Beginning farmers from across the Midwest will gather in southeastern Minnesota later this month for a training focused on the often overlooked business side of agriculture.
The two-day New Farmer U retreat is scheduled for March 21-22 in Lanesboro
and is designed to help producers build financial and management skills needed to run a successful farm.
Organized by Marbleseed in partnership with
and Big River Farms, the program has supported more than 700 farmers since it began, according to the organizations.
Workshops will focus on topics such as farm financial planning, marketing strategies, equipment and crop decisions, record-keeping systems and navigating government funding programs.
“We want participants to leave New Farmer U feeling energized and capable, with clearer goals, stronger tools and the reassurance that they’re not alone in this work,” said Gilbert Schwartz, farmer and conservation and stewardship outreach coordinator with Renewing the Countryside.
Organizers say the event is aimed primarily at farmers in the earliest stages of their careers.
“The majority of them are in the pretty beginning stages,” said Brett Olson, co-founder and creative director of Renewing the Countryside. “I’d say half of them are just in the first couple years, and so they’re really either interning or trying to put a wet finger in the air to see if this is going to be a fit for them.”
Olson said participants with a few seasons of farm operating experience, who are looking to strengthen their financial management, are also welcome to come.
One day of the program will be dedicated to
, an all-in-one resource for setting up and managing a farm’s financial system that includes real-life examples from successful farmers and sample data to show how forms and records should look.
“Hopefully they’re realizing that while things are going pretty good, they could go a little better if they had a better handle on how their finances were really working,” Olson said.
About 25 farmers were registered as of late February, with organizers expecting participation to approach 50 by the time the retreat begins.
Sessions will be held at Eagle Bluff Environmental Learning Center, where participants will stay overnight and attend workshops led largely by experienced farmers from the region.
The event will also emphasize peer networking, something Olson said many farmers value as much as the formal instruction.
“Whenever we get back from a retreat like this, people say the part they enjoyed the most was just finding my people,” he said. “Having that kind of interaction to both validate myself and also come up with some workarounds and tips and ideas that never occurred to me.”
Registration includes meals, lodging, evening activities and a farm finance book. Several need-based scholarships are available for participants.
To register and find out more about the panelists and details of the event, visit
https://www.tickettailor.com/events/renewingthecountryside/2009991
.
