Farm Stewardship Incubators and Education

David Harper
www.landincommon.org
Spence Dickinson
www.spencesfarm.com

The successful food farmers of today are truly “jacks of all trades�. Their myriad skills balance a knowledge of stewarding the land, animal husbandry, food production, small and large equipment repair and maintenance, marketing and running a successful small business. Many of the region’s successful small growers are approaching the age where they will not be able to do everything necessary to running a farm.

Part of the strategy such farms are using to survive is the revival of the apprentice farmer. Those entering farming for the first time want and need a mentor. They need to see and experience success and they will need a place to practice what they have learned before starting out on their own.

A Local Farm Apprenticeship and Farmer Incubator program for the Triangle region would help to ensure that the “jack of all trades� skills are passed on and create confidence that our future farmers will succeed in taking over and continuing the operation of our local farms.

*photo by Tes Thraves

We need to give children opportunities to be responsible members of our communities by participating in a “Community Supported Educational Farm (CSE Farm).�  CSE Farms can provide school children the opportunity to harvest and taste fresh produce and to learn how their food gets from seed, to soil, to table.  Spence’s Farm offers children opportunities to learn from direct interaction with their horses, sponsoring and caring for a chicken, gardening and running the farm’s store, and learning about partnership as a way of living with each other, animals and Nature. (www.spencesfarm.com)

Carolina Farm Stewardship Association, (CFSA) recently obtained a grant from the Ben & Jerry’s Foundation to study and support farmer incubators.  CFSA’s mission is to support the development of sustainable local food systems. NC State and Orange County have partnered in their plans to provide land and support for incubating farmers on the Breeze Farm in northern Orange County. A very successful farmer incubator program is underway at the Intervale Center in Burlington, VT  (www.intervale.org).

*photo by Doug Jones