30 Minute Breakouts30 Minute Breakouts |
Addressing the Extension Program Needs of Traditionally Underserved Groups: Results from Risk Management Colloquia Across the South |
30 Minute Breakouts |
Paul Goeringer, lgoering@uark.edu
Southern Risk Management Center
http://srmec.uark.edu/
Co-Presenters
Dr. H.L. Goodwin, Sandra Martini, and Dr. Ron Rainey, Southern Risk Management Education Center
This presentation communicates the results of four risk colloquia conducted across the South during 2010 and 2011 by the Southern Risk Management Education Center (SRMEC) at the University of Arkansas. These risk colloquia were targeted at historically underserved groups in agriculture to better understand their risk management education needs. The colloquia results are important to groups looking to illustrate the need for the development of risk management programs that benefit growing traditionally underserved groups. Results show that the traditional programs being developed by state Extension services and land grant universities are currently not being utilized by these traditionally underserved groups, and these groups are looking to outside sources for their risk and production management information. Developing risk management education programs relevant to this growing traditionally underserved group will help state Extension services and land grant universities gain new audience for their programs and keep these two groups relevant among today’s agricultural producers. Conference attendees representing their state’s women in agriculture group or state’s Annie’s Project will be able to use these results as powerful tools to present to their state’s Extension service and land grant university to better illustrate the need to develop programs that meet the needs of women in agriculture and keep their state’s Extension service and land grand university relevant to today’s diverse group of agricultural producers. Results would also be helpful to women in agriculture groups that currently compete for grants as they could provide quantifiable evidence of the importance of their proposed program.
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Materials
Addressing the Extension Program Needs of Traditionally Underserved Groups- Results from Risk Management Colloquia Across the South
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Ag Lease 101 |
30 Minute Breakouts |
Damona Doye, damona.doye@okstate.edu
Oklahoma State University
http://aglease101.org
Co-Presenters
Jeff Reisdorfer, University of Minnesota. Colleagues in the North Central Farm Management Extension Committee are co-developers.
The North Central Farm Management Extension Committee recently updated a series of leasing publications and has included them in a new Ag Lease 101 website: www.AgLease101.org
The new website features a document library with free downloadable lease publications and fillable pdf forms for a variety of lease agreement types: fixed and flexible cash rental arrangements, crop share rental arrangements and pasture rental arrangements. Short video clips such as ag lawyer, Shannon Ferrell, discussing 5 things every lease should include are posted under the Frequently Asked Questions section. PowerPoint files to accompany each publication are also available for educators. The site is mobile application and social media friendly. These resources were recently introduced in national webinars, one of which can be reviewed from the site. The session will discuss the resources available and their potential use in educational programs such as Annie’s Project and women in agriculture conferences.
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Materials
Ag Lease 101 PPT
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Agritourism Emergency Preparedness - traditional and new risk management concerns |
30 Minute Breakouts |
Julie Fox, fox.264@osu.edu
The Ohio State University Extension
http://directmarketing.osu.edu
Co-Presenters
Eric Barrett, OSU Extension
Rob Leeds,OSU Extension
Mike Hogan, OSU Extension
Dee Jepsen, OSU Extension
Participants in this session will learn about an education and outreach project for emergency preparedness within the agritourism industry. This project will increase the outreach capacity of educators, crop insurance agents, lenders, and other agricultural professionals who could benefit from learning more about addressing emergency preparedness in their work with producers. Today’s potential agritourism emergencies range from how to manage natural disasters and visitor hazards to how to integrate social media into an emergency plan. The educational products developed from this project include a comprehensive curriculum notebook with emergency planning and preparedness resources specific to various types of agritourism enterprises such as county fairs, events, festivals, and field days; farm visits and tours; u-pick operations; roadside produce stands; wineries; Christmas tree farms, agritainment venues; and farm markets. Additional resources include training videos, webinars, and PowerPoint presentations. Educators across the US can benefit from the resources, initially developed for the Ohio State University Extension, OSU Agricultural Safety and Health, the Extension Disaster Education Network (EDEN), and the Ohio Tourism Toolbox. This project is part of successful risk management education efforts directed toward women and their families who are involved in production agriculture.
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Materials
Agritourism Emergency Preparedness Overview, March 2012
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Commodity Challenge |
30 Minute Breakouts |
Ed Usset, usset001@umn.edu
Center for Farm Financial Management
http://www.CFFM.umn.edu
We will discuss the online fantasy grain marketing game/website Commodity Challenge.
