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INVESTIGATOR: Goland, C.

PERFORMING INSTITUTION:
OHIO ECOLOGICAL FOOD AND FARM ASSOCIATION
41 CROSWELL RD STE D
COLUMBUS, OHIO 43214

GROWING GOOD FARMERS, GROWING GOOD FOOD: A COMPREHENSIVE TRAINING PROGRAM FOR OHIO`S ORGANIC AND SUSTAINABLE BEGINNING FARMERS

NON-TECHNICAL SUMMARY: Ohio has 27,000 farmers on their present farms less than 10 years and a sizable (though imprecise) number of aspiring farmers. All face multiple challenges to gaining farm stability and success. At the same time, farmers aged 55 and above account for 65% of all farmers in Ohio, hold 83% of all farmland in the state (over 8 million acres), and outnumber farmers under the age of 35 eightfold. The impending retirement of this cohort, with an average age of 56.8 years presents several threats, with loss of their knowledge and conversion of their farmland to other uses chief among them.For these two parallel populations - the beginning farmer and the exiting farmer - the problems confronted by one provide at least part of the solution for the other. The key is to support beginning farmers so that they can be successful as producers and small business owners. Growing Good Farmers, Growing Good Food will advance the goal of helping aspiring farmers advance to become new farmers, and help new farmers achieve more success and thus persist in farming. The project will do so by delivering a package of skill-building educational opportunities to facilitate beginning farmers' development as producers and small business owners.The ultimate goal of this project is to increase the number of organic and sustainable farms in Ohio. For aspiring farmers, we will offer intensive on-farm apprenticeships to develop farming skills, and complementary activities such as classroom instruction, network building, and support to assess and address individual learning needs. For new farmers, we will provide additional farming skills and knowledge, whole farm planning, business and financial management skill-building, tools and knowledge for expanding production, direct technical assistance, mentoring, and network building. We also will provide education and assistance to land trusts, landowners, and beginning farmers about innovative tools, farm succession and transition planning, and financing to address the need for beginning farmers to access capital and affordable farmland. Over the course of the project, we anticipate serving the needs of 500 beginning farmers.

OBJECTIVES: The goal of the proposed work is to increase the number of successful beginning farmers who operate economically viable farms and utilize organic and sustainable production practices.Objectives include:Create skill-building, educational, and networking opportunities for aspiring farmers.Support those who have already begun farming on their own operations to achieve production and business success through education, technical support, and mentoring.Address the land access needs of beginning farmers with innovative tools and new partnerships.