BFRDP Projects

The 120 Committed Farmers and Ranchers of Arkansas Land and Community Development
Corporation project are envisioned to significantly improve the population of successful and
sustainable African American farmers/ranchers relatively new to farming. 

Recruit 120 participants for the project – The outcome for this goal is for at least 120 farmers
to commit to become or remain being a grower of fresh produce, row crop and livestock. The
fresh produce farmers must also commit, obtain and maintain USDA/AMS Food Safety
certification up to the Harmonized level. By being certified growers, farmers will not only
produce safe foods but will also make their operations eligible for the larger higher value retail
market. Overall their economic survivability is enhanced by gaining greater market accessibility.
Their success will have a positive economic impact on the community.

To increase the number and enhance the success of Native Hawaiian agroforesters in
order to grow new agroforestry projects and improve resource management of existing projects.
This project increases economic opportunity, food security and cultural connection to the forest
in the Native Hawaiian community of Maui.

Abbreviated objectives are: 1) Train 150 new and beginning Native Hawaiian farmers in
agroforestry; 2) Engage 30 new Native Hawaiian youth in agroforestry as a career path; 3)
Enhance the success of 50 beginning agroforesters; 4) Facilitate 20 new farmers in designing an
agroforestry/native reforestation project; 5) Establish a demonstration farm cultivated by 100
new Native Hawaiian farmers; 6) Provide land to 2 Native Hawaiian farmers to cultivate native
crops and enter markets; 7) Develop 10 new markets for agroforestry cultural crops.

To accomplish the goal we will conduct monthly classroom and hands-on workshops for three
years, which are culturally appropriate and targeted at Native Hawaiian adults and youth.
We will establish a new training program aimed at growing new agroforestry farmers (forest management and crop farming practices) and natural resource managers.

Aquaculture Boot Camp (ABC) with “3I-level” training model was an extremely successful program.  By the end of the ABC-1 project, twenty-four new businesses/farms were created by the 2013 and 2014 ABC Intensive course graduates. To enhance sustainability of new and limited resource aquaculture/aquaponic farmers in the Midwest, we are delivering Aquaculture Boot Camp -2 (ABC-2) through partnerships and collaborations of four NGOs/CBOs/SAEOs, six aqua-farms and three agricultural colleges. 

Specific goals include: 1) Provide tools for new and limited resource farmers to enhance their aquaculture/aquaponic production success by developing and delivering production curriculum and hands-on practices, 2) Enhance the financial viability and business success of beginning aquaculture/aquaponic farmers by delivering business management and marketing strategies, and 3) Strengthen the success of new aquaculture/aquaponic and limited resource farmers through the ABC mentorship and partnership with the industry via OAA, WAA/NPI and other partners.

The ABC project serve the following Target Audience:
Beginning and new (less than 10 years of experience) aquaculture/aquaponic farmers.
Limited resource beginning aquaculture farmers; most of aqua-farmers have low levels of farm sales and low household income, as most of them are new and located in rural areas.
Next generation farmers: students and those without a family farming history.
Other new farmers attempting to diversify their existing farming enterprise

Our partners/collaborators include: Ohio Aquaculture Association (OAA); Riffe Vocational School (RVS); University of Wisconsin - Stevens Point (UWSP), and its Aquaculture Innovation Center and Aquaculture Demonstration Facility; Wisconsin Aquaculture Association (WAA); Nelson & Pade, Inc (aquaponics; NPI, WI); Hocking College Aquaculture Program; North Region Aquaculture Center (NCRAC); North Region Aquaculture Extension Specialist in Michigan State University; Life Aquatic Farm, LLC; Ripple Rock Fish Farms; Go Fish Farm; Lettuce Head Aquaponic Farm; Fresh Harvest Farm Aquaponics and Wanner shrimp farm.

Based in Fairfax County, Virginia, but pulling from expertise and farms across Northern and Central Virginia and the National Capital Region, Arcadia's Veteran Farmer Program (VFP) brings together regional nonprofits, agricultural organizations, veterans, and experienced farmers - including veterans who have made a successful transition to farming - to provide a practical farmer training and development program that launches veterans into new careers in agriculture.

Arcadia's program is distinguished by its lifecycle support of new veteran farmers. It works to increase the number of veterans beginning new careers in agriculture and the likelihood of their success by providing them with farming skills; business development and management training; ongoing technical support; assistance with finding and accessing land; and then market support, including an optional, wholesale contract with Arcadia. The VFP provides continued support as our new farmers launch their careers, through ongoing mentorships from, and networking with, the business, agriculture, and veteran communities.

The VFP increases the number of veterans beginning new careers in agriculture and increases the likelihood of their success. The VFP is very effective and can be replicated in other regions. Through this grant, the VFP will train 51 military veterans with the goal of producing 25 new farmers operating businesses throughout the project period.