We will discuss how educators are currently using this free educational tool to help students/producers learn about grain marketing.
From rookies to seasoned veterans, Commodity Challenge will help participants sharpen their skills.
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Materials
Commodity Challenge for the Women In Ag Conference Memphis
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Computer Training for Farm Businesses |
30 Minute Breakouts |
Jennifer Rhodes, jrhodes@umd.edu
University of Maryland Extension
Co-Presenters
Shannon Dill, University of Maryland Extension
Computers are an important tool for farm business management. In a recent survey from the USDA farm computer use continues to rise (USDA NASS 2011). In Maryland about 60% of farms have access to computers but only 34% use computers for farm business. In an effort to increase knowledge, farm efficiency and use of technology the University of Maryland Extension has offered a series of computer classes focused for farm computer use. There are four sessions offered which include: General computer navigation and use, Excel, QuickBooks for beginners and advanced QuickBooks. Farmers learned how to manage files, operate windows software, secure computers, develop spreadsheets and use QuickBooks. All sessions are hands on with participants in a computer lab. These sessions partnered with a local community college, a University of Maryland Information Technology Specialist and a local accounting firm.
Through this program 324 individuals have participated in this program. Each participant received a USB flash drive preloaded with numerous fact sheets, presentation, spreadsheets and other documents. Part of each session taught participants how to use this equipment and emphasized backing up computer and business documents with it. End of class evaluations were conducted. Participants report 98% increasing computer use on the farm, 94% increasing farm recordkeeping and 97% increasing their knowledge of computer systems.
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Materials
Computer Training for Farm Businesses
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Creating Successful Land Lease Arrangements |
30 Minute Breakouts |
Wesley Tucker, tuckerw@missouri.edu
University of Missouri Extension
Leasing farmland is a very common practice and will become even more prevalent in the future as additional land is being inherited by absentee owners. Leasing land can be a great opportunity for producers looking to expand or young producers just starting out. However, creating a successful relationship between a tenant and landlord is not easy, it takes a lot of hard work. Building a positive relationship that will be successful and stand the tests of time requires lots of communication and careful planning. This breakout session will address what it takes to build and maintain this successful partnership.
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Materials
Farm Leases Wesley Tucker
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Drought and Post-Drought Tools and Educational Programs for Beef Producers (and Their Lenders) |
30 Minute Breakouts |
Damona Doye, damona.doye@okstate.edu
Oklahoma State University
http://beefextension.com
Co-Presenters
Larry Falconer, Texas AgriLife Extension, and Roger Sahs, Oklahoma State University
Texas and Oklahoma have been experiencing a severe drought, which has resulted in tough choices for many producers. Do they sell cattle or continue to feed them? What can they afford to pay for breeding females when pasture becomes available? The Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service and Texas AgriLife Extension are cooperating in updating Excel spreadsheets for producers to use in analyzing alternatives. Spreadsheet tools such as the Cow Repurchase Decision Tool, Early Weaning Decision Aid and Cow Bid Price Estimate Calculator can be downloaded free from beefextension.com and may be valuable to beef producers nationwide at critical times.
Educational programs initially were multidisciplinary to address both production and economic concerns. The spreadsheet tools were used to demonstrate potential outcomes of alternative strategies. Now that many producers have partially or fully liquidated their cowherds, educational programming has shifted to post-drought rebuilding strategies. Should they rebuild slowly with stockers or leasing cows or more quickly by buying cow/calf pairs? OSU enterprise budgets (agecon.okstate.edu/budgets) and Integrated Farm Financial Statements (agecon.okstate.edu/iffs) software are being used to analyze case studies for different forage types and tenure situations. Both financial feasibility and changes in financial position are being projected. Discussion of these cases are a component of educational programs first targeted to Extension educators and now being expanded to agricultural lenders and producers.
An overview of educational programs and an introduction to the spreadsheet tools will be included in the presentation.
