Progress 09/01/21 to 08/31/24
Outputs
Target Audience: Our agricultural program, Liberation Farms, supports over 250 Somali Bantu farmers from the Lewiston/Auburn area - all of whom qualify for SNAP/EBT benefits and live at or below the poverty line. We have two paths farmers can follow - the Family Farming program (250 farmers), and the Iskaashito program (30 farmers). In the Family Farming program, farmers are allotted 1/10 of an acre for subsistence growing, usually a grid of African flint corn interplanted with staple Somali crops like collards, beans, tomatoes, onions, and melons. These plots typically feed 25 or more people with culturally relevant, chemical-free produce. The Iskaashito farmers are self-organized into 9 commercial grower groups that share decision-making and leadership roles and land management, and work together between the groups to determine overarching goals. These groups sell their produce directly to customers at five regional farmers markets, our new Suuq / Farm Stand at Liberation Farms, and through several wholesale accounts, many of which are food pantries and institutions, to increase food security in our state and provide our farmers with a culturally-appropriate means of income generation. Somali Bantus, a historically oppressed ethnic minority in Somalia, are traditionally farming people and possess generations of agricultural experience. While many Bantus struggle to find work as we develop our English language and literacy skills, we are able to meaningfully provide for our families by utilizing our farming expertise. Among the 12,000 Somali Bantus who have resettled in the U.S., roughly 3,000 now call Lewiston, Maine home. Since 2005, the Somali Bantu Com- munity Association of Maine (SBCA) has worked tirelessly to ensure the successful resettlement in Lewiston/Auburn. While SBCA offers a wide variety of resources, by far the most popular is the Community Farming Program (CFP). The program is advised by the Board of Directors who meets weekly. The Farming Committee, who, like the Board, is exclusively Somali Bantu, makes the decisions that determine the direction of the farming project. The farmers' expressed priori- ties determine program goals which are affirmed by the SBCA Board of Directors and Farmer Committee. In an industry that has traditionally been dominated by men, the program is proud that nearly 90% of the farmers are women and there is gender balance in the decision-making bodies. There are several other programs in the region that offer training to immigrant farmers, but only SBCA directly serves our target audience. Near us, Cultivating Community's New American Sustainable Agriculture Project (NASAP) works with more advanced immigrant and refugee farmers. Lewiston-based Bantu farmers requested we establish our own program when NASAP reached its capacity to serve farmers beginning at a subsistence level. Our farmers prefer to progress at their own pace, autonomously deciding when and how to adjust their agricultural knowledge into a Maine context of growing and selling. We have proven that there is extensive demand for our program and believe we are unique in being designed and led by the community who are also the farmers. We do share training, resources, infrastructure and markets with NASAP and its marketing entity; Fresh Start Farms. We also have a strong advisory relationship with World Farmers in Lancaster, MA which includes shared training, culturally-relevant seed sharing, and exchanging ethnic crops with their farmers. Changes/Problems:We are fortunate to have designed a project and function as an organization with ample flexibility and ability to pivot to the evolving and emergent needs of our stakeholders. We did not encounter any major changes or problems that led to shifts in our approach. We experienced some variables such as wet weather in 2023 that impacted our growing season, with concurrent major increase in demand for our vegetables and African flint corn, but were able to adapt and use lessons learned to inform the following season. We are grateful for the opportunity to implement a project as we had envisioned it for the most part, and believe we have delivered on all of our goals, creating positive lasting impacts for the Somali Bantu and immigrant farmers we serve at Liberation Farms. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?We have provided our farmers and staff with goat health and management trainings; tomato trellising workshops; crop mulching skill-sharing; drip irrigation management trainings; winter rye cover cropping tutorials; weekly harvest instructions; and composting management trainings. We have also held twice yearly group planning meetings where we gather to plan and discuss the crop plan for the current or following year, changes needed to the marketing program, and any other farm-management related decisions. Monthly commercial farmer meetings were held to expand collaborative problem solving, to share knowledge, and hold workshops and trainings. Our Markets Manager conducted marketing trainings for our farmers market Iskashito groups, including how to operate sales apps and relevant technology. We held a tractor training in partnership with the University of Maine Agricultural Extension, to which farmers and staff were invited, as well as several other immigrant farming services providers, and interpretation was provided in Somali and Maay Maay languages. Our staff and farmers have visited several other farms to attend tours and talks on specific topics, like livestock pasture management, soil fertility, low-till management, and climate change adaptations. Our Executive Director and Property, Livestock & Soil Fertility Manager attended a First Light Learning Journey 3-day short course on Indigenous land access, and have joined a year-long cohort of land management specialists to deepen their knowledge in this subject. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Results have been shared at our biannual meetings and informally to farmers directly, as well as formally at SBCA Board of Directors meetings, which the Farm Committee attends. Because our Executive Director and majority of staff are Somali Bantu, there is a direct and two-way line of communication to farmers and leaders. We are able to adapt and change with speed and cultural awareness to the needs of our farmers and the land and animals that we steward. SBCA hosted visitors to Liberation Farm Maine Farmland Trust and the Conservation Fund to assess land access needs, tour the farm, and learn from the unique approach that the SBCA employs to decrease food insecurity, increase land access to underserved communities, and the way we are transforming our food system. This was an excellent opportunity to create bridges between agricultural land organizations and advocate for the need for creative land access models that support whole communities, demonstrate sustainable best management practices, and actively shift the current land ownership paradigm in the United States. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?
Nothing Reported
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
The SBCA has continued to grow with increasing market demands, increased yields, and a record number of trainings to deliver another successful growing season at Liberation Farms. The transfer of ownership to the Somali Bantu Community Association is underway and on track to be completed by the end of December, 2024. Our over 250 Family Farmers and 30 Iskashito farmers: utilized sustainable irrigation practices such as drip irrigation and hand watering; used low-till, mulch, and hand-cultivation to establish beds and manage weeds; used season extension high tunnels to increase livelihoods and yields; and universally inter-seeded winter rye cover crop with their fall crops to manage soil fertility. This drastic improvement in farm operations came about from conducting listening sessions with farmers in the field, holding annual fall planning meetings, planning meetings throughout the winter, monthly training and skill sharing meetings, and introduction to the land meetings at the beginning of each season. The increase of staff-to-farmer communication and trainings directly benefited our farmers in the way the land was managed and the resulting income that came from produce and livestock raised on the land. Farmers continue to see annual yield increases and therefore higher income from the produce grown at Liberation Farms. We have more Family Farmers with more African flint corn than they need to feed their families this winter, and therefore more to market to our customers. We were able to add yet another farmers market due to higher yields, which meant more collective produce being sold directly to consumers, and an additional Iskashito group was able to access these higher price points. Our wholesale accounts continue to set sales records, our season extension high tunnels provided more produce earlier and longer in the season, and we added heat to our propagation greenhouse. We have developed relationships with Maine Medical Center Food Pantry that purchases nearly 1,000 pounds of produce per week, and the Maine Marinara Project - a farm-to-institution project that promises to lay the foundation for more efficient tomato processing and sales, focusing on BIPOC and local farmers to source ingredients. The implementation of increased meetings, knowledge transfers, skill sharings, and trainings at Liberation Farms has led to better integrated farmer understanding of the planning and management process, and how that relates to our water and soil resources. This collective experience at Liberation Farms as a relatively new site has deepened farmer interest in conserving and improving these resources into the future. Because we now have access to a stable land base, we have been able to grow our halal goat herd and provide live animals for humane halal slaughter on-site for the first time ever. We built a halal slaughter station that promotes sanitary and safe livestock handling and processing, and minimizes the risk of food-borne illness. We continue to conduct goat management trainings for staff and farmers to understand the kidding process, monthly health screenings, diet, and sustainable pasturing practices for the health of the goats and for the land. We also maintain a robust composting program with the manure from the goats, flint corn husks/ cobs, and produce-waste that is already starting to benefit the soils at Liberation Farms. The SBCA was able to host the Youth Kashekee program at Liberation Farms for the past three summers, where over 50 youth were able to grow their own crops side-by-side with community elders and partake in intergenerational knowledge sharing. These students visited the farm once a week during the summer months and tended and harvested from raised garden beds, explored the surrounding ecosystem, and learned from the Iskashito farmers about how to grow and market produce in Maine. They also spent time in our Suuq / Farm Stand, where members of the community worked to market produce on-site to the Somali Bantu community and our surrounding neighbors in Wales. This program paired Elder and younger Somali Bantu people to sell the produce, and they were able to earn an hourly wage, learn a new skill, and understand another avenue of the agricultural marketing program. In partnership with the UMaine Agricultural Extension 4H program titled, Oh Yeah!, we were able to hire 6 Youth Leaders from within the Somali Bantu community to support the Kashekee program, some of whom have also worked at the Suuq / Farm Stand, and have expressed interest in farm-related jobs at Liberation Farms. We are looking at ways to continue integrating youth into our staffing to support and encourage the next generation of Somali Bantu farmers.
