Project Overview
Global Gardens trained beginning farmers who have cultural, linguistic, or economic barriers to success which might prevent them from otherwise becoming successful farmers or accessing more mainstream farmer training programs. Our long-term goal was to create sustainable, profitable, independent small farm businesses. Our focus is mainly on organic or spray-free vegetable production with direct sales through farmers’ markets and Community Supported Agriculture projects (CSAs), and wholesales to local Boise restaurants. A small farm-to-school program and sales at a local grocery store were also established during the project period. Global Gardens is a land-based incubator farm program which provides land, water, and other infrastructure for beginning farmers’ use, as well as training and marketing support. Supporting objectives included assisting farmers with land leases on incubator farms or independently, increasing the size and number of available incubator plots, providing classroom and field training, marketing support by facilitating farmers’ market, CSA, and wholesale participation, financial literacy training, and mentoring opportunities. The project included nine paid on-farm internships for beginning farmers. Target audiences were refugees resettled in Boise, ID, and Native American residents of the Duck Valley Reservation. Both groups were comprised of limited resource and socially disadvantaged individuals. Outcomes include increases in knowledge of sustainable vegetable production, marketing, and financial literacy for participating farmers, establishment of new, refugee and Native-owned farms and new land leases, and increased productivity and farm income for those already farming. Participation in this program promoted increased integration into the larger community, and the development of decision making and business management skills that will empower participants to succeed in on-farm and off-farm pursuits.
Number of Participants: 146
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