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Materials
Drought and Post-Drought Tools and Educational Programs for Beef Producers (and Their Lenders) PPT
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Economics of Leasing vs. Land Ownership for Grazing |
30 Minute Breakouts |
Wesley Tucker, tuckerw@missouri.edu
University of Missouri Extension
The large capital investment required for a beginning farmer creates a significant barrier for many young people starting out. Many have turned to leasing grazing lands and even livestock as a means to reduce the capital needed. Short-term, leasing land is much more profitable than land ownership and much easier on the cash flow. However, in the long term, land ownership has proven itself to be a good investment with a nearly constant, steady increase in value. According to the National Agriculture Statistics Service, beginning in 1950, land values may go up or down in any particular year, but have never fallen below a 6% trend line annual increase. Even during the rapid run up in land values during the 1970’s and subsequent farm crisis of falling prices in the 1980’s, prices once again bottomed out right back on the trend line. At a 6% annual increase, land values double every 12 years. Recent sharply higher commodity prices have caused some land prices to go up as much 15% or more in a single year. So which strategy, leasing or land ownership, truly is the most profitable for the livestock producer over time? They both have their own distinct advantages and disadvantages. This complex dilemma for young farmers is what will be explored during this breakout session.
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Materials
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Empowering Women Farmers in New Jersey and Turkey |
30 Minute Breakouts |
Robin Brumfield, brumfield@aesop.rutgers.edu
Rutgers University
http://aesop.rutgers.edu/~farmmgmt/
Co-Presenters
Burhan Ozkan, Akdeniz University, Antalya, Turkey;
Jenny Carleo, Nick Polanin, Barbara O’Neill, Stephen J. Komar and Robert Mickel, Rutgers University, New Jersey, USA
Two Rutgers led projects, one local, the other international, share a common mission to recognize and develop the managerial and technical capacities of women farmers. Annie’s Project in New Jersey launched in February 2011 and is a nationally-acclaimed educational program dedicated to strengthening women´s roles in the ever-evolving agricultural sector. Inspired by the early success of this project, Rutgers University partnered with Akdeniz University in Antalya, Turkey to adapt the Annie’s Project model to develop Suzanne’s Project. This project provides specialized training in business management and production systems to help Turkish women farmers pursue opportunities to improve their farm businesses. Lessons learned from each program have been used to improve the other while adapting to local conditions. Unique characteristics that set Annie’s Project New Jersey and Suzanne’s Project apart from Annie Projects in other states are the focus on creating a farm business plan throughout the training, and the use of social media tools to assist participants in networking that is sustainable and interactive, long after the course is completed. Other unique features of the second year of Annie’s Project New Jersey are 1) the use of social media education and adoption for marketing and business development using a unique combination of in-person education and 2) distance learning opportunities to expand the audience within the program, and 3) recording the distance learning sessions for asynchronous education of participants and additional women farmers following the completion of the ‘live’ course. Unique features of Suzanne’s Project are training in computer literacy and technical production knowledge.
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Materials
Empowering Women Farmers in New Jersey and Turkey.pdf
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Exploring Energy Efficiency and Alternatives to Manage Ag Production Risk |
30 Minute Breakouts |
Sarah Hamlen, shamlen@montana.edu
Montana State University Extension
http://www.e3a4u.info
Agricultural educators must provide energy risk education. Energy issues are emphasized in the 2011 State of the Union Address, the U.S. Farm Bill, and the Extension Director’s Association reports from 2006 to present. USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture identifies sustainable energy as one of five national priorities. Policy decisions regarding energy emissions and supply will contribute to additional pricing uncertainty and risk related to energy price management. This strong emphasis on energy both drives agricultural demand for information and resources, and is in response to escalating on-farm energy prices. Agricultural educators must be prepared to address the needs of producers, and must proactively educate producers about their energy decisions.
The self-guided and self-contained E3A (Exploring Energy Efficiency and Alternatives) Toolkit curriculum has been developed to help agricultural educators provide non-biased, research based information regarding energy decisions. The toolkit includes nine folders on specific energy issues –designed to make energy discussions with producers easy for those versed in energy, and for those who have limited experience in energy education. The toolkit provides programming options and in-depth teaching tools for agricultural educators.
This educational effort launched in November 2011. Agricultural producers educated using the curriculum thus far have learned the essentials of implementing energy efficiency and conservation measures on existing points of consumption. Further, they have learned methods for assessing their energy risks and action objectives when evaluating sources of alternative energy. This session will illustrate the curriculum designed to train agricultural educators on teaching energy risk management.