This project will develop a Clearinghouse that will help beginning farmers and ranchers be more successful. The Clearinghouse will assemble educational materials, online courses, software tools, stories, and the ability to connect online into a well-organized website where beginning producers can quickly obtain the information, training, and connections they need. It will:

1. Help individuals and families exploring, beginning, establishing, and managing farms or ranches quickly and easily access the information and training they need.
2. Support BFRDP programs by facilitating sharing, collaboration, and communication and by providing programs better access to educational materials.
3. Help BFRDP projects better disseminate their educational materials so they can reach more beginning farmers and ranchers.
4. Enhance focus on outcomes by assisting BFRDP projects improve outcome-based reporting.

The Clearinghouse will offer multiple means to help beginning farmers and ranchers learn, including the ability; to find materials on topics of importance to them, to ask questions of other producers, to learn from online videos and courses, to find BFRDP programs in their geographic region, and to read stories about other beginning producers. They will be able to choose the method to find answers, ideas, and information that works best for them.

The Hmong American Farmers Association (HAFA) and the Latino Economic Development Center (LEDC) are teaming up to provide agricultural and farm management training workshops to immigrant farmers in Minnesota with the long term goal building thriving and sustainable farming operations, farmers and farming communities. For the Hmong and Latino farmers in Minnesota, this can be achieved by (secondary goal #1): increasing the number of immigrant farmers’ ability to make a successful living from farming while respecting traditional methods of learning and cultural practices, and (secondary goal #2): expanding economic opportunities for immigrant farmers and their children through collaborative marketing, value-added production and specialized farm business training.

The project applicants represent a regional coalition joined across the Tennessee and Virginia border in a region called the “Heart of Appalachia”. Our coalition represents a 20-year track record of building the local food economy from farm to fork, across all economic classes, across all ages. Through the Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program we seek to holistically improve start-up opportunities for a diversity of beginning farmers and ranchers to establish and sustain viable agricultural operations and communities. Developing beginning farmers will simultaneously address workforce development, nutrition, natural resource conservation, and economic development, in a region where one in 5 citizens lives at or below the federal poverty line. In response to feedback from beginning farmers served by our organizations, our four objectives are to:

1. Enhance the regional coalition and coordination of services for beginning farmers;
2. Implement local and regional educational trainings with a focus on whole farm planning and preparing beginning farmers for specific local marketing opportunities;
3. Establish a mentorship network of trained mentor farmers to provide educational and on-the-job opportunities to beginning farmers; and
4. Foster a network of sustainable peer-to-peer support for beginning farmers through Learning Circles.

While available to all beginning farmer learners, each objective gives special consideration to the needs of socially disadvantaged, limited resource, military veteran, prisoners re-entering the workforce, and young farmers. These groups are key stakeholders for outreach as identified by the coalition's’ partners.

The project will be implemented in the following counties:
TN:  Carter(SF), Greene (SF), Hancock (SF), Hawkins, Johnson (SF), Sullivan, Washington, and Unicoi (SF)
VA:  Lee (SF), Russell (SF), Scott (SF), Smyth (SF), Tazewell (SF), Washington (SF), Wise (S)F, and Wythe (SF)
SF - Indicates StrikeForce Counties

The long-term goal of this one year Development project is to build the agricultural capacity among beginning, immigrant, and refugee farmers in Massachusetts to operate their own independent farming enterprises, to increase farmer ownership rates, and to build environmental stewardship. The Flats Mentor Farm (FMF) is a program of World Farmers (WF) which provides land and agriculture production infrastructure for beginning farmers while they evaluate the sustainability of farming as a way of life for themselves and their families.

This one year development project proposal will achieve the following objectives: 1) Provide technical assistance to beginning farmers according to their level of capacity in the three phases of the Flats Mentoring Program; 2) Provide tools and develop skills on financial and risk management; 3) Increase beginning farmer participation in USDA programs. In the area of training and technical assistance, this project will address the immediate needs identified by the immigrant and refugee farmer participants at FMF to better understand the complexities of farming in New England: crop production practices, entrepreneurship and business training, financial and risk management, marketing strategies, food safety practices and outreach to USDA programs.

The Center of Southwest Culture's Cooperative Center (CODECE) project seeks $100,000 in USDA funding to provide technical assistance to underserved communities--specifically for Indigenous communities--to form two new farming cooperatives. The cooperatives will not only be sustainable over the long-run, but they will also serve as a community-wide collective investments that will provide members with meaningful returns to help augment their existing incomes.

CODECE targets underserved Native American communities who are threatened by poverty and lack of economic opportunity, but have access to arable land and water rights. CODECE will form cooperatives with an emphasis on members having a relationship based on kinship.

Forming organic farming cooperatives is an effective way for beginning farmers to efficiently leverage resources and increase profitability. Several successful 'buy local' campaigns such as Farm-to-Table and Farm-to-Restaurant have created a situation where the demand for local and organic produce far outstrips the current supply. If the farmers begin to grow organic produce, they will produce crops that are overall more profitable and in higher demand. 

