Source: SIERRA HARVEST submitted to NRP
COLLABORATIVE TRAINING AND MENTORSHIP PATHWAYS FOR BEGINNING FOOTHILL FARMERS AND RANCHERS
Sponsoring Institution
National Institute of Food and Agriculture
Project Status
COMPLETE
Funding Source
OTHER GRANTS
Reporting Frequency
Annual
Accession No.
1027533
Grant No.
2021-49400-35593
Cumulative Award Amt.
$500,352.00
Proposal No.
2021-06699
Multistate No.
(N/A)
Project Start Date
Sep 1, 2021
Project End Date
Aug 31, 2024
Grant Year
2021
Program Code
[BFRDA]- Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program, Standard
Recipient Organization
SIERRA HARVEST
313 RAILROAD AVE STE 201
NEVADA CITY,CA 959592851
Performing Department
(N/A)
Non Technical Summary
The foothill region of Northern California is growing in its residential and tourist population, accompanied by a demand for organic produce, grass-fed and humanely raised meat, and locally grown and produced foods. Facilitating this growing market is a thriving local food coop; restaurants and markets committed to sourcing local, organic foods; numerous prospering farmer's markets,and an increase in subscriptions to Community Supported Agriculture programs. Demand is outpacing supply, and with long-established farmers retiring, the need for new farmers is essential. The area has a growing number of next generation aspiring farmers, however, we've witnessed too many beginning farmers give up from lack of experience and extreme challenges. Beginning farmers too often don't have the business and production skills needed to be successful, have difficulty developing their market, and often cannot find affordable land, leading to an early exit from their dream of being a farmer. Ensuring that our beginning farmers and ranchers are successful is the intent of the Collaborative Training and Mentorship Pathways for Beginning Foothill Farmers and Ranchers, a sequential series of educational programs and mentorship opportunities to provide a scaffold for learning how to achieve success in an agricultural business. This collaboration between Sierra Harvest, a regional community-based non-profit, and the University of California Cooperative Extension, (UCCE) for Placer and Nevada counties, an agricultural education institution, builds upon previous years of informal cooperation between these two primary beginning farmer training organizations in the region. Collaborative Training and Mentorship Pathways for Beginning Foothill Farmers and Ranchers delivers educational programs, direct supportand mentorship, and addresses the need for land access and security, to equip beginning farmers and ranchers with the tools, knowledge, land, and networks essential to agricultural business success and sustainability. New farmers and ranchers will have courses in the fundamentals of a start-up operation to a 10 year operation; financial literacy and management; business planning; organic certification how-to and guidance; farming and ranching production and grazing skills; on-farm mentorship and troubleshooting; creating resiliency against the challenges of climate change; direct market development; assistance with land leases and acquisition; and job and internship placement. More succinctly, this program will provide substantial resources, support, training, networking, and assistance to ensure beginning farmers and ranchers are not left to fend for themselves in a challenging profession, but rather become part of an educational and professional support network focused on long term viability. While the primary collaboration is between Sierra Harvest and UCCE, this project leverages and integrates the resources and talents of many established organizations and farm businesses. Business and management training will occur in classrooms at both Sierra Harvest and UCCE; production skills are held on local farms and ranches and taught by experienced farmers/ranchers; mentors, established farmers with similar farm operations, provide on-site consultation with their mentees; community-wide producer/buyer network is facilitated by collaborative partners; and land acquisition and lease negotiation are supported by key relevant organizations such as California Farm Link and the Bear Yuba Land Trust.This project expands and enhances Sierra Harvest's and UCCE's existing educational programs to better meet the needs and outcomes of our region's beginning farmers and ranchers. The Training and Mentorship Pathways program will help farmers and ranchers to earn more money, obtain new market outlets, develop financially viable businesses, achieve long-term land security, learn production best practices, and sustain farm operations through informed business decisions. While this clearly benefits individual farmers, it affects the well-being of the communities in our region as well by developing a robust local food system. This will improve the economic stability of our region with increased jobs, successful businesses, retention of local money, and increased direct markets. It will improve our environment by reducing transport of food from outside the region, preserving agricultural land vulnerable to development, and mitigating environmental degradation with sustainable agricultural practices. It will improve the health of residents by promoting and providing local, nutrient dense, seasonal fresh food, and it will contribute to a vibrant lifestyle rooted in local community which is complimentary to the artistic, cultural, and recreational qualities for which this area is well-known. This project serves 1062 unique farmers, 210 of whom will receive 15 or more hours of education and support. We expect that 200 farmers will learn best practices to improve production, with 7 new farm businesses created and 6 becoming certified organic. 15 farmworkers will obtain jobs or internships, 10 farmers will find farmland and 5 farmers will achieve long-term land security. These outcomes will deliver an impact to our community that elevates and fairly compensates the farmer, celebrates the delicious food of our region, builds farm and ranch resiliency with sustainable practices, and preserves our farming and ranching heritage that has come close to vanishing.
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
90301993020100%
Knowledge Area
903 - Communication, Education, and Information Delivery;

Subject Of Investigation
0199 - Soil and land, general;

Field Of Science
3020 - Education;
Goals / Objectives
Goal 1: Expand and enhance Sierra Harvest's existing farmer education programs so the means of delivery and content are maximally current, useful, convenient, and relevant to beginning foothill farmers.Objective 1.1: Design and implement a farmer-to-farmer mentorship program that provides both on-farm training and on-call troubleshooting support to beginning farmers while serving to strengthen local farmer connections and networks.Objective 1.2: Enhance business and production skills trainings offered to meet current needs assessed in beginning farmer and rancher focus groups. Create replication manual for Farm Biz course.Objective 1.3 Provide direct-marketing training and relationship building through producer-buyer networking events, farm tours, and one-on-one marketing support.Goal 2: Provide a collaborative training pathway that leverages and integrates the resources and talents of partner organizations to maximize training reach and impact. Objective 2.1: Work with UCCE Placer/Nevada to provide a coordinated program of business skills and production training opportunities that are mutually promoted and cumulatively build skills for beginning farmers.Objective 2.2: Delineate and outline sequential educational scaffolding for beginning livestock producers offered by UCCE and beginning crop production farmers offered by Sierra Harvest.Goal 3: Address the need of beginning farmers for land access and security.Objective 3.1: Increase promotion of the new regional Forever Farms Program and continue to participate in capital campaigns when land acquisition opportunities become available.Objective 3.2: Diversify and expand promotion of Sierra Harvest's Land Match program to help get more beginning farms on land they can farm.Objective 3.3: Increase promotion of California FarmLink for favorable lease agreement support & continue to refer farmers interested in loans and access to capital to the program.Objective 3.4: Expand, develop and promote Sierra Harvest's Farmworker and Intern placement service to give more beginning farmers regional farming opportunities.