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Materials
Exploring Energy Efficiency and Alternatives
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Finding help to get started- Start2Farm.gov |
30 Minute Breakouts |
Jorie Porter, marjorie.porter@ars.usda.gov
Start2Farm National Agricultural Library
http://www.start2farm.gov
Start2Farm.gov, a component of the USDA Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program, was created to help answer the question “where can I go for help?” and includes listings of training opportunities, service providers, and other resources. This session will introduce Start2Farm.gov, an online resource to help connect beginning farmers and ranchers with information and resources. The session will include a tour of the website, an explanation of the purpose and design of Start2Farm, and a brief review of online tools and resources that are available to beginning farmers and ranchers.
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Materials
Start2Farm
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Helping Ohio Farm Families Transfer their Farm |
30 Minute Breakouts |
David Marrison, marrison.2@osu.edu
Ohio State University Extension
http://ohioagmanager.osu.edu
Co-Presenters
Chris Bruynis, OSU Extension
Mike Gastier, OSU Extension
With major changes to federal estate taxes in recent years, many farm families were confused and concerned they needed to adjust their tax planning strategies. With the increased interest in estate planning, OSU Extension Educators developed a comprehensive workshop complete with curriculum and PowerPoint presentations to help address Ohio farm families’ estate planning questions. Topics taught during the workshops included: family communication strategies, checklists of documents needed, different estate planning tools with their tax ramifications, business continuity with off-farm heir strategies, and long-term care issues. The educational material was presented in an all day workshop followed by individual consultation if requested by the farm family.
A total of five workshops were offered in 2010-2011 reaching 121 participants from across Ohio. Program evaluations using a six point Likert scale indicated participants increased their knowledge in every area measured. The top areas of knowledge gain were participant understanding of the different estate planning tools (+1.94), understanding long term care issues (+1.86), knowing what estate planning documents should be developed (+1.82), how to address the issues with off-farm heirs (+1.73), understanding of business transfer strategies (+1.72), and understanding the tax issues related to their estate (1.63). Additionally, 95% of the families indicated they plan to hold an intergenerational family meeting and 84% of the families indicated they planned to follow-up with their attorney to make changes to their estate plan. As a result of these workshops Extension Educators have held individual consultations with participants and were invited to three family meetings to assist.
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Materials
OhioFarmEstatePlanningWorkshops
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Hopewell Women-In-Agriculture (Working from the Earth) Association
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30 Minute Breakouts |
Elicia Chaverest, elicia.chaverest@aamu.edu
Small Farms Research Center (AAMU)
http://www2.aamu.edu/saes/sfrc/webdocs/SFRC.html
Co-Presenters
Gale Hipps, Virginia Ward, Ava Wise, and Karyle Panion; Hopewell Women -In-Agriculture (Working from the Earth) Association. Birmingham, Alabama
Hopewell Women-In-Agriculture (Working from the Earth) Association
Virginia Ward, Gale Hipps, Ava Wise, Karyl Panion; Hopewell Women in Agriculture Association. Birmingham, Alabama and E’licia Chaverest, Alabama A&M University’s Small Farms Research Center. Normal, Alabama
Women in the south are becoming more involved with agriculture more than ever before. According to the Census of Agriculture, over 3,500 farms in Alabama are owned or operated by women. In Alabama, this trend is not just in the rural areas, but women are getting involved in urban areas, as well. As women are become more involved and engaged in agriculture, organizations are being developed to inform and educate women on programs available, risk management and business development strategies, and every other aspect of agriculture. The Small Farms Research Center at Alabama A&M University developed the program Alabama Women-In-Agriculture Incorporated, in 2003 to fit their needs. The overall goal of the women in agriculture program is to empower women engaged in agriculture and to take charge of their production and marketing decisions by providing them with technical assistance and information about the benefits and federal programs administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Since its existence, the Alabama Women-In-Agriculture extended its outreach arm and assisted in developing the Hopewell Women-In-Agriculture, 2006, in the urban area of Birmingham, Alabama. Hopewell Women-In-Agriculture started with (15) fifteen members connecting women and their families with specialist and experts on agriculture issues, not including business, health and overall well-being. Presently, the organization has members throughout the state of Alabama, and is continuously growing. This session aims to teach individuals on various recruiting methods and techniques to connect women in agriculture. Also, come learn about the benefits and challenges of starting a successful women’s program. Let us share our accomplishment thus far, and our future endeavors.