The funds will be used to conduct the following activities: guide members in the production of more profitable crops like organic fruits and vegetables; implement production and management strategies to enhance land stewardship among these farmers; provide hands-on technical assistance in incorporation, by-laws and articles of incorporation; provide basic business training in budgets, taxes and other business-related activities; provide farm plans, including sequential planting, crop rotations, crop selection for optimum market share; provide access to investment capital; connect members to organic food markets; and develop a long-term professional relationship with these new cooperatives to ensure their longevity and viability. We expect to incorporate two farming cooperatives during the life of the grant. In addition, the project will create 10 new jobs.

The project, “Dairy Grazing Apprenticeship: A National Program for Training New Dairy Farmers,” is a renewal Standard Grant that will build on work previously supported by USDA-NIFA’s Beginning Farmers and Rancher Development Program through a 2010 Development Grant “GrassWorks Apprenticeship Program: A Pilot Project for Training Beginning Farmers” and a 2011 Standard Grant “GrassWorks Apprenticeship Program: Career Paths for Beginning Farmers.” The current project will establish Dairy Grazing Apprenticeship (DGA) as a national program directly under the United States Department of Labor-Office of Apprenticeship, strengthen DGA in Wisconsin by providing additional services to participants, and support the development of DGA in Missouri as a template for state-by-state expansion.

The target audience for this project consists of current dairy farmers seeking to transition out of farming or grow their operation by investing in the next generation and aspiring dairy farmers who are seeking a pathway to independent farm ownership. Among aspiring dairy farmers are young people, students, women, veterans, hired hands, herdsmen, farm managers, and farm workers. Barriers for aspiring dairy farmers include a lack of a) skills and experience in sustainable methods; b) opportunity to farm full-time, as dairy production requires, while learning; c) training in financial management and business planning; d) familiarity with agricultural infrastructure; and e) access to capital, land, and cattle.

The first formal Apprenticeship for farming in the nation, DGA directly addresses barriers to commodity-scale dairy farming by combining on-farm employment and training with paid related instruction and providing support for aspiring farmers to transition into independent dairy farm ownership. DGA is a comprehensive program that places particular emphasis on the following priority topics: Basic livestock practices and crop [pasture] farming practices; Innovative farm land transfers strategies; Entrepreneurship and business training; Financial risk management training; Natural resource management training; Curriculum development; and Mentoring, apprenticeship, and internships.    

For the past 25 years, the Sustainable Farming Association (SFA) has helped to develop beginning farmers. During that time, SFA has learned a great deal about what makes for success in beginning farming operations. As we review the past 25 years of work in new farmer development, we see 2 closely connected disturbing trends in agriculture today: 1) many beginning farmers lack the support, skills and savvy to successfully launch and sustain farm businesses for more than 5 years; and 2) as a result, there is a constant cycle of new farmers entering the market but never realizing their full potential. This trend is leading to
fragmented rural communities and over-worked and underpaid farmers who rarely overcome the mechanical solidarity issues and have a successful rural life.

"Deep Roots: Thoughtful, Comprehensive, Community-Based Beginning Farmer Training" takes a proven beginning farmer training model, increases its appeal and functionality by adding an online component and places beginning farmer training in the context of a 25 year old Farmer-to-Farmer Network.

Deep Roots is designed for individuals who want to work in sustainable farming as independent producers. Typically, sustainable agriculture programs attract nontraditional audiences including women, older students, underrepresented minorities and new American populations. These programs are also suitable for individuals with a conventional farming background who want to transition toward sustainability as well as for individuals who want to farm but have no family background or directexperience in the field.

The Navajo Nation sits in the heart of the Four Corners area of the Colorado Plateau covering the corners of Arizona, New Mexico and Utah. The land is a mixture of alpine forests with high plateaus, mesas, mountains and arid deserts with an estimated land base of 27,673 square miles. The socio-economic conditions are emphasized by limited employment opportunities; 40.1% of families live well below the poverty level; and the diagnosis of diabetes correlates with the demise of their traditional values. These factors indicate a need for agricultural programs to revitalize a way of life of self-sufficiency, resourcefulness, prosperity, and cultural identity. Agriculture and livestock ownership are timeless symbols of the Dine’ philosophy.

The proposed project will help establish the foundation to sustainably support agricultural programs and activities by concentrating efforts in two regional agricultural hubs, Tsaile-Wheatfields Dineh Water User in central Navajo Nation and Tolani Lake Enterprise in western Navajo Nation. The proposed project will: train 60 beginning farmers to produce a harvest that will be sold to local and alternative markets; increase the capacity of collaborative organizations staff to receive the necessary skills to support farmers within their communities; and over three years, develop and implement a four-tiered training module in the following areas: business planning, farm planning, food safety planning, and farm management.