Publications
- Type:
Other
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2024
Citation:
https://www.mainebiz.biz/article/business-leaders-muhidin-libah-is-cultivating-farms-a-nonprofit-and-maines-somali-bantu
- Type:
Other
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2024
Citation:
https://www.sunjournal.com/2024/05/28/angus-king-impressed-by-wales-farm-operated-by-somali-farmers/
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Progress 09/01/22 to 08/31/23
Outputs
Target Audience:Our agricultural program, Liberation Farms, supports over 250 Somali Bantu farmers from the Lewiston/Auburn area - all of whom qualify for SNAP/EBT benefits and live at or below the poverty line. We have two paths farmers can follow - the Family Farming program (250 farmers), and the Iskaashito program (30 farmers). In the Family Farming program, farmers are allotted 1/10 of an acre for subsistence growing, usually a grid of African flint corn interplanted with staple Somali crops like collards, beans, tomatoes, onions, and melons. These plots typically feed 25 or more people with culturally relevant, chemical-free produce. The Iskaashito farmers are self-organized into 9 commercial grower groups that share decision-making and leadership roles and land management, and work together between the groups to determine overarching goals. These groups sell their produce directly to customers at five regional farmers markets, our new Suuq / Farm Stand at Liberation Farms, and through several wholesale accounts, many of which are food pantries and institutions, to increase food security in our state and provide our farmers with a culturally-appropriate means of income generation. Changes/Problems:The 2023 growing season has presented an incredible amount of rain that has challenged our staff and farmers. Late crops, loss of crops, and difficulty accessing our fields due to rainfall has been a struggle, as it has with many other farms in Maine this year. We have been barely able to keep up with demand for our vegetables, and often need to substitute order or leave some unfulfilled. The hay season has been extremely difficult, forcing us to purchase lower quality hay from other farms to feed our goats over the winter, rather than our own high quality feed grown right at Liberation Farms. We expect the African flint corn yield will be lower and later this fall, and will certainly impact the livelihoods of our farmers. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?We have provided our farmers and staff with goat health and management trainings; tomato trellising workshops; crop mulching skill-sharing; drip irrigation management trainings; winter rye cover cropping tutorials; weekly harvest instructions; and composting management trainings. We have also held twice yearly group meetings where we gather to plan and discuss the crop plan for the current or following year, changes needed to the marketing program, and any other farm-management related decisions. Our Markets Manager conducted marketing trainings for our farmers market Iskaashito groups, including how to operate sales apps and relevant technology. We held a tractor training in partnership with the University of Maine Agricultural Extension, to which farmers and staff were invited, as well as several other immigrant farming services providers, and interpretation was provided in Somali and Maay Maay languages. Our staff and farmers have visited 4 other farms this year to attend tours and talks on specific topics, like livestock pasture management, soil fertility, and climate change adaptations. Our Executive Director and Property, Livestock & Soil Fertility Manager attended a First Light Learning Journey 3-day short course on Indigenous land access, held in Vermont. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Results have been shared at our biannual meetings and informally to farmers directly, as well as formally at SBCA Board of Directors meetings, which the Farm Committee attends. Because our Executive Director and majority of staff are Somali Bantu, there is a direct and two-way line of communication to farmers and leaders. We are able to adapt and change with speed and cultural awareness to the needs of our farmers and the land and animals that we steward. SBCA hosted visitors to Liberation Farm Maine Farmland Trust and the Conservation Fund to assess land access needs, tour the farm, and learn from the unique approach that the SBCA employs to decrease food insecurity, increase land access to underserved communities, and the way we are transforming our food system. This was an excellent opportunity to create bridges between agricultural land organizations and advocate for the need for creative land access models that support whole communities, demonstrate sustainable best management practices, and actively shift the current land ownership paradigm in the United States. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Our fall planning meetings will be held in mid-November and mid-December, and we will continue to harvest and process produce and African flint corn to sell to retail and wholesale markets. There will be a flint corn shelling and winnowing demonstration held to refresh farmer skills, and we will provide training on how to fertilize and winterize the raised beds in our season extension high tunnels. We will partner with Maine Grain Alliance to add key implements to our corn processing system to add efficiencies and decrease labor as we hone our system and handle more flint corn.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