Project Methods
The approaches described below are based on both project partners' 12 years of experience doing beginning farmer training and UCCE's 100+ year legacy. Farmer input has informed the development of activities and outputs to provide a comprehensive scope of services that meet the needs of area beginning farmers and ranchers including women, limited resource, socially disadvantaged, veterans and farm workers. This grant will allow for the hire of a Spanish language liaison to do outreach and translation for multiple programs.Classes are tiered to meet students from farm concept to 10 years of experience and with farmer and rancher specific focusses. The approaches include a mix of classroom learning, hands-on field demonstrations, farmer-to-farmer mentorship, technical assistance, direct marketing, and relationship building to help farmers to make informed decisions and enhance the sustainability of their farms.Efforts of this project include a farmer-to-farmer mentorship program, educational courses and workshops, field schools, an educational conference, direct marketing support, land-access support, and farm-worker/intern job placement.Project staff have decades of experience with participatory evaluation, data collection, analysis, program evaluation for state, federal and privately funded projects. Project partners will employ a participatory monitoring and evaluation process to track and learn from the results of this grant. Building upon previous beginning farmer input, a 2019 focus group, including Sierra Harvest board, staff and over 40 community stakeholders, developed measurable outcomes which will be evaluated against through this grant and have been vetted by third party evaluators. Beginning farmer and rancher focus groups helped conceptualize and design project activities. Stakeholders will provide qualitative and quantitative feedback (through class observation, surveys, focus groups, and interviews) throughout the grant period, and will contribute to analyzing, recommending, and deciding on corrective actions based on data collected.A. Knowledge Outcomes (short-term)OutcomesHow MeasuredTarget NumberMethodsA1.Beginning farmers increase confidence in business managementNumber of Farm Biz graduates that report increased confidence in business management skillsBaseline: 7 farmers per course report increase Target: 20 farmers over 3 year grantPre / Post paper surveys, data entered into Survey MonkeyA2. Beginning farmers intend to implement business management strategies learned# of business course participants that intend to implement business management strategies learnedTarget: 20 farmers over the grant cycle intend to implement new strategiesPost workshop evaluation, and participant action plansA3. Target audience starts farming# of farmers that begin farm businesses after participating in Farm BizBaseline: 7 new farms 2018-2020Target: 7 new farms over 3 year grantPost paper and online surveys; Annual phone interview / online survey with program graduatesA4. Farmers contact Sierra Harvest in search of land and/or more favorable lease agreements# of farmers that contact Sierra Harvest in search of farmland and/or lease agreement support or loansBaseline: 25 farmersseeking land 2017-2020Target: 20 farmersmake contact over the 3 year grantFarmer web-intake forms; Farmers referred to Land Match Coordinator; Farmers referred to CA FarmLinkA5. Farmers learn best practices to improve production and informed decision making# of farmers able to identify best practices to improve efficiency; # of farmers attending courses & workshops focused on efficiency best practicesBaseline: 100 farmers attended one or more Ag Skills course 2017-2020; 85% of conference attendees plan to apply new practicesTarget: 200 farmers over 3-year grant, 80% of conference attendeesAg Skills & Livestock Schools participation records, post survey & action plans; Farm Conference attendee survey; Survey MonkeyB. Action Outcomes (medium-term)B1. Farm businesses certify Organic# of farms that obtained Organic certification with support from Sierra HarvestBaseline: 6 farms certified Organic with Sierra Harvest support 2017-2020Target: Increase of 6 farms over 3 year grantParticipant records Cross referenced with County Ag Commissioner list of farms and California Certified Organic Farmers directoryB2. Farmers find farmland# farmers matched to landBaseline: 15 farmers2017-2020Target: Increase of 10 farmers over 3 yr. grantForever Farms & Land Matching participation recordsB3. Beginning farmers implement best- practices to improve efficiency and informed decision-making# Farmer to Farmer mentees that implement action plan. # of Ag Skills participants that apply best practicesTarget: 45 farms implement best practices to improve efficiency and informed decision makingFarmer to Farmer Mentorship entry and exit interviews; Ag Skills post-surveys; Survey MonkeyB4. Farmworkers obtain jobs and internships on farms# of farmworkers placed into jobs & internshipsBaseline: 15 farmworkers placed into jobs/ internships 2017-2020Target: Increase of 15 farmworkers over 3 yearsFarmworker job referrals; Sierra College interns placedC. Condition Outcomes (long-term)C1. Farmers continue to farmFarm Biz graduates who are still farming after 3 yearsBaseline: 70% of 2017 graduates farming after 3 yearsTarget: 60% rate of continued farmingAnnual phone interview/online survey with program graduatesC2. Farmers make more moneyChange in gross-sales for Farmer to Farmer mentees and Farm Biz graduates;# of farms with gross sales > $100kBaseline: 29 farms in Nevada Co. w/gross sales >$100KTarget: 50% of program participants to increase gross sales over 3-year grant; Increase # of farms grossing >$100KEntry and exit interviews conducted by Mentors; annual survey of program participants; USDA Ag CensusC3. Farmers achieve long-term security on the land they farm# farmers matched to land in conservation easements, or supported to enter long- term leases, or supported to buy landBaseline: 3 farmers achieved long-term land security in 2020 through the Forever Farms programTarget: 5 farmers over the grant cycleForever Farms & Land Matching participation recordsC4. Farmers obtain new, repeat-buying, market outlets# farmers who connect with a new, repeat buyerBaseline: 7 farmerssince 2018Target: Increase of 15 farmers over course of the grantAnnual online survey of local farmers;Survey Monkey; Farmer interviews; Direct-marketing support program recordsIn general, data will be collected digitally through registration software (such as Constant Contact), website inquiry forms (through WordPress), and online pre- and post- course and workshop surveys (SurveyMonkey). However, surveys will occasionally be conducted by phone interview or in paper survey format. In these cases, staff will transpose the data from these surveys into digital format on SurveyMonkey immediately following the survey.