“Developing the next generation farmers and food security within the Navajo Nation food desert” project provides education through the management, planning, and conservation of natural resources for the inheritance of future generations.

The viability of new farm enterprises are especially tenable. A report by the USDA ERS notes that the businesses of new and beginning farmers have lower survival rates than more established operators. Direct markets offer new and beginning farmers unique and expanding opportunities to begin and to sustain successful farm businesses. National marketing research shows that consumer distrust in “big food” companies and institutions, increased awareness of the social and environmental impacts of the food system, and the increased prevalence of food-related health issues are changing the U.S. food landscape. Consumers believe their choices matter; they are looking for food that is authentic, transparent, and that connects them closely to the sources. Local food has increasingly come to represent transparency and trust in the minds of consumers, and more people want to spend their food dollars with local farmers.

The long-term goal of this project is to enhance the viability of new and beginning farmers in Western North Carolina (WNC) by providing them with knowledge, skills, and resources needed to start and/or grow successful farm operations focused on direct market opportunities. In WNC, expanding markets for local food provide significant opportunities for new and beginning farmers. In order to survive beyond start-up, farms must have effective marketing and appropriate production to build customer bases. In local food markets, where the public is looking for transparency, authenticity, and meaningful connections, direct sales offer unique opportunities. The activities of this project will build the direct marketing success of new and beginning farmers and enable them to implement marketing and production strategies that build farm visibility, demand for their products, and the long-term viability of their farm business. In keeping with BFRDP priorities, training and assistance topics will cover diversification and marketing strategies, entrepreneurship and business training, and financial and risk management training.

The need to provide mechanism for increased income for small and mid-sized farm families is of growing importance. New knowledge that will enable  beginning small and limited-resource farmers sustainably produce products of higher value and capture a larger share of the food market is needed. The question is how can new and beginning farmers structure their agribusiness to produce high quality products, compete in the market place, and generate returns that will improve their quality of life? This question can be addressed by developing and implementing programs that include sustainable forestry, livestock and crop production practices, marketing strategy that aimed at achieving the highest possible profit and farm financial plans that keep debt low and good record keeping. Therefore, The Winston County Self Help Cooperative (WCSHC) is seeking funding from USDA to support its project, entitled “Enhancing the Sustainability and Viability of Beginning Farmers and Ranchers through Training Exercises, Mentoring and Outreach Programs”. This project will expose 150 project participants including veterans on issues that engage them in a model of learning through hands-on training exercises, mentoring and outreach programs that enhance self-employment in farming, ranching and forestry opportunities. Our audience will be knowledgeable in both economic and ecological subjects and will have the tools to make better production, management and marketing decisions. This project will serve as a model for other organizations.

Farm School NYC is a comprehensive, professional training program for New York City residents seeking to develop agriculture skills and begin careers in urban farming. The School’s goal is to train the next generation of urban farmers, with a focus on limited resource and socially disadvantaged students, and to increase access to healthy, local food in urban communities by supporting the proliferation of urban agriculture projects. To date, over 350 students have participated in individual courses and more than 60 have participated in the certificate program.

With assistance from the BFRDP grant, Farm School NYC will enhance and expand its urban agricultural curriculum and apprenticeship program; develop a new partnership with The Youth Farm to offer an expedited certificate with intensive on-farm training; and create the first urban-based Collaborative Regional Alliance for Farmer Training (CRAFT) program in the Northeast to support beginning farmers throughout the metropolitan area. Moreover, the School will deepen its outreach and support strategies to help low resource and socially disadvantaged New Yorkers, to whom the School allocates 50% of its budget, achieve their professional farming goals.

1. Project Title: Farmer Education and Enterprise Development (FEED) Project

2. Project Director(s): Chris Brown and Nathan Harkleroad of ALBA

3. Project Description: The FEED goal is to educate and train 150 beginning and socially disadvantaged (BSD) farmers to plan, launch, and/or sustainably establish independent organic farm businesses. FEED will serve low-income Latinos in the Salinas Valley – many of whom are immigrant farm workers - helping them achieve the dream of farm ownership and economic independence.

Though an ambitious goal, ALBA is uniquely positioned to achieve it due to our 110 acres of organic land, a well-qualified team and an intensive, experiential, multi-year farmer development program. Furthermore, ALBA will tap four longstanding partner organizations to expand and extend services to farmers even after they transition off ALBA’s land. FEED’s objectives focus on all stages of BSD farmer development from start-up through farm incubation and transition fromALBA land and finally to maturation.

Obj. 1: Farmers receive intensive education and TA to prepare for and launch farm businesses.
Obj. 2: Farms strengthened through intensive production and business development services.
Obj. 3: Farms receive transition and business consulting services to firmly establish independent farm businesses off of ALBA ground. In addition, outreach, information and assistance will be provided to an additional 300+ regional BSD farmers.