The SBCA has continued to grow and pivot with increasing market demands, challenging weather, and staff changes to deliver another successful growing season at Liberation Farms. The transfer of ownership to the Somali Bantu Community Association is underway and on track to be completed by the end of December, 2023. Our over 250 Family Farmers and 30 Iskaashito farmers: utilized sustainable irrigation practices such as drip irrigation and hand watering; used low-till and hand-cultivation to establish beds and manage weeds; used season extension high tunnels to increase livelihoods and yields; and universally inter-seeded winter rye cover crop with their fall crops to manage soil fertility. This drastic improvement in farm operations came about from conducting listening sessions with farmers in the field this season, holding planning meetings last fall 2022, planning meetings throughout the winter, and introduction to the land meetings at the beginning of this season 2023. The increase of staff-to-farmer communication and trainings directly benefited our farmers in the way the land was managed, and the resulting income that came from produce and livestock raised on the land. Farmers continue to see annual yield increases and therefore higher income from the produce grown at Liberation Farms. We have more Family Farmers with more African flint corn than they need to feed their families this winter, and therefore more to market to our customers, with over 16,000 pounds sold last year - a 7,000 pound increase from the previous year. We were able to add yet another farmers market this year due to higher yields, which meant more collective produce being sold directly to consumers, and an additional Iskaashito group was able to access these higher price points. Our wholesale accounts continue to set sales records, our season extension high tunnels provided more produce earlier and longer in the season, and we added heat to our propagation greenhouse. We have developed relationships with Maine Medical Center Food Pantry that purchases nearly 1,000 pounds of produce per week, and the Maine Marinara Project - a farm-to-institution project that promises to lay the foundation for more efficient tomato processing and sales, focusing on BIPOC and local farmers to source ingredients. Farmers and staff have been informally discussing the results of the season and how to improve for next year throughout the season, which is a first for us as a program, and has better integrated farmer understanding of the planning and management process, and how that relates to our water and soil resources. This collective experience at Liberation Farms as a new site has deepened farmer interest in conserving and improving these resources into the future. Because we now have access to a stable land base, we have been able to grow our halal goat herd and provide live animals for humane halal slaughter on-site for the first time ever. We built a halal slaughter station that promotes sanitary and safe livestock handling and processing, and minimizes the risk of food-borne illness. We continue to conduct goat management trainings for staff and farmers to understand the kidding process, monthly health screenings, diet, and sustainable pasturing practices for the health of the goats and for the land. We also maintain a robust composting program with the manure from the goats, flint corn husks/ cobs, and produce-waste that is already starting to benefit the soils at Liberation Farms. Yet another exciting dream-come-true for the SBCA was being able to host the Youth Kashekee program at Liberation Farms, where over 50 youth were able to grow their own crops side-by-side with community elders and partake in intergenerational knowledge sharing. These students visited the farm once a week during the summer months and tended and harvested from raised garden beds, explored the surrounding ecosystem, and learned from the Iskaashito farmers about how to grow and market produce in Maine. They also spent time in our new Suuq / Farm Stand, where members of the community worked to market produce on-site to the Somali Bantu community and our surrounding neighbors in Wales. This program paired elder and younger Somali Bantu people to sell the produce, and they were able to earn an hourly wage, learn a new skill, and understand another avenue of the agricultural marketing program. In partnership with the UMaine Agricultural Extension 4H program titled, Oh Yeah!, we were able to hire 6 Youth Leaders from within the Somali Bantu community to support the Kashekee program, some of whom have also worked at the Suuq / Farm Stand, and have expressed interest in farm-related jobs at Liberation Farms. We are looking at ways to continue integrating youth into our staffing to support and encourage the next generation of Somali Bantu farmers.