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Increasing Financial Management Skills in Farm Women |
30 Minute Breakouts |
Chris Bruynis, bruynis.1@osu.edu
Ohio State University Extension
http://ross.osu.edu
Co-Presenters
W. Bruce Clevenger, Ohio State University Extension
Farm Finance for Women workshops were designed to address the area of financial risk management. The need to provide more in-depth workshops focusing on the development of financial statements, recordkeeping, and financial analysis of the farm business was identified by the participants of the Annie’s Project workshops held previously. The Farm Finance for Women workshop was designed for a class size of ten women, meeting four times for three hours each time. Participants were taught using a variety of lectures, hands-on training, class exercises, homework, and guest presenters. Session one included exercises related to how men and women view money, how money is utilized, and cash flow budgeting for both the household and the farm. Session two focused on recordkeeping utilizing Quicken software where each participant had a laptop computer. The last two sessions focus on the five main financial statements, how to development the statements, where to find the numbers and how to evaluate your financial situation using farm financial standards ratios. Class exercises and homework were utilized as teaching tools and participants were given the opportunity to complete a financial analysis of their farm using FINPACK software. Three workshops were held in 2011 with 47 women participating. Evaluation results indicated participants’ improved financial decision making skills and increased their confidence level in financial management and analysis. Additionally, 73% believed the knowledge gained will have a positive economic benefit to their farm business, 80% improved their recordkeeping and involvement in financial decisions, and 47% adopted Quicken software for recordkeeping.
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Materials
Increasing Financial Management Skills in Farm Women
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Increasing the Effectiveness of Farm and Family Meetings |
30 Minute Breakouts |
Suzann Knight, suzann.knight@unh.edu
University of New Hampshire
Families who live and farm together have challenges other families don´t face. While this provides an opportunity to build closeness, it also creates stress and conflict. Effective communication and decision-making is critical to balance the needs of the family living on the farm with the needs of the farm business. Shared decision-making and effective communication are keys to healthy families. Family and farm meetings help to achieve these goals. Watch a farm family meeting and learn about a communication assessment tool for farm families to gain awareness of their communication style that will aid in decreasing conflict during family and farm meetings.
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Materials
Increasing the Effectiveness of Farm and Family Meetings
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Investing for Farm Families - A Piece of the Retirement Puzzle |
30 Minute Breakouts |
Bob Wells, wellsjb@iastate.edu
Iowa State University Extension
Co-Presenters
Madeline Schultz, Iowa State University Extension
Tim Eggers, Iowa State University Extension
Ruth Hambleton, Annie´s Project
Jason Johnson, Texas Agri-Life Extension
A secure future and a farm for future generations are only part of the concerns faced by today’s farm women. It’s everything a farm family wants, but how do you secure that future is a question answered by Investing for Farm Families.
Investing for Farm Families provides critical information farm and ranch families need to make strategic decisions while weaving together farm and personal investments. The primary course benefit is the thoughtful analysis of how on- and off-farm investments can be balanced based on each participant´s unique situation. While farm and ranch families tend to be more comfortable with investments they can see and use, Investing for Farm Families helps farmers learn to diversify investments and develop a long term plan for a financially stable future.
Investing for Farm Families is where farm and ranch families learn to increase their future financial security, identify investment strategies, learn asset allocation basics, evaluate investment production alternatives for agriculture business risks, invest for retirement and begin the conversation leading to a successful farm or ranch business transition.
The curriculum uses methodology fostering participatory learning and leaving a local supporting practitioner network. Surveys and focus groups conducted by the development team indicated that farm and ranch families have unique investing needs and learning preferences. These needs are met with Investing for Farm Families. A Financial Regulatory Authority Investor Education Foundation grant brought together a nationwide team of extension staff creating an educational course meeting the unique needs of farm and ranch families.
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Materials
Investing for Farm Families-A Piece of the Retirement Puzzle
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Local Foods and LocalFresh.info; an On-line Tool for Connecting Producers with Consumers |
30 Minute Breakouts |
Trent Teegerstrom, tteegers@ag.arizona.edu
University of Arizona
Co-Presenters
Russell Tronstad
LocalFresh.info is an online tool that records information about when crops are available for harvest. This information is then disseminated to local consumers so that producers can coordinate their markets and obtain a higher percentage of consumer food expenditures by selling their products direct. Enhanced functionality is proposed to www.LocalFresh.info so that producers can “push email” to local consumers that desire their products as harvest time approaches. This is a novel contribution because it provides a low-cost mechanism for coordinating markets between small-scale producers and local consumers that currently does not exist.