The FEED consortium provides a comprehensive farmer development program leveraging the agricultural skills of BSD farmers to capitalize on growing markets for locally-produced, organic food in the San Francisco Bay Area. FEED combines affordable access to resources, intensive production and business assistance and linkages to loans and key business services needed to establish a farm business.

4. Collaborating Organizations:
a. California FarmLink
b. Carlson Food Safety Consulting
c. Community Alliance with Family Farmers
d. Kitchen Table Advisors

The Greening of Detroit (The Greening) and Detroit Black Community Food Security Network (DBCFSN) collaborated on the Farming Detroit project. This program is aimed at increasing the number of limited-resource beginning farmers with access to training, education, and mentoring opportunities, in order to address the specific needs of urban growers and ultimately to increase the number of farmers within Detroit.

The project serves limited-resource beginning farmers that are socially disadvantaged, often facing multiple barriers to developing economic self-sustainability. This program provides apprentices an opportunity to develop skills and networks necessary for them to plan and develop the next steps required to further the success of their start-up farming operations. The program also formalizes a partnership between The Greening and DBCFSN that improves and standardizes training curriculum, while capitalizing on each partner's strengths and ability to expose participants to additional resources such as shared farm sites, teachers, and equipment. By leveraging the capacity of this partnership, the project maximizes the use of expertise and best practices learned by each organization in previous years, provides for more efficient use of financial, human and material resources, and allows for greater efficiency of administrative staff costs.

Feed Rhode Island: Growing Sustainable Farms seeks to increase the number and success of limited resource and socially disadvantaged beginning farmers in the state. Southside Community Land Trust (SCLT) will accomplish this goal by leading an experienced team to undertake four objectives: provide training and technical assistance, manage multiple incubator sites, offer on-farm apprentice training, and facilitate a land transfer working group. Partners include RI Department of Environmental Management, Brown University, RI Land Trust Council, Nature Conservancy RI Chapter, Northeast Organic Farming Association, Northern Rhode Island Conservation District, Young Farmers Network, and University of Rhode Island.

Through this program, the organization leverages the experience and relationships of program partners into meaningful outcomes that would otherwise take years to achieve. Technical assistance and training for urban and rural farmers will launch them onto their own farms. It will move urban farmers onto larger plots of land. It will lead to new behaviors that increase production and strengthen co-operative marketing while improving sales and boosting Rhode Island's economy. Support for an expanded apprentice program will increase the number of people who are prepared to begin their own farm businesses. Effective management of incubator space, combined with execution of a broadly supported land transfer strategy will create many new independent farms in a state where land values are astronomically high. Feed Rhode Island: Growing Sustainable Farms will help SCLT create significant change quickly in Rhode Island. 

Our goal is to support Beginning Farmers with the foundational production skills, business knowledge, and confidence they need to build farm enterprises that respond to the ever-growing metropolitan demand for sustainably grown, source-identified produce. With 550 acres of protected farmland available for incubation and long-term leasing, UESF envisions a cooperative future where dozens of small producers benefit from shared access to tools, labor, distribution, collective purchasing, product aggregation, and other cost efficiencies.

In alignment with the BFRDP primary goal, this program takes a multi-state, client centric approach to bolstering rural jobs and supporting economic growth and development by empowering and training veterans and socially-disadvantaged, majority African-American, new and beginning farmers and ranchers in poverty-stricken, rural counties and parishes: Winston, Wayne, Scott, Covington counties of Mississippi and Tangipahoa Parish and St. Helena Parish of Louisiana. Delivering thorough and hands-on training, specialized mentoring, one-on-one technical assistance and establishing an apprenticeship program will help establish and enhance their successes in farming, ranching, and management of their private forest lands to enhance their overall sustainability. For this reason, our project priorities are identical to the Legislative Priorities, as demonstrated by our four objectives:

1. Assist target audience launch farm business with business plan writing and market training- prioritizing entrepreneurship, business training, financial and risk management and marketing strategies;
2. Provide high-growth industry training and technical assistance- prioritizing basic livestock, forest management, crop farming practices and innovative strategies, like Agroforestry;
3. Offer Good Agricultural Practices and Good Handling Practices certification training- prioritizing diversification and marketing strategies as well as food safety;
4. Create a year-long apprenticeship program for young adults, ages 18-21, in order to establish a career pathway for young farmers and ranchers to own farm businesses and prioritize mentoring and vocational training.

Ultimately, the project thrives to achieve the following long-term goals: Low-income veteran, SD farmers and ranchers in rural MS and LA

1. Commonly and successfully yield quality products and produce, employ business and marketing strategies, and increase their income in their farm business to guarantee more economic stability and sustainability for themselves and their families;
2. Poses the skills and confidence to access local, state, and federal resources to achieve success and sustainability of their farm businesses; and
3. A system is established to ensure youth have the opportunity to prosper in their farm business.

This project will provide outreach, training, technical assistance, and
mentorship to Hispanic and Veteran Beginning Farmers and Ranchers (BFRs)
in a 44-county border region of Texas and Southern New Mexico. 30% of
federal funds requested are allocated to NGOs and a CBO. 70% of project
funds are allocated to serving Hispanic BFRs; 30% to Veterans; 100% is
allocated to Limited Resource BFRs; and 20% to farm workers. This
project's service area has the highest numbers and greatest
concentrations of Hispanic farmers in the U.S. Strategic sub-award
partners include; Texas/Mexico Border Coalition CBO, La Semilla
FoodCenter, and National Center for Appropriate Technology. Additional
partners include an innovative partner with SCORE Chapters, as initiated
by the Secretary of Agriculture. Partners supporting farm-and-ranch
entrepreneurship include Small Business Development Centers, Veterans Business Outreach Center, and the Texas Rural Cooperative Center.This project is very relevant to the
primary goal of BFRDP: it will train, assist, and mentor
Limited-Resource Hispanic and Veteran BFRs to enter, and improve their
success, in farming and ranching.

Global Garden Refugee Training Farm (GGRTF) developed and delivered 2 six-week courses to
prepare displaced refugee farmers for farming and farm business management in the Midwestern U.S. Fifteen farmers participated in the training, which was a first stage toward preparing them to develop farm business plans in preparation for establishing successful vegetable farms. Lesson plans were developed for another two topics: Season Extension and Soil Management.Lesson plans Teaching materials were designed to be appropriate for displaced refugee farmers with limited or no English and potentially low literacy in any language. In-class interpretation was provided for all sessions. Course content addressed both the prior experience and knowledge gaps unique to newly arrived displaced refugee farmers.

Global Growers will develop a pipeline to opportunities in agriculture sectors for beginning farmers by providing direct assistance and leveraging strategic partnerships to create access to land, knowledge, and resources. It will also provide the tools necessary for beginning farmers to access both direct-to-consumer and wholesale market opportunities in order to ensure sustainable income-generation and to increase distribution of local foods across the community and especially within socially disadvantaged communities.

The project is divided into two tracks: 1) incubator farmer pipeline, and 2) independent farmer pipeline. The incubator track includes a full-season training program with access land, tools, and infrastructure required for diversified vegetable production, along with access markets to generate supplementary income. The independent farmer track includes access to incubator farm workshops, with the primary emphasis on individual consultations. The cumulative experience and expertise of participating organizations and their shared vision will enable the GG Farmer Development Initiative to efficiently achieve the outcomes detailed herein and to build capacity to sustain the program beyond the grant period. 

Project Goal is to increase the number, diversity, profitability, and environmental sustainability of beginning farmers in the central New York region. Prior BFRDP support established Groundswell as an outstanding regional center for new farmer training, technical assistance, and business incubation.  Having substantially exceeded all our target numbers of trainees and new businesses launched in that Project, we will expand programs and audiences to:
1. Increase technical, business management skills of BFs.
2. Provide intensive business incubation support to selected BFs; increase regional incubation capacity. 
3. Connect BFs to existing wholesale markets; develop new marketing opportunities.
4. Support cooperation among farm businesses; develop cooperative models for farm business ownership, management, and business transfer.
5. Increase impact of farmer-to-farmer mentoring.
6. Provide entry-level, on-farm learning experiences for diverse “Explorers,” with priority on immigrants, refugees, people of color, veterans, and limited resource trainees.

This Project contributes directly to BFRDP’s goal of enhancing food security, community development and sustainability and addresses multiple priority topics. Most programs will focus on BFs in the first 5 years of business and the year preceding start-up, for maximum impact on farm business viability in our region. Programs include: Farm Business Incubator, Farm Business Planning Course, Finger Lakes CRAFT, farmer-led technical courses, Work2Learn placements, enterprise-specific Farm Business Support Networks, Cooperative Farm Business Course, and individual mentoring in production, marketing and business management. We will also offer limited programs targeting diverse “Explorers” (not yet committed to farming) as an essential outreach and recruitment process for new farmer development.

Stone Barns Center's beginning farmer training prepares young farmers to pursue economically and ecologically resilient farm enterprises. The Growing Farmers Initiative is designed for beginning farmers with ten years or less farming experience. Our programs, situated in the lower Hudson Valley, NY, include apprentice training, workshops, conferences, and online learning.

Our farm apprenticeship exposes nine to twelve young farmers each year to farm culture through an intensive nine-month program that offers a mixture of hands-on and classroom-based training in resilient agriculture. Apprentices learn the nuts and bolts of our farm operation and leave with a full understanding of the practical principles of agroecological farming. Apprentice workshops meet weekly and cover essential topic including soil science and management, plant botany, landscape design and ecology, engine mechanics, animal husbandry, and farm business planning. These sessions, open to young farmers from throughout the region, are taught by Stone Barns staff and other experts.