Progress 09/01/21 to 08/31/24

Outputs
Target Audience:Audience Emphasis Farmworkers Limited resource producers Organic producers Small farms Specialty crop producers Participants Served Record the total number of unique participants who participated in your program: Total Number of Participants: 2,629 Enter the actual cumulative number of participants who as a result of your program: Started Farming: Target - 7, Actual - 12 Helped prepare to start farming: Target - 275, Actual - 569 Improved farming success: Target - 81, Actual - 320 Changes/Problems: The final year of our BFRDP project was monumental in its transformation of the way the Farm Institute at Sierra Harvest has been operating for the past nine years. In the latter part of our project we extensively solicited and listened to the feedback, input, needs, struggles, and hopes of our beginning and experienced farmers and ranchers; gathering information from over 100 producers via evaluations, 1:1 conversations, small focus group discussions, surveys, and culminating in a well-attended regional listening session last fall. From this data, two primary topics rose to the top: The need for assistance with learning how to bring in operational funding via grants, and the desire for more collaboration and cooperation within the farming community that would be accompanied by benefits for all. Armed with this primary data, we sought approval to change our scope of work to discontinue the annual Food and Farm Conference (which Sierra Harvest had been orchestrating for over a decade, and the content of which is widely replicated by EcoFarm, and Community Alliance with Family Farmers' Small Farm Conference--both of which are held in our region of the U.S.), and instead, began a program for technical assistance with grant seeking and writing, so that our food producers can bring much-needed funds directly into their operations. Additionally, in response to the second topic that surfaced as an essential farmer support need, we began to explore and test the idea of a farmer-owned cooperative with our region's seasoned farmers. Their enthusiasm encouraged us to begin discussions with the CA Center for Cooperative Development and BriarPatch Food Coop (our region's most substantive local-food purchaser) to brainstorm the process for helping steward the creation of a farmer-owned coop. We formed a steering committee by recruiting 11 beginning and experienced farmers and experts in the agricultural business or cooperative field representing three area counties. This group held its first meeting in June, and by the end of the last meeting of this grant period (August), had agreed on a vision and mission, and were making substantial headway in devising what their cooperative will look like by working through the Business Model Canvas. The only other scope of work change we made during the grant period was after spending a significant amount of time in years 1 and 2 understanding there are not the demographics nor demand in our service area for Spanish language programming; therefore, we shifted the grant funds we had allotted for Spanish translation toward producing a farm-scale composting video series and accompanying educational booklet with a local expert farmer. These materials will be available on the BFRDP Clearninghouse, and therefore benefit a much broader audience than the original budget for Spanish translation would have. However, to continue to support the few monolingual Spanish speakers interested in agriculture in our area, we did create a resource link web pageaccessible from the Sierra Harvest 'farmers' webpage. The primary challenge throughoutthe grant was working with the University of California in their Cooperative Extension department as a subawardee partner. The challenge was not with the staff member who cooperated with us on the project, rather it was within the bureaucracy of the greater business division for the UC system as a whole. Tryingto work with them (i.e. receive invoices, have their match commitment on the invoices with documentation, get a response to numerous emails and phone calls) was a nightmare. I do not understand how they can be so completely unresponsive to their community partners, especially with whom they have signed contracts. Our organization will never have UCCE as a subawardee partner again on any grant due to this negative experience. The most substantial unexpected outcome surfaced in2022 when Sierra Harvest started asking Farm Biz attendees "Do you feel connected to a community of farmers?" Participants were asked this question during a pre-course survey, and again in a survey after the class ended. 20% of participants felt connected to a community of farmers at the start of the course, and 67% felt connected to a community of farmers after the course, showing a 235% increase! This data is significant because beginning farmer success is influenced by a connection to a community of peers. Farmers rely on a peer network for real-time problem solving, social-emotional support, and for mutual aide in times of uncertainty. This continued as an integral theme throughout the grant period. As one of our respondents to our survey (asking what participants had implemented that they had learned from any of the Sierra Harvest or UCCE programming during the grant period) said: "Connecting with others is almost more valuable than the specific classes. Having a network of local experts and new friends is priceless!" What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Delivery Total Meetings: 93 Total Meeting Participants: 1643 Total Webinars: 10 Total Webinar Participants: 1388 Total Website Visits: 598 Total Online Course Participants: 42 Meetings 10/26/2021: Nevada City, CA -- Number of Attendees 25 10/8/2021: Auburn, CA -- Number of Attendees 6 10/12/2021: Auburn, CA -- Number of Attendees 29 9/21/2021: Auburn, CA -- Number of Attendees 6 11/8/2022: Nevada City, CA -- Number of Attendees 29 2/18/2022: Browns Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 46 5/31/2022: Nevada City, CA -- Number of Attendees 15 7/12/2022: North San Juan, CA -- Number of Attendees 16 7/26/2022: Nevada City, CA -- Number of Attendees 17 6/14/2022: Grass Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 14 6/21/2022: Nevada City, CA -- Number of Attendees 10 7/19/2022: Penn Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 8 7/5/2022: Nevada City, CA -- Number of Attendees 13 6/28/2022: Auburn, CA -- Number of Attendees 7 6/8/2022: Meadow Vista, CA -- Number of Attendees 16 8/16/2022: Nevada City, CA -- Number of Attendees 9 8/9/2022: Grass Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 12 8/23/2022: Nevada City, CA -- Number of Attendees 21 5/17/2022: North San Juan, CA -- Number of Attendees 13 8/2/2022: North San Juan, CA -- Number of Attendees 6 5/24/2022: Grass Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 16 3/31/2022: Grass Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 41 2/3/2022: Oregon House, CA -- Number of Attendees 21 3/3/2022: Nevada City, CA -- Number of Attendees 18 3/5/2022: Grass Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 5 11/1/2021: Auburn, CA -- Number of Attendees 18 1/15/2022: Auburn, CA -- Number of Attendees 24 3/5/2022: Auburn, CA -- Number of Attendees 24 3/19/2022: Auburn, CA -- Number of Attendees 24 6/23/2022: Auburn , CA -- Number of Attendees 8 4/15/2022: Nevada City , CA -- Number of Attendees 18 9/21/2022: Auburn , CA -- Number of Attendees 54 9/13/2022: Auburn, CA -- Number of Attendees 4 9/30/2022: Auburn, CA -- Number of Attendees 8 10/1/2022: Auburn, CA -- Number of Attendees 8 11/16/2022: Dixon, CA -- Number of Attendees 14 1/11/2023: Auburn, CA -- Number of Attendees 8 1/14/2023: Auburn, CA -- Number of Attendees 10 2/3/2023: Grass Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 12 3/4/2023: Auburn, CA -- Number of Attendees 4 4/14/2023: Grass Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 24 4/22/2023: Grass Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 12 5/6/2023: Sheridan/Newcastle, CA -- Number of Attendees 46 7/12/2023: Grass Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 68 7/13/2023: Grass Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 14 7/25/2023: Auburn, CA -- Number of Attendees 11 5/16/2023: Newcastle, CA -- Number of Attendees 13 5/23/2023: Grass Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 18 5/30/2023: Nevada City, CA -- Number of Attendees 9 6/6/2023: Nevada City, CA -- Number of Attendees 16 6/20/2023: Nevada City, CA -- Number of Attendees 18 6/27/2023: Nevada City, CA -- Number of Attendees 13 7/11/2023: Grass Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 17 7/18/2023: Grass Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 