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Materials
Local Foods and LocalFresh.Info
Local Foods and LocalFresh.Info Presentation
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Machinery Sharing, An Option in Farm/Ranch Transition Planning |
30 Minute Breakouts |
Ron Haugen, ronald.haugen@ndsu.edu
North Dakota State University Extension Service
http://www.ndsu.edu/farmmanagement
Co-Presenters
Dwight Aakre, North Dakota State University Extension Service
As a result of a Risk Management Education Grant and other resources, the North Dakota State University Extension Service provided an educational effort discussing farm and ranch machinery sharing and transfer of ownership.
In 2010 and 2011, nineteen farm/ranch transition workshops were held throughout North Dakota. Total attendance was 389 including couples and families. Some were previous attendees of Annie’s Projects. All facets of farm and ranch transition and estate planning were discussed including machinery sharing and transfer of ownership.
Machinery sharing could be a vital part of a transition plan. Sharing machinery is a good way to spread risk, share capital investment and provide a way to transfer ownership.
The objectives of this aspect of the workshops were to educate participants on ways to share machinery costs including operating costs, repairs and capital payments; and ways to transfer ownership. Transfer methods include outright sales, installment sales, leases and gifts. Examples where shown and tax consequences were demonstrated. Because of the workshops, greater than ninety percent of participants indicated an increased knowledge and confidence in developing their own transition plans.
The presentation to the Extension Risk Management Education’s Women in Agriculture Educators National Conference includes an overview of presentation materials and a description of the workshops. Educators could use the information and adapt it to their own region.
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Materials
Machinery Sharing
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My Library - The new AgRisk Education Library |
30 Minute Breakouts |
Kevin Klair, kklair@umn.edu
Center for Farm Financial Management
http://www.cffm.umn.edu
Co-Presenters
Robert Craven, Center for Farm Financial Management. Jeff Reisdorfer, Center for Farm Financial Management.
The AgRisk Education Library has undergone some major changes during the 1st quarter of 2012.
This presentation will showcase just a few of the new features including:
- Easy addition, management and featuring of your own publications in the Library
- Bookmarking library documents for future use
- Social Media integration to help your publication receive more views
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Networking with Farm Women |
30 Minute Breakouts |
Sandy Stuttgen, sandy.stuttgen@ces.uwex.edu
University of Wisconsin Extension
http://taylor.uwex.edu
Co-Presenters
Sandy Stuttgen, UWEX Taylor County
Maria Bendixen, UWEX Clark County
A network was established in response to farm women stating their willingness to attend peer group sessions allowing them to more efficiently sustain their farm business. UW-Extension Taylor and Clark Counties partnered with the Taylor/Price County Farm Service Agency to foster The North Central Farmwomen’s Network (NCFN). Funding for NCFN was obtained from a WI SARE Mini-Grant and by collaborating partners: USDA/FSA, Medford Co-op, Taylor County Dairy Promotional Committee (WI Milk Marketing Board), Taylor County Farm Bureau, Farm Credit Services of Medford and WI Farmers Union.
NCFN met six times in 2011, in locations accessible from northern Clark, western Marathon, Taylor, and southern Price Counties. Twenty-four women participated, representing 57 independent contacts with the Taylor County Agriculture Educator.
Attendees’ ages ranged from 30-70+ including married, widowed, divorced and single women. 62% have been farming 20+ years, 15% farming less than five or between 10-20 years, 8% farming 5-10 years.
Written responses to “After attending the women’s network sessions, I will recommend other farm women to participate because ______” included:
"It is helpful to meet and talk to other women who struggle with the same or similar issues. Socially, many farm women feel isolated and this can reduce or eliminate that."
"I attend the Farm Women’s Network meetings because I need a place to associate with other women who share the challenges of working in a traditionally male industry."
"Balancing farm, family, finances, community and home-keeping; we face unique situations that are not often addressed through conventional women’s groups."