Our conferences and online learning platforms expose farmers from across the U.S. to the principles of resilient farming. In total, the 2015 and 2016 Young Farmers Conferences welcomed 550 young farmers, 25% on scholarship, and covered topics on crop production, business management, animal husbandry, land access, and more. Each workshop is approximately 90 minutes and 98% of participants requested that the workshops be offered again the following year. One young farmer said: "It was such a pleasure to attend; the quality of the presenters and the participants were very impressive; and I really appreciated the welcoming and supportive vibe of the whole conference." In 2015 and 2016, we also hosted Poultry School, two-day conference offering 20 sessions around sustainable poultry production attended by 300 farmers total. 

Our E-Learning tools have also been a great success, with 60,000 unique views in the past two years (average 20 minutes viewing time).

The long-term goal of this project is to support the economic and ecological viability of the next
generation of diverse California farmers including urban, peri-urban and rural farmers and ranchers from diverse communities including Latino, Southeast Asian, and African American. Through in-depth training offered at established and emergent “agricultural learning hubs,” this project aims to build on the successes and lessons of two prior BFR projects. By partnering with the National Center for Appropriate Technology (NCAT), UC Cooperative Extension (UCCE), Sustainable Agriculture Education (SAGE), and Alameda County Resource Conservation District (ACRCD) and several local agricultural training hubs, RCDs and NRCSs, this project team is collaborating to offer a combination of in-depth, culturally and regionally appropriate workshops, develop and distribute educational materials and videos, host field days and farmer tours, and strengthen farmer to farmer networks and learning hubs in 10 counties in central California. The expected outcomes are to:

1) improve BFR access to sustainable farming information and technical support,

2) to increase adoption of organic and sustainable farming/ranching practices,

3) enhance the economic success of BFRs through business planning, value added, and marketing education and support,

4) provide referrals to agencies that provide access to land, financial and other services,

5) improve food safety among urban and peri-urban farmers, and

6) strengthen farmer-to-farmer learning networks via an innovative network of agricultural learning hubs.

The goal of the Hmong Agricultural Sustainability Training and Education (HASTE) Program is to enhance the long term viability and sustainability of Southeast Asian American beginning farmers and ranchers (BFRs) with a particular focus on Hmong American BFRs, and facilitate the success of the next generation of Southeast Asian American BFRs through education, training, and technical assistance. The program emphasizes stabilizing distressed farm operations, and advancing business practices to generate wealth. The program will provide education on best management practices, improving cash flow through reducing farm overhead costs, and providing farmers with the knowledge, skills, and resources they need to leverage financial assistance opportunities to improve the profitability of their operations. HASTE is a collaborative effort by Hmong National Development (HND) and EnSave, Inc. (EnSave), who have over 40 years of combined experience serving BFRs.

Three main objectives of HASTE is to (1) increase awareness of financial assistance opportunities amongst Southeast Asian American BFRs, and provide them with the resources and knowledge necessary to utilize them, (2) enhance profitability and sustainability of southeast Asian Americans BFRs through improved natural resources planning and management relating to energy, water, fertilizer, and soil, and (3) strengthen communication and collaboration between Southeast Asian American BFRs and key agricultural stakeholders, and mitigate entry barrier for new farmers.

HASTE was designed to serve an estimated 400+ socially disadvantaged Southeast Asian American BFRs with a primary strategy of improving cash flow through reduction of farm inputs. Program activities include workshops, educational conference calls and webinars, developing curriculum and educational materials, and conducting farm energy audits. HASTE supports numerous BFRDP priority topics, including natural resource planning education, curriculum development, and providing resources and referrals.

This project addresses the needs of 604 California beginning farmers and ranchers in years 4-10 of their operations who need to secure land tenure, gain management skills to go beyond short-term profits to long-term stability, and access the right kinds of markets. The long-term project goal is to provide beginning farmers with an integrated and impactful array of technical assistance, education, tools and resources so they can: 1) successfully access land, 2) gain financial management techniques and capital readiness, and 3) develop appropriate marketing strategies. The project's approach emphasizes 1:1 education and technical assistance along with robust group education, and also integrates structured small group learning with 1:1 technical assistance to ensure that knowledge is translated into action. The collaborating partners are experts in their fields and are well established service providers. No other California organizations provide beginning farmers with this suite of services. Project outcomes, farmer services and results are all maintained with ongoing and annual data collection and reporting with an established database that tracks project outcomes related to land access, farmers' adoption of financial practices and knowledge gained.

Other Collaborating organization:

A) Community Alliance with Family Farmers

B) Kitchen Table Advisors

C) Poppy Davis- Consultant

In the next two decades, more than two-thirds of privately held U.S. farmland will change hands, creating great potential opportunity for beginning farmers. Many of these are first-generation farmers from non-farm backgrounds, who need support to determine how land tenure decisions will impact the financial health of their farm businesses. Although there are a number of financial planning tools available, none are specifically focused on financial decision-making for land access.

The overarching goal for this BFRDP Standard Project is to enable beginning farmers and ranchers across the country to make informed financial decisions during the process of accessing land so that they will have a solid framework on which to build strong, sustainable farm businesses.

This project will allow farmers throughout the country to navigate land access options--including long-term leases, land trust partnerships, mission-driven farmland investor opportunities, and traditional farm loans. The project would create an interactive Land Affordability Calculator Tool (both online and print workbook versions), and include a series of 10 webinars and 8 in-person trainings. The project resources will reach thousands of beginning farmers through our extensive email, social media and partner networks. We will measure the success of the project by demonstrating improved financial literacy of project participants. Additional project partners include Fathom Information Design, Equity Trust, CA FarmLink, Dirt Capital Partners, the Carrot Project, Land for Good, Local Farms Fund, RSF Social Finance, Farm Credit East, the Farm Credit Council, as well as individual farmers, and others.

Project Summary
1. TITLE: "Maintaining the Paso Del Norte Immigrant and Military Veteran Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Network"
Project by the National Immigrant Farming Initiative (NIFI) that proposes a project with  the  long-term  goal  of  continuing  to  improve  food  security  and  community  development among  a  network  of  partners  in  the Paso del Norte  region  of  southern  New Mexico and  west Texas.  NIFI  supports  beginning  farmers  with  the  knowledge,  skills  and  tools  they  identify  as needed to make good farm business decisions and enhance sustainability.
Aligned with BFRDP goals, NIFI's target audience  consists of socially-disadvantaged  and  limited
resource immigrant farmers and ranchers who have not operated  a farm or have operated a farm for  less then  10  years. This  project also serves military  veterans,  the majority  of  whom, , are also in the category of  limited  resource immigrant farmers. 
Maintaining this farm support network allows NIFI to  continue to  learn  and support the  needs of  socially-disadvantaged farmers, so they can develop sustainable  operations and remain  in farming. NIFI  intentionally follows  the leadership of beginning  farmers  attending the  farmers  expressed  needs, designing their plans.     

Project objectives:
. Twelve farmers will initiate agricultural enterprises
. Ninety beginning farmers and ranchers will make beneficial changes   in farm operations and continue farming after project terminates
. Sixty beginning farmers will increase their knowledge through production, business and marketing training

.  Sixty beginning farmers will increase their knowledge of strategies for land access and natural
resource management and planning
4. Collaborating institutions / organizations/farmer and rancher groups include:
•     Adult and Youth United in Development Association (AYUDA)
•     Center for Sustainable Agriculture and Rural Advancement, University of Texas
•     El Paso Verde
•     La Mujer Obrera
•     La Semilla Food Center
•     New Mexico State University Cooperative Extension
•     Paso del Norte Borderplex Veterans Coalition
•     Santa Cruz Organic Farm
•     Sol Y Tierra Growers Cooperative
•     Texas A&M Cooperative Extension

In the New Organic Stewards: Expanding Community, Resources and Financial Knowledge project the Midwest Organic and Sustainable Education Service (MOSES), Renewing the Countryside (RTC) and local collaborators will bring 1,130 new and beginning sustainable farmers in Wis., Minn., Iowa and Ill. together for learning opportunities. New and beginning farmers in communities throughout the Midwest will meet, network, learn from each other, view successful organic operations, gain access to additional programs and resources, and learn basic sustainable farming and financial management practices.

We will hold four regional 2-day New Farmer Us, and numerous conference workshops and activities for new and beginning sustainable farmers. The book, Fearless Farm Finances, will be updated and expanded and used as a training reference. One-day financial workshops, supported by the book, optional add-ons at the New Farmer Summits, will provide in-depth financial basics to strengthen the financial literacy and sustainability of beginning farmer attendees. A 15-lesson online course will be developed, based on the book and using video and presentations from the one-day trainings, and offered as both a free access and fee-based teacher supported course.

As a result of the project attendees will choose to participate in additional educational programs, implement new production methods, initiate financial recordkeeping and analysis to make their farms more profitable and sustainable and feel a greater sense of community and support on their path to farming. 678 of those involved will make progress in their dreams of beginning to farm or further improved their existing farm operations.

The goal of the proposed work is to increase the number of successful beginning farmers
who can access land and operate economically viable farms utilizing organic and
sustainable production practices in Ohio. We will achieve this by helping them master the
fundamental skills and knowledge needed for success as land seekers, producers, and small business owners.

This project creates new partnerships to (1) increase the readiness of aspiring farmers to begin farming independently; (2) increase farm viability and profitability of established early career farmers to improve their success; (3) increase access to farmland for beginning farmers; (4) facilitate the creation of a cooperating ecosystem of beginning farmer service providers in Ohio to increase collective impact; and (5) evaluate, report, and disseminate results of our work.