11 7/25/2023: Penn Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 11 8/1/2023: Nevada City, CA -- Number of Attendees 10 8/8/2023: Grass Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 13 8/15/2023: Grass Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 12 8/22/2023: Grass Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 10 8/29/2023: Nevada City, CA -- Number of Attendees 9 9/5/2023: Penn Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 4 4/21/2023: Grass Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 21 4/22/2023: Grass Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 170 4/25/2023: Nevada City, CA -- Number of Attendees 1 5/18/2023: Nevada City, CA -- Number of Attendees 2 6/6/2023: Grass Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 4 9/7/2023: Penn Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 27 10/3/2023: Grass Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 18 1/4/2024: Nevada City, CA -- Number of Attendees 12 2/8/2024: Auburn, CA -- Number of Attendees 12 2/24/2024: Grass Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 23 3/7/2024: Nevada City, CA -- Number of Attendees 12 4/3/2024: Grass Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 8 4/11/2024: Auburn, CA -- Number of Attendees 18 5/1/2024: Penn Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 39 5/17/2024: Colfax, CA -- Number of Attendees 18 6/8/2024: Truckee, CA -- Number of Attendees 23 7/30/2024: Nevada City, CA -- Number of Attendees 44 2/10/2024: Nevada City, CA -- Number of Attendees 15 2/21/2024: Grass Valley , CA -- Number of Attendees 18 5/14/2024: Nevada City, CA -- Number of Attendees 21 5/21/2024: Nevada City, CA -- Number of Attendees 14 6/4/2024: Penn Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 11 6/11/2024: Grass Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 12 6/18/2024: Penn Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 12 6/25/2024: Nevada City, CA -- Number of Attendees 9 7/9/2024: Brownsville, CA -- Number of Attendees 7 7/16/2024: Nevada City, CA -- Number of Attendees 10 7/23/2024: Grass Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 13 8/6/2024: Nevada City, CA -- Number of Attendees 9 8/13/2024: Grass Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 8 8/20/2024: Grass Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 10 8/27/2024: Nevada City, CA -- Number of Attendees 6 Webinars 12/8/2022: Number of Attendees 24 1/13/2022: Number of Attendees 24 9/2/2022: Number of Attendees 42 9/14/2022: Number of Attendees 129 9/1/2022: Number of Attendees 953 7/5/2023: Number of Attendees 53 3/28/2024: Number of Attendees 45 4/23/2024: Number of Attendees 45 5/21/2024: Number of Attendees 28 5/28/2024: Number of Attendees 45 How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Promotional Materials Sierra Harvest Farmer E-news Sept '22 News, events, and opportunities for farmers, buyers, and policy makers. Sierra Harvest Farmer E-news Nov '22 News, events, and opportunities for farmers, buyers, and policy makers. Sierra Harvest Farmer E-news Dec '22 News, events, and opportunities for farmers, buyers, and policy makers. Sierra Harvest Farmer E-news Jan '23 News, events, and opportunities for farmers, buyers, and policy makers. Sierra Harvest Farmer E-news Feb '23 News, events, and opportunities for farmers, buyers, and policy makers. Sierra Harvest Farmer E-news Mar '23 News, events, and opportunities for farmers, buyers, and policy makers. Sierra Harvest Farmer E-news Apr '23 News, events, and opportunities for farmers, buyers, and policy makers. Sierra Harvest Farmer E-news May '23 News, events, and opportunities for farmers, buyers, and policy makers. Sierra Harvest Farmer E-news Jun '23 News, events, and opportunities for farmers, buyers, and policy makers. Sierra Harvest Farmer E-news Jul '23 News, events, and opportunities for farmers, buyers, and policy makers. Sierra Harvest Farmer E-news Aug '23 News, events, and opportunities for farmers, buyers, and policy makers. Sierra Harvest Farmer E-news Sept '23 Monthly news for regional farmers, ranchers, buyers, and those interested in ag related policy Sierra Harvest Farmer E-news Oct '23 Monthly news for regional farmers, ranchers, buyers, and those interested in ag related policy Sierra Harvest Farmer E-news Nov '23 News, events, and opportunities for farmers, buyers, and policy makers. Sierra Harvest Farmer E-news Dec '23 News, events, and opportunities for farmers, buyers, and policy makers. Sierra Harvest Farmer E-news Jan '24 News, events, and opportunities for farmers, buyers, and policy makers. Sierra Harvest Farmer E-news Feb '24 News, events, and opportunities for farmers, buyers, and policy makers. Sierra Harvest Farmer E-news Mar '24 News, events, and opportunities for farmers, buyers, and policy makers. Sierra Harvest Farmer E-news Apr '24 News, events, and opportunities for farmers, buyers, and policy makers. Sierra Harvest Farmer E-news May '24 News, events, and opportunities for farmers, buyers, and policy makers. Sierra Harvest Farmer E-news Jun '24 News, events, and opportunities for farmers, buyers, and policy makers. Sierra Harvest Farmer E-news July '24 News, events, and opportunities for farmers, buyers, and policy makers. Sierra Harvest Farmer E-news Aug '24 News, events, and opportunities for farmers, buyers, and policy makers. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Nothing Reported

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Result 1. Beginning farmers increase confidence in business management Producer action: Understand, Topic: Business and strategic planning When measured: End of session Estimated Number: 20, Actual Number: 27 How verified: Online and/or written survey Result 2. Beginning farmers intend to implement business management strategies learned Producer action: Decide, Topic: Business and strategic planning When measured: End of session Estimated Number: 20, Actual Number: 41 How verified: Written evaluations and participant action plans Result 3. Target audience starts farming Producer action: Implement, Topic: Product and enterprise diversification When measured: Annual participant interview/survey Estimated Number: 7, Actual Number: 12 How verified: Annual phone interviews & post-session evaluations Result 4. Farmers contact Sierra Harvest in search of land and/or more favorable lease agreements Producer action: Develop, Topic: Access to land When measured: Annually Estimated Number: 20, Actual Number: 55 How verified: Intake forms, referrals, and contact records Result 5. Farmers learn best practices to improve production and informed decision making Producer action: Understand, Topic: Vegetables When measured: End of session Estimated Number: 125, Actual Number: 177 How verified: Participation records, post surveys & action plans, post-session surveys Result 6. Farmers learn best practices to improve production and informed decision making Producer action: Understand, Topic: Livestock When measured: End of session Estimated Number: 75, Actual Number: 241 How verified: Participation records, post surveys & action plans, post-session surveys Result 7. Farm businesses certify Organic Producer action: Implement, Topic: Organic production When measured: Annually Estimated Number: 6, Actual Number: 7 How verified: Participation records cross-referenced with County Ag Commissioner data Result 8. Farmers find farmland Producer action: Implement, Topic: Access to land When measured: Annually Estimated Number: 10, Actual Number: 15 How verified: Farmer participant records & interviews Result 9. Beginning farmers implement best- practices to improve efficiency and informed decision-making Producer action: Implement, Topic: Business and strategic planning When measured: End of session Estimated Number: 45, Actual Number: 244 How verified: Exit interviews, online & written evaluations Result 10. Farmworkers obtain jobs and internships on farms Producer action: Implement, Topic: Labor supply, recruitment, and retention When measured: Annually Estimated Number: 15, Actual Number: 28 How verified: Referral tracking, participant records, farmer interviews Result 11. Farmers continue to farm Producer action: Implement, Topic: Business and strategic planning When measured: Annually Estimated Number: 6, Actual Number: 12 How verified: Phone interview / online survey of program graduates. Result 12. Farmers make more money Producer action: Implement, Topic: Cost of production and farm financial benchmarking When measured: Annually Estimated Number: 6, Actual Number: 6 How verified: End of session interviews; Survey of program participants; USDA census Result 13. Farmers achieve long-term security on the land they farm Producer action: Implement, Topic: Access to land When measured: Annually Estimated Number: 5, Actual Number: 6 How verified: Participation records Result 14. Farmers obtain new, repeat-buying, market outlets Producer action: Implement, Topic: Local, regional, and direct marketing When measured: Annually Estimated Number: 15, Actual Number: 30 How verified: Online survey, farmer interviews, program tracking and participation records

Publications


    Progress 09/01/22 to 08/31/23

    Outputs
    Target Audience: Farmworkers Limited resource producers Organic producers Small farms Specialty crop producers Participants Served Record the total number of unique participants who participated in your program: Total Number of Participants: 1,666 Enter the actual cumulative number of participants who as a result of your program: Started Farming: Target - 7, Actual - 7 Helped prepare to start farming: Target - 275, Actual - 278 Improved farming success: Target - 81, Actual - 172 Changes/Problems:The largest administrative challenge we have faced this year has been trying to retroactively set up invoicing with our grant partner, UC Cooperative Extension, when it was incorrectly initiated and carried-out over the first year by this project's co-director at UCCE. Additionally, the co-director was struck with an incredible family tragedy. It took a significant amount of time to determine the correct contact at UCCE's vast Business Operations Center, and subsequently there was no action on their part for over 10 months, despite numerous emails and phone calls. It looks like this challenge willimpact our expenditures and match funding. Additionally, regarding match dollars, we have decided to discontinue our annual Food and Farm Conference (paid for primarily through match funding) in favor of devoting time and resources to other activites that our food producers are indicating will have a greater impact on their long-term operational viability. Therefore, given these two changes, we are devising a pivot to ensure we meet our 25% match. Another challenge has been trying to reinitiate the pre-Covid partnership with Sierra College's Sustainable Agriculture program to place studentinternson local farms. All SH's communication efforts with key college staff members have been ignored. Moreover, we are running into similar challenges with attempting to set up an internship program through the Career Technical Education program of the primary high schools. The positive news is that in announcing this challenge at the Nevada County Agricultural Commission meeting, a seasoned farmer and the Agricultural Commissioner both said they could give us more information about how to set up high school interns through an alternative high school. The Forever Farms Steering Committee met fewer times (only 4) in the 2nd year of the grant period, due to unreliability with our partners at theBear Yuba Land Trust in holding consistent meetings.The facilitation of the Forever Farms steering committee has now shifted from the land trust to Sierra Harvest, which will enable the execution of set meeting times and agendas, and hopefully more progress in farmland preservation,in the 3rdyear of the grant. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Meetings 9/21/2022: Auburn , CA -- Number of Attendees 54 9/13/2022: Auburn, CA -- Number of Attendees 4 9/30/2022: Auburn, CA -- Number of Attendees 8 10/1/2022: Auburn, CA -- Number of Attendees 8 11/16/2022: Dixon, CA -- Number of Attendees 14 1/11/2023: Auburn, CA -- Number of Attendees 8 1/14/2023: Auburn, CA -- Number of Attendees 10 2/3/2023: Grass Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 12 3/4/2023: Auburn, CA -- Number of Attendees 4 4/14/2023: Grass Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 24 4/22/2023: Grass Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 12 5/6/2023: Sheridan/Newcastle, CA -- Number of Attendees 46 7/12/2023: Grass Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 68 7/13/2023: Grass Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 14 7/25/2023: Auburn, CA -- Number of Attendees 11 5/16/2023: Newcastle, CA -- Number of Attendees 13 5/23/2023: Grass Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 18 5/30/2023: Nevada City, CA -- Number of Attendees 9 6/6/2023: Nevada City, CA -- Number of Attendees 16 6/20/2023: Nevada City, CA -- Number of Attendees 18 6/27/2023: Nevada City, CA -- Number of Attendees 13 7/11/2023: Grass Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 17 7/18/2023: Grass Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 11 7/25/2023: Penn Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 11 8/1/2023: Nevada City, CA -- Number of Attendees 10 8/8/2023: Grass Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 13 8/15/2023: Grass Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 12 8/22/2023: Grass Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 10 8/29/2023: Nevada City, CA -- Number of Attendees 9 9/5/2023: Penn Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 4 4/21/2023: Grass Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 21 4/22/2023: Grass Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 170 4/25/2023: Nevada City, CA -- Number of Attendees 1 5/18/2023: Nevada City, CA -- Number of Attendees 2 6/6/2023: Grass Valley, CA -- Number of Attendees 4 Webinars 9/2/2022: Number of Attendees 42 9/14/2022: Number of Attendees 129 9/1/2022: Number of Attendees 953 7/5/2023: Number of Attendees 53 Totals after Year 2 Total Meetings: 66 Total Meeting Participants: 1214 Total Webinars: 6 Total Webinar Participants: 1225 Total Website Visits: 598 Total Online Course Participants: 31 How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Our results have been disseminated via email in the form of our monthly newsletters to producers, buyers, and policy makers; as well as targeted emailsto specific individuals or organizations. The results have been diseminated in annual Sierra Harvest reports that go out to all Sierra Harvest donors and supporters. They have been disseminated via social media posts, blogs, and webpages. Lastly, they have been communicated in person at Nevada County Food Policy Council meetings, Nevada County Farm Bureau meetings, and Nevada County Agricultural Commission meetings. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?In the third and final year of this grant, the Farm Biz replication manual will be completed. It is currently being informed by the more extensive resources and curriculum of a businesstraining program for producers froma partner organization, CA FarmLink, and will also incorporate the feedback of the coming winter Farm Biz session, in addition to the past years' evaluations. The Forever Farms Steering Committe will come up with an actionable plan to haveits own funds available to respond quickly to the active real estate market, with the ability to purchase prime farmland for preservation as soon as it becomes available. After spending a significant amount of time in year 1 and 2 understanding there are not the demographics nor demand in our service area for Spanish language programming, we shifted the grant funds we had allotted for Spanish translation toward producing a farm-scale composting video series and accompanying educational booklet with a local expert farmer. We still plan to create a resource link web page for monolingual Spanish speakers to access from the Sierra Harvest 'farmers' webpage. Additionally, the completed composting resource will be released during next year's reporting period. In year 3, we also plan to take a different approach to setting up internships and jobs on local farms. We will use the connections of the Nevada County Agricultural Commissioner and a seasoned farm to facilitate internships through a vocational high school, rather than the previously attempted Sierra College Sustainable Ag department. For the past eight years, Sierra Harvest's Farm Institute has worked to support the success of Sierra Foothill farmers and ranchers through skill building and education programs. To stay relevant in our goals and purpose, we need to evolve and constantly assess what we can do better. In order to answer that question, we need to be thoroughly informed from the 'boots on the ground': our farmers and ranchers. At the beginning of year 3 we will partner with the CommunityAlliance withFamily Farmers (CAFF) to host a Farmer Listening Session to gather feedback to help shape the future of Farm Institute so it can be the most effictive in assisting food producers in overcoming the barriers they face to success. The information gathered from the listening session will inform our activities for the final year of this grant and beyond.

    Impacts
    What was accomplished under these goals? Goal 1; Obj. 1.1 1. Program syllabus created including purpose, timeline and outline, compensation, expectations, and SMART goal tips. This guiding document for the mentorship program was provided to and reviewed with all participants. 2. Qualitative mid-program interviews conducted with each mentor and mentee; written end-of-program evaluations 3. All participants gave positive feedback on the benefits of the mentorship program. A number of mentors suggested the program should run longer than 6-months, so that it can incorporate the beginning planning stages of the growing season. 4. 100% of mentees experienced an increase in knowledge in their farm business decision making and business operation abilities. 50% of mentees had a change in condition, earning more money in the season of their mentorship than the previous year, ranging from less than 20% to a greater than 400% increase. Obj 1.2: 1. The grant funded 37 educational events for beginning farmers. The Farm Biz replication manual will be completed by the end of the grant period, incorporating program feedback and the most up-to-date and relevant curriculum after the 3-year period. 2. Participant records; website analytics; pre-program questionnaire; end-of-program evaluations 3. 35 beginning farmers attended in-depth training programs. 1,666 people attended at least one event, an increase of 250% from last year. This is due to the fact that there were more trainings--as organizations and communities continue to recover from Covid--as well as expanded offerings that are on-line and thus available to a broader range of participants. 4. 76 beginning farmers increased confidence in business management and 83 intend to implement strategies learned. 2 farm businesses started. 117 beginning farmers learned practices to improve production and informed decision-making. Obj. 1.3 1. Hosted annual Producer/Buyer Networking Event and Farm Tours. Conducted annual updates of online Farm Directory. Provided direct-marketing support. 2. Participant records; dot surveys; website analytics; # of hours of direct marketing support to # of farmers and farm businesses; # of institutions supported to buy local 3. 40% of producer and buyer respondents said that a shared platform that streamlines availability, ordering, & invoicing is what SHshould focus on to increase markets for local products. 89 farm businesses received 340 total hours of direct marketing support. Online Farm Directory views increased by 46% from Yr 1. 4.These activities are creating a change in action with local producers and buyers. 50% of buyers and 63% of farmers that responded at the Producer/Buyer event have connected to a farmer/rancher or food business through a SHevent that they have purchased from or sold to, respectively, multiple times. Goal 2; Objs. 2.1 & 2.2: 1. Continued communication and cross-promotion of the various SH and UCCE training opportunities throughout the year. 2. # of communications between director and co-director; # of UCCE programs advertised on SH producer/buyer E-news and social media; open and click rate for SH E-news compared to Constant Contact industry averages 3. The last two workshops UCCE hosted were sold out, and included participants referred from SH farmer training programs. SH's The Dirt monthly E-news has about 1,500 subscribers and an average open-rate of 43% (3.6% above industry average for non-profits) and average click-rate of 4% (2.4% above industry average). 3 of the 11 E-news last year advertised UCCE training opportunities. 4.Through the director and co-directors' close communication and knowledge of each entity's skills, knowledge, and programs, beginning farmers and ranchers are now able to be supported concurrently, or most effectively, through SH and UCCE working together, rather than in silos. Goal 3; Obj. 3.1: 1. The MOUand mission of the group were updated, as well as the selection rubric to include farmer/farmworker housing as an additional priority. 2. # of steering committee meetings 3. The Forever Farms Steering Committee met fewer times (4) in the 2nd year of the grant period, due to barriers within our partners at the Bear Yuba Land Trust. No agricultural land was preserved as a direct result of Forever Farms this period. 4. After a sudden and unforeseen loss of a funding partner in the purchase of a 200-acre historic ranch, the Forever Farms steering committee realized the importance of having its own funds available to respond quickly to the active real estate market. The team has identified this as a priority to address. Obj. 3.2: 1.Seven properties were added to Sierra Harvest's land bank, and nearly all had a site visit completed by the Farm Institute Director. Key properties were featured in the monthly SH E-news. 11 participants ofthe Food and Farm Conference 2023 evaluation stated they were interested in being matched to farmland in the Nevada County region. Attempts were made to contact them all. 2. # of site visits; # farmers seeking farmland; # of conversations with landowners and farmers/ranchers seeking land; # of matches 3. Nine farmers contacted SH in search of farmland in addition to the 11 from the Food and Farm Conference survey. A successful match is complex: It requires the alignment of diverse priorities which vary with every landowner and farmer-tenant. 4. Two farmers were paired via our land match program this year. Both graduates from our Farm Biz training, one farmer is leasing land, and the other was able to purchase land at a discounted rate through connections he made through Sierra Harvest. Obj. 3.3: 1. The grant program director became acquainted with key CA FarmLink personnel at the 2023 Eco Farm conference, followed by a meetingto understand CA FarmLink's state-wide platform for land seekers/owners, leaseand land match resource, and services provided. The stakeholders in every prospective land match arrangement are informed about CA FarmLink's lease services, and those that are ready to enter into an actual match are introduced via email to the appropriate personnel at CA FarmLink. 2. # of people introduced to CA FarmLink 3. CA FarmLink services and contact information was shared with landowners during 5 site visits, to 5 land-seeking farmers, and 3 introductory emails were sent to connect 3 farmers with the correct staff person at CA FarmLink who helps with leases. CA FarmLink programs are advertised in the SH Dirt E-news and a link to the org is on the SH farmer resources webpage. 4. All who SH tells about CA FarmLink's lease agreement supports have a change in knowledge, and the one farmer who was matched through our land match and operating under a lease designed with support from CA FarmLink has experienced a change in condition. Obj. 3.4: 1. SH shared farm jobs in E-news and social media.Established farmers contacted SH to find workers. Farm jobs are promoted to beginning farmers as a form of training. 2. # of people referred to jobs; # of clicks on job postings in E-news; # of farmworkers that report finding a job through SH's job postings 3. 11 beginning farmers were encouraged to work on farms as a form of training. 17 job listings in the E-news received 90 clicks. 4.Sierra Harvest is aware of at least two connections made between a farmworker and a seasonal farm job (we don't have the data to directly track outcomes of the 90 clicks on 17 job listings), allowing these individuals to experience a change in knowledge by the experience gained. Efforts are being made to get more high school students on farms through FFA and Career Technical Education programs, and partnerships with vocational high schools. Those could turn into a potential labor stream, as well as getting more youth interested in farming as a career.

    Publications


      Progress 09/01/21 to 08/31/22

      Outputs
      Target Audience:A total of 22 beginning farmers and ranchers received in-depth training through Sierra Harvest and UC Cooperative Extension efforts supported by this grant award. Included in these participants are beginning farmers who experienced in-depth training - 6 beginning farmers attended the 121-hour Beginning Farming Academy, 10 farmers attended the 15-hour Farm Biz business training course, 6 farmers attended at least 50% of the season-long Ag Skills course (joined for at least 7 out of 15, 2.5 hour classes.) A total of 476 people, the majority of whom are beginning farmers, attended at least one workshop or event. Of the total participating farmers, 89% are beginning farmers, 42% are limited resource, 67% are women, 21% are socially disadvantaged, and 2% are veterans. Changes/Problems:One significant shift in programming delivered in this grant project was found during the first pilot year of providing on-site Spanish Language interpretation and services at beginning farmer training programs. With BFRDP funding, we developed the capacity to provide live Spanish language interpretation to Ag Skills attendees. We expanded our community network to promote the new service, and offered a 100% registration discount for mono-lingual Spanish speakers. We translated fliers and registration, and conducted outreach to partners who serve the LatinX communities in the region. Despite our efforts, we had very low participation in the program, with only one mono-lingual Spanish speaking person joining for the course. Additionally, this person was not from our target audience of beginning farmers and ranchers, but rather a visiting, international scholar. This lack of participation left us wondering if perhaps there is not demand for mono-lingual Spanish language farmer training programs in our region, so we asked partner organizations about their experiences. The Community Alliance with Family Farmers (CAFF), Kitchen Table Advisors (KTA), and the Center for Land Based Learning (CLBL) all shared that they have experienced a similar lack of demand from mono-lingual Spanish beginning farmers. As a result, this grant project will continue to provide Spanish-language interpretation services by request, but we predict a decreased rate of expenditure from the original project budget. In the coming year, we will create an online, farmer training resource guide for mono-lingual Spanish speaking farmers so they can be referred to other resources as needed. Another shift in the project is occurring in the Land Match program. Previously, Sierra Harvest employed a Land Match Coordinator who, in a very part-time capacity, managed the program to match beginning farmers and ranchers to available regional farmland. After many years of service, our Land Match Coordinator retired! The duties of this position will now fold into the Farm Institute Director role. This will enable an expansion of the program and more timely and effective promotion activities. An exciting update for Sierra Harvest and the management of this grant project is the hiring of a new Farm Institute Director. Amanda Hixson joined the Sierra Harvest staff on November 15th, 2022, and will replace Molly Nakahara as Project Director for this grant project. The Farm Institute Director role will now change to a full time position, to incorporate the Land Match Coordinator role, as well as provide the needed staff resources to continue growing all of our programs Lastly, the Forever Farms partnership invested much time and energy in an attempt to purchase a 200 acre, historic ranch in Grass Valley, California. A key partner, the Bear Yuba Land Trust (BYLT), had approved the purchase of the property and secured an anonymous donor willing to provide the necessary funds. This process included the due diligence required to purchase a large agricultural property including multiple site visits, stakeholder meetings, mapping, irrigation water analysis, soil tests, and more. After months of assessment, BYLT's offer on the property was accepted. Unfortunately, the anonymous donor unexpectedly passed away and the Forever Farms partnership had to rescind the offer due to lack of funds. This was extremely disappointing to our team, as this land purchase would have provided long-term land security to multiple farm businesses. Moving forward, our Forever Farms collaborative is seeking more secure funding sources to prevent losing further agricultural land. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Farm Institute Director attended a Food Animal Concerns Trusts (FACT) Webinar focused on mentorship programs for farmers, and participated in BFRDP training opportunities online. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Results from this project are shared to the public and communities of interest through multiple channels that include: Monthly, agriculturally centered articles submitted to The Union, the regional newspaper based in Grass Valley CA. These articles include: "Saving Nevada County's Farmland with Agricultural Conservation Easements" - November 2021 "Learning to Farm in the Sierra Foothills" - January 2022 "It's Easier to Buy Local with the New Food and Farm Directory" - March 2022 "Spring Plant Sales" - April 2022 "Taste the Difference Local Makes"- June 2022 "Eating Local is Green Medicine for All" - June 2022 "If Ewe Can Dream It, Ewe Can Do it - Meet Brinkman Family Ranching" - August 2022 Monthly Sierra Harvest E-newsletters that highlight the activities and results of the project are sent to 6238 contacts with an average email open rate of 40%. Weekly social media posts on Instagram (follow us @sierraharvest.org) and Facebook (@sierraharvest) include information about the project. These are also channels that we use to conduct outreach to our target audience of regional beginning farmers and ranchers. Sierra Harvest publishes an annual Gratitude Report with specific statistics about our beginning farmer training program. The report for July 2021 - June 2022 is available on our website, www.sierraharvest.org/about/sierra-harvest-annual-reports-strategic-plan/ Sierra Harvest staff make presentations regularly to industry groups including the Nevada County Agricultural Commissioner's Advisory meeting and Nevada Irrigation District Board of Director Meetings. UC Cooperative Extension Placer/Nevada publishes an Annual Report on their website: www.ceplacer.ucanr.edu/Annual_Report/ What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?During year 2 of this grant period and project, UCCE and Sierra Harvest will continue to offer beginning farmer training and skill-building opportunities in the form of workshops, field days, and short courses. Additionally, Sierra Harvest will launch the pilot year of the Farmer-to-Farmer mentorship program. The project partners will continue to build-out and publicize the farmer training scaffolding available to beginning farmers and ranchers in the foothill region. To help solve the farm labor shortage experienced by farmers in the region, Sierra Harvest will continue to rebuild relationships with the Sierra College Internship Program, which was cancelled during the COVID-19 pandemic, and continue to publicize available farm jobs, and recruit specifically from participants of the beginning farmer training courses supported by this grant. Forever Farms and Land Match programming will be a larger focus of the Project Director's scope, and will include a targeted effort to expand public awareness of efforts to connect beginning farmers to available farmland. Sierra Harvest will continue to collaborate with Forever Farms partners to strengthen the protocols and mechanisms used to protect regional farmland in perpetuity, and provide long-term land security to the region's agricultural community.