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Materials
North Central Farmwomen's Network
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Risk management training for agritourism operators; Supportive networks grow success |
30 Minute Breakouts |
Penny Leff, paleff@ucdavis.edu
University of California Small Farm Program
http://sfp.ucdavis.edu/
Small-scale producers face significant financial and production risks which can be managed in part by careful diversification into new enterprises, including agritourism. However, agritourism enterprises also involve new financial, price, legal and social risks that must be understood and managed. The University of California Small Farm Program, funded by the Western Center for Risk Management Education, offered a series of three workshops in two different regions of California to teach producers risk management strategies for new agritourism enterprises or for developing existing agritourism businesses. More than half of the workshop participants were women, which is not surprising as women often take a primary role in the management of agritourism enterprises. A major goal of the project was to connect each participating producer with a supportive local network of agritourism advisors and peers.
This project used presentations by local experienced agritourism operators and other experts, individual and small-group exercises, readings and homework assignments to lead participants through evaluating possible enterprises, understanding risks, assessing the potential of their own farms or ranches, creating business, marketing and risk management plans, and initiating the implementation of those plans to reduce the risks of their new enterprises.
This concurrent session presentation will share the process of forming local planning teams, selection of local presenters, the use of hands-on exercises and small group discussions to encourage active participation, the challenges and successes of developing mentoring relationships, and some of the resulting plans for new agritourism enterprises and changes made to reduce risk in existing agritourism enterprises.
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Materials
Risk Management in Agritourism (PDF)
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Rutgers Cost Accounting Program Now Tracks Cash Flows |
30 Minute Breakouts |
Robin Brumfield, brumfield@aesop.rutgers.edu
Rutgers University
Co-Presenters
Christina Gouliamberis, Rutgers University
Financial skills are extremely important in today’s farm economy. The Rutgers Cost Accounting program helps farmers easily input all of their cost information from their balance sheet and income statement to help utilize all the necessary items productively. The program was originally designed for greenhouse cost accounting, but now that many farms are diversified with greenhouse and outdoor crops, it can now benefit outdoor crop uses. Producers input information from the income statement and balance sheet, and the program calculates 17 key financial rations, which growers can track over time. The newest feature of the program is a twelve-month cash flow statement that can be very beneficial to the women farmers in Annie’s Project.
Cash flow planning is a projection of costs in and out of the business during a specific period. It improves operating performance by simplifying cash analysis to operating, investing, and financing activities. Also, it eliminates potential financial problems by alerting the farm manager about possible changes in assets, equity, and liabilities.These plans are an important tool for evaluating the liquidity of a farm business and determining the operation of receiving and paying back loans. Since profitable firms can still fail because of misuse of cash, producers must buy inputs and grow crops before they are sold and have a cash inflow. Lenders usually want to evaluate the projected cash flow when making loan decisions and owners will want to have a line of credit or operating loan to cover short falls. The productive program captures the farm’s ability to pay bills and create profit in an effective manner.
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Materials
Rutgers Cost Accounting Program Now Tracks Cash Flows.ppt
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Seeds for Success: Planning and Financing Your Local Food Business |
30 Minute Breakouts |
Katie Sternweis, katie.sternweis@ces.uwex.edu
University of Wisconsin - Extension
http://dunn.uwex.edu
During the 2011 Wisconsin Local Food Summit, producers met and identified several risk management needs that were not being met. These needs included additional information for business development; resources for financing and grant opportunities of local food businesses; and information on food safety rules and regulations. To meet these needs, committees were formed to coordinate and host one-day agricultural grant workshops as well as business planning workshops in several locations throughout the state of Wisconsin during the fall of 2011.
This presentation will review the material presented in these one-day workshops and the survey responses from participants. Initial workshop survey responses indicate participants had very little knowledge of topics prior to attending, but received the right amount of knowledge and information in order to pursue their agriculture/food business. One participant indicated, “I will be able to define my business and business goals and move forward with meeting those goals,” based on their attendance at the one-day business planning workshop. Follow up surveys will be conducted with workshop participants to identify whether they have written or adapted a business plan and sought out financing or grant opportunities for their agriculture/food business.
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Materials
Seeds for Success Workshop Powerpoint
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Social Media Applications in Ag Risk Management |
30 Minute Breakouts |
Jennifer Jensen, jennifer.jensen@okstate.edu
Oklahoma State University, Department of Agricultural Economics
http://www.okwomeninagandsmallbusiness.com
Social media has quickly become communication mainstream for individuals, businesses, and organizations. Having an online presence is important and nearly imperative for a business, both for marketing and financial purposes. Agricultural producers have an active presence on sites such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Blog Spot, for example. These communication tools allow agricultural producers to share their story and participate in “agvocacy”. Examples include Michele Payne-Knoper with Cause Matters Inