and attendance: Beginning Grazier 101 Attended: 187 Build Soil Health & Suppress Pathogens in Organic Systems Attended: 312 Practical Organic Recordkeeping for Working Farmers Attended: 171 Farm Business Management for Beginners Attended: 227 Economics 101 for the New and Transitioning Organic Pork Producer Attended: 81 Perspectives on Pastured Poultry Attended: 212 Raising Goats in Silvopasture: Fundamental Considerations Attended: 211 What it Takes to get Certified Organic Attended: 131 Organic Row Crop Management & the Biology of Soil Health Attended: 299 Silvopasture 101:Getting Livestock Back on the Land Attended: 174 Roundtable Discussion: Building Your Network as a Beginning Farmer Attended: 49 Conference Scholarships/BFR attendance: 349 Conference attendees identified as beginning farmers 85 scholarships were awarded to the conference for beginning farmers, including 5 veterans. 2) Farmer-to-Farmer Mentorship Program: 13 intermediate beginning farmer mentee applicantswere paired with mentors in their geographic area and with the production type on which they wanted to focus for the year long one-on-one mentorship program. These mentees worked with their mentors to set goals for the mentorship year, were in contact at least monthly, and visited eachother's farms at least once during the year. The mentorship continues through February 2022 at which point we'll have evaluation information. We awarded five scholarships for the 2021 mentorship program, including to one veteran BFR, one socially disadvantaged BFR, and three additional BFRs. All mentorship program participants attended the 2021 virtual Organic Farming Conference as part of the program. On April 16, 2021 we had a virtual mentorship program meeting which included participants from both the 2020 and 2021 group. This was an opportunity for folks in the program to meet and for the outgoing group to share tips and lessons from their experience in the mentorship program. We had 23 attendees, 16 from the 2021 program and 13 from the 2020 program, including three mentors who are in both program years. Changes/Problems:Change:Organic University We did not offer a full-day Organic University (OU) Course at the 2021 MOSES Organic Farming Conference because it was virtual due to COVID. We have one OU planned for each grant year. We will add an additional OU in year two or three to make up for this change and will award the scholarships to these in years twoand threeas well. Challenge: Mentorship Program Our goal was to have 20 mentor pairs in 2021, but applications were lower for this program year than in the past. In speaking with farmers, we learned that many were just trying to stay afloat through COVID, having had to make so many adjustments in that year, that applying for a mentorship was not near the top of the list. We expect to see more applications for the 2022 program year as we have broadened our outreach. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Training Activities: Farmer-to-Farmer Mentorship Program: 13 intermediate beginning farmer mentee applicantswere paired with mentors in their geographic area and with the production type on which they wanted to focus for the year long one-on-one mentorship program. These mentees worked with hteir mentors to set goals for the mentorship year, were in contact at least monthly, and visited eachother's farms at least once during the year. The metnrship continues through February 2022 at which point we'll have evaluation information. We awarded five scholarships for the 2021 mentorship program, including to one veteran BFR, one socially disadvantaged BFR, and three additional BFRs. All mentorship program participants attended the 2021 virtual Organic Farming Conference as part of the program. On April 16, 2021 we had a virtual mentorship program meeting which included participants from both the 2020 and 2021 group. This was an opportunity for folks in the program to meet and for the outgoing group to share tips and lessons from their experience in the mentorship program. We had 23 attendees, 16 from the 2021 program and 13 from the 2020 program, including three mentors who are in both program years. Professional Development: 2021 MOSES Organic Farming Conference, February 2021: The conference was virtual due to COVID. As part of the conference, we hosted ten virtual workshops specifically geared toward beginning farmers covering organic production and farm business management, plus a virtual roundtable networking session for beginning farmers. Beginning Farmer workshops and attendance: Beginning Grazier 101 Attended: 187 Build Soil Health & Suppress Pathogens in Organic Systems Attended: 312 Practical Organic Recordkeeping for Working Farmers Attended: 171 Farm Business Management for Beginners Attended: 227 Economics 101 for the New and Transitioning Organic Pork Producer Attended: 81 Perspectives on Pastured Poultry Attended: 212 Raising Goats in Silvopasture: Fundamental Considerations Attended: 211 What it Takes to get Certified Organic Attended: 131 Organic Row Crop Management & the Biology of Soil Health Attended: 299 Silvopasture 101:Getting Livestock Back on the Land Attended: 174 Roundtable Discussion: Building Your Network as a Beginning Farmer Attended: 49 Conference Scholarships/BFR attendance: 349 Conference attendees identified as beginning farmers 85 scholarships were awarded to the conference for beginning farmers, including 5 veterans. We do not have demographic data for 2021 OFC scholarships, but will for the 2022 and 2023 conferences. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Not yet as we have limited data from Year 1. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?
Nothing Reported
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
Objective 1 -Identify beginning farmers/ranchers in our project states and coordinate appropriate programming with project partners. 1) This work began in year one of the grant in planning for New Farmer U, an event which will occur in years two and three of the grant. Impact will be addressed and assessed in the year two progress report. Objective 2- Build sustainability of farming operations and careers of farmers by providing educational opportunities and matching experienced farmers and experts with beginning farmers to share knowledge, experiences, and skills. 1) At this point we donot have impact information for the program as a main component of the program, the year-long mentorship, ends in February 2022 at which point we'll have evaluation information withwhich to begin assessing the impact.
Publications
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