      Impacts
      What was accomplished under these goals? The "Collaborative Training and Mentorship Pathways for Beginning Foothill Farmers and Ranchers" addresses challenges faced by beginning farmers including a lack of business skills, limited knowledge of production practices, and no formal mentorship. It seeks to create land security for farmers by increasing available farmland and supporting equitable leases. In the first year of the grant, Sierra Harvest (SH) and UC Cooperative Extension (UCCE) intensively trained 22 beginning farmers, helped 3 farm business start, and created over 30 events attended by a total of 476 people. 100% of farmers in business courses increased confidence in business management and 72% of livestock course attendees implemented best-practices to improve efficiency and informed decision making. The Nevada County Agriculture Commissioner's annual crop report shows an 8% increase ($1.5M) in the value of agricultural products from 2020 to 2021.Beginning farmers are slowly finding success by improving production practices, honing business skills, increasing direct sales, and building a network of peer support. This increases the likelihood that they will continue to farm, to hire and train farmworkers, and to supply food to the region. Goal 1, Obj. 1.1 1. The Mentorship program is ready for launch. Program protocols are in place, mentees identified, and mentor farmers are committed to the program. 2. No data 3. No results to discuss 4. The program is ready for launch with 6 mentors committed. Obj. 1.2 1. The grant funded 30 educational events for beginning farmers. The Farm Biz replication manual is underway and includes course lesson plans and presentations. 2. Participant records, evaluations 3. 22 beginning farmers attended in-depth training programs. 476 people attended at least one event.100% of business planning course attendees increased confidence in business management.77% ofparticipants intend to implement strategies learned. 88% learned practices to improve production and informed decision-making. 4. 16 beginning farmers increased confidence in business management and intend to implement strategies learned. 3 farm businesses started. 22 beginning farmers learned practices to improve production and informed decision-making. Obj. 1.3 1. Hosted a Producer Buyer Networking Event and Farm Tours. Launched an online Farm Directory -www.sierraharvest.org/food-and-farm-directory/ Provided direct-marketing support. 2. Participant records, surveys, website analytics 3. 25 farmers and 15 buyers identified barriers to sales at a networking event.43% of farmers identified low pricesand delivery logistics as barriers.85% of farmers and 87% of buyers agree that long-term planning and commitments would increase local sales.13 attending farms want to sell to school districts but don't know how. 85% of Farm Tour attendees are more likely to buy from a farm they tour. The Online Farm Directory page had 1,777 views. 4.SH is building a network of local food buyers interested in sourcing from local farms.We are learning about barriers to local sales and creating programs to address them. Goal 2,Obj. 2.1 & 2.2 1. SH and UCCE met quarterly to coordinate efforts. The PD and Co-PD communicated about specific farms to ensure thier needs were met. Specific farmer cohorts were referred to appropriate training opportunities. SH's website was updated and now sequentially lists the training programs available to beginning farmerswww.sierraharvest.org/farmers/business-course-for-farmers/ 2. # of meetings, # webpage views 3. SH and UCCE met quarterly. This is a 100% increase in the collaboration between the two major farmer-training entities in the region. Cross-promotion of trainings now occurs regularly and beginning farmers are more aware of all opportunities. SH's webpagewas viewed 537 times, demonstrating a high interest among beginning farmers seeking educational support. 4.UCCE and SH are the primary farmer educators in the region. The increased alignment of programs represents a major shift, and regional farmers are better served as a result. An example is rancher Aaron Brinkman who found SH through the Land Match program. He was matched to land and began a commercial ranching operation. During the first year of the project, SH referred Aaron to UCCE rancher trainings. Aaron received coordinated support and access to resources necessary for success. Goal 3,Obj. 3.1 1. Forever Farms partners published "Saving Nevada County's Farmland with Agricultural Conservation Easements" in November 2021 to the local paper. A SH website redesign improved access to program details. Program goals were shared with the public at SH events. 2. # of articles, webpage views, # of steering committee meetings, # of land-acquisition projects 3. The Forever Farms Program was widely promoted. The local paper featured the program and the webpage had 492 views. SH attended 12 steering committee meetings focused on the acquisition of a 200-acre ranch. Unfortunately, the bridge loan enabling the acquisition fell through and the project was cancelled. 4. Promotion of the program has increased. The loss of a major project due to private funding has inspired Forever Farms to seek a secure funding stream to enable market-pace farmland preservation. Obj 3.2 1. SH continued to build the Land Match program.Resources include a website www.sierraharvest.org/farmers/land-match-2/ that outlines services for farmers seeking land and landowners interested in leasing.A farmland viability checklist is completed during site visits and viable sites are listed online www.sierraharvest.org/properties/ 2. # of site visits, # farmers seeking farmland, # of matches 3. 8 site visits resulted in 4 new listings, and 7 farmers contacted Sierra Harvest in search of farmland. Despite these efforts, no match occurred this year. Since 2016, this program has matched 13 farmers to regional farmland. A successful match requires the alignment of the diverse priorities of both landowner and farmer-tenant. 4. We continue to promote the Land Match program and available farm sites in an effort to increase land security for beginning farmers. Obj 3.3 1. CA FarmLink referrals are built into the protocols of the Land Match program.We promote their land listings on our website, and explain their services to landowners and farmers.Working with FarmLink is a required step for matched landowners and farmers.CA FarmLink advises the Forever Farms program. 2. # of people introduced to CA FarmLink 3. CA FarmLink services and contact information was shared with landowners during 8 site visits, to 7 land-seeking farmers, and to 10 Farm Biz course participants. SH continues to defer to CA FarmLink as the regional expert on lease agreements. 4. CA FarmLink is joining the landscape of farm service providers in the region.More local agencies, landowners, and farmers are aware of their technical assistance and expertise. Farmers we refer for lease support are given the most legally-sound advice available. Obj. 3.4 1. SH shared farm jobs in E-newsletters and social media.Established farmers contacted SH to find workers. Farm jobs are promoted to beginning farmers as a form of training. 2. # of people referred to jobs, # of clicks in E-news, # of connections that resulted in jobs 3. 10 beginning farmers were encouraged to work on farms as a form of training. Listings in the E-news received no clicks.SH connected one person to a seasonal farm job. 4. A farm labor shortage is a challenge for established farms and an opportunity for beginning farmers who earn supplemental income and gain on-the-job training from experienced producers. There is potential to promote farm jobs in the online Farm Directory, and to increase outreach efforts with partners at UCCE.

      Publications