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INVESTIGATOR: Mesko, J.

PERFORMING INSTITUTION:
SUSTAINABLE FARMING ASSOCIATION OF MINNESOTA
9747 70TH AVE
MILACA, MINNESOTA 56353

DEEP ROOTS: THOUGHTFUL, COMPREHENSIVE, COMMUNITY-BASED BEGINNING FARMER TRAINING

NON-TECHNICAL SUMMARY: 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 direct experience in the field.For all these audiences, the need is to rebuild connections between people and land so that food can be produced in a way that optimizes productivity without compromising future capacity to produce food. Although in Minnesota, for example, agriculture and food processing make up one-fifth of the State's economy, the number of students entering mainstream agricultural programs in colleges and universities has been steadily falling for decades. The need for the nation is to rekindle engagement with food production on a small scale where individuals can reasonably plan for a career on a commercially viable farming operation. These small growers in concert with large scale industrial farmers are all necessary partners in a comprehensive food production system.

OBJECTIVES: Demonstrate knowledge of sustainability principles.Proposed activities: We will develop and conduct online courses designed for students to experience deep learning by reading the classic agrarian literature. Students will read about the ecological, social, and economic processes inherent in sustainable agriculture as offered by a variety of time-tested and respected authors. Wendell Berry, Joel Salatin, Gene Logsdon, Wes Jackson and other authors will be read and discussed, with key learnings internalized into business planning phases of the training. The point is to have students study the concept and theory; observe it on mentor farms; engage necessary practices in farm skills workshops; and then to institute natural systems agriculture on their own farms. Experience and apply a diversity of sustainable food production methods and skills.Proposed activities: We will engage our students in real world hands on farm skills training at SFA member farms. Topic material will include: safe and humane animal handling, farm equipment operation, maintenance and safety, fencing, season extension, basic farm construction, tools and management and more.