Publications
- Type:
Other
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2023
Citation:
Boston Globe - A Somali Bantu Refugee Farmer Thrives in Maine: https://www.bostonglobe.com/2023/08/01/lifestyle/somali-bantu-refugee-farmer-thrives-maine/#:~:text=It's%20not%20just%20traditional%20farming,as%20he%20did%20in%20Somalia.
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Progress 09/01/21 to 08/31/22
Outputs
Target Audience:Our agricultural program, Liberation Farms, supports over 250 Somali Bantu farmers from the Lewiston/Auburn area. We have two paths farmers can follow - the Family Farming program (250 farmers), and the Iskaashito program (30 farmers). In the Family Farming program, farmers are allotted 1/10 of an acre for subsistence growing, usually a grid of African flint corn interplanted with staple Somali crops like collards, beans, tomatoes, onions, and melons. These plots typically feed 25 or more people with culturally relevant, chemical-free produce. The Iskaashito farmers are self-organized into 9 commercial grower groups that share decision-making and leadership roles and land management, and work together between the groups to determine overarching goals. These groups sell their produce directly to customers at three regional farmers markets, our new Suuq farm stand at Liberation Farms and through several wholesale accounts, many of which are food pantries to increase food security in our state and provide our farmers with a culturally-appropriate means of income generation. Changes/Problems:We have undergone an enormous amount of change during the grant period due to access to stable land, and therefore have had some growing pains in learning how to manage more infrastructure, soil fertility of an unfamiliar soil type, and host over 250 farmers in one place. Water access has been the most difficult challenge, with two wells being drilled but only one being found viable for the farm's sustainable irrigation needs. This presented an enormous cost for the agriculture program, and a puzzle of how to meet farmer needs with less access to water. We have been partnering with NRCS to troubleshoot the issue, and are getting closer to solving the issue for the remainder of the grant period. Flooding of one of the streams that crosses between two of our fields has limited farmer access and created expensive damage to the bridge and roads that crosses the stream, so we have needed to repair this crucial infrastructure to ensure our farmers have secure access to their plots for food and income production. ? What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?We have provided our farmers and staff with goat health and management trainings; tomato trellising workshops; drip irrigation management trainings; winter rye cover cropping tutorials; and composting management trainings. We have also held twice yearly group meetings where we gather to plan and discuss the crop plan for the current or following year, changes needed to the marketing program, and any other farm-management related decisions. We also held a tractor training in partnership with the University of Maine Agricultural Extension, to which farmers and staff were invited, as well as several other immigrant farming services providers, and interpretation was provided in Somali and Maay Maay languages. ? How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Results have been shared at our biannual meetings and informally to farmers directly, as well as formally at SBCA Board of Directors meetings, which the Farm Committee attends. Because our Executive Director and majority of staff are Somali Bantu, there is a direct and two-way line of communication to farmers and leaders. We are able to adapt and change with speed and cultural awareness to the needs of our farmers and the land and animals that we steward. SBCA hosted visitors to Liberation Farm to celebrate the announcement of the new U.S. Department of Agriculture Local Food Purchase Assistance (LFPA) and Reach & Resiliency (R&R) grants. The LFPA grant, which we will receive a sub-award, funds the state of Maine to buy food from local farmers for the charitable food system. R&R helps build the capacity of food pantries and other feeding organizations in Maine. Attendees included Jenny Moffit, Undersecretary of USDA Agricultural Marketing Service and Regulatory Programs at USDA, Katie Zenk, the Undersecretary's Chief of Staff, Liz with Silbermann, Regional Administrator for the Northeast Region of the USDA's Food and Nutrition Service, Cynthia Tackett, FNS Public Affairs Director, Amanda Beal, Commissioner of Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry, Emily Horton, Policy Director at DACF, Rhiannon Hanpton, State Director of Maine USDA Rural Development, Nicole Howell, USDA Rural Development Public Information Officer, Jeanne Christie, District Representative for Congresswoman Chellie Pingree. Craig Lapine from Maine DACF assisted in organizing this farm visit. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Our fall planning meeting will be held in mid-November, and we will continue to harvest and process produce and African flint corn to sale to retail and wholesale markets. There will be a flint corn shelling and winnowing demonstration held to refresh farmer skills, and we will provide training on how to fertilize and winterize the raised beds in our season extension high tunnels.
