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What resources do beginning farmers need?

USDA and Michigan State University Extension are collaborating to create more comprehensive resources for beginning farmers.

USDA Beginning Farmers and Ranchers Coordinator for Michigan Aimee Swenson tells Brownfield, “I get calls, emails several times a week— How do I get started? What do I need?”

“The goal is to try to get folks to where they understand what they want to grow and to give them the research tools to be able to go down that route successfully,” she explains.

She says the new Beginning Farmer Resource & Decision-Making Guide will simplify and consolidate information for how farmers can get started as well as serve as a template for other regions.

“Any state can take this model and apply it to their needs because they’re all going to have different resources,” she says. “The subject matter might be the same, but their subject matter experts will be different, resources, their extension will be different.”

Swenson and Michigan State University Extension Farm Business Management Educator Jon LaPorte presented the draft guide during the GL Expo and plan to conduct a farmer survey for feedback before releasing the tool next year.

Swenson says land access, securing funding, and knowledge gaps are the top issues challenging beginning farmers.