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
The past year has yielded many changes for Liberation Farms, including our first year of production on our new land, secured with a 99-year rolling lease, and soon to be fully transferred in ownership to the Somali Bantu Community Association. Our over 250 Family Farmers and 30 Iskaashito farmers: utilized sustainable irrigation practices such as drip irrigation and hand watering; used low-till and hand-cultivation to establish beds and manage weeds; and universally inter-seeded winter rye cover crop with their fall crops to manage soil fertility. This drastic improvement in farm operations came about from conducting listening sessions with farmers in the field this season, holding planning meetings last fall 2021, and introduction to the land meetings at the beginning of this season 2022. The increase of staff-to-farmer communication and trainings directly benefited our farmers in the way the land was managed, and the resulting income that came from produce and livestock raised on the land. Farmers saw drastic yield increases and therefore higher income from the produce grown at Liberation Farms. We have more Family Farmers with more African flint corn than they need to feed their families this winter, and therefore more to market to our customers. We were able to add an additional farmers market this year due to higher yields, which meant more collective produce being sold directly to consumers, and an additional Iskaashito group was able to access these higher price points. Our wholesale accounts saw record sales, and our season extension high tunnels provided more produce earlier and longer in the season. Farmers and staff have been informally discussing the results of the season and how to improve for next year throughout the season, which is a first for us as a program, and has better integrated farmer understanding of the planning and management process, and how that relates to our water and soil resources. This collective experience at Liberation Farms as a new site has deepened farmer interest in conserving and improving these resources into the future. Because we now have access to a stable land base, we have been able to grow our halal goat herd and provide live animals for humane halal slaughter on-site for the first time ever. We built a halal slaughter station that promotes sanitary and safe livestock handling and processing, and minimizes the risk of food-borne illness. To accompany our goat herd growth, we have conducted goat management trainings for staff and farmers to understand the kidding process, monthly health screenings, diet, and sustainable pasturing practices for the health of the goats and for the land. We have also started a robust composting program with the manure from the goats, flint corn husks/ cobs, and produce that is already starting to benefit the soils at Liberation Farms. Yet another exciting dream-come-true for the SBCA was being able to host the Youth Kasheekee program at Liberation Farms, where over 40 youth were able to grow their own crops side-by-side with community elders and partake in intergenerational knowledge sharing. These students visited the farm once a week during the summer months and tended and harvested from raised garden beds, explored the surrounding ecosystem, and learned from the Iskaashito farmers about how to grow and market produce in Maine. They also spent time in our new Suuq / Farm Stand, where members of the community worked to market produce on-site to the Somali Bantu community and our surrounding neighbors in Wales. This program paired elder and younger Somali Bantu people to sell the produce, and they were able to earn an hourly wage, learn a new skill, and understand another avenue of the agricultural marketing program.
Publications
- Type:
Websites
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2022
Citation:
https://open.spotify.com/episode/5iRJCoUiUYZeCNjRKq6np0, A Sum of Us podcast episode titled Lewiston, ME: A New Crop
- Type:
Websites
Status:
Published
Year Published:
2022
Citation:
Portland Press Herald: https://www.pressherald.com/2022/09/18/bountiful-somali-bantu-farm-in-wales-reaping-a-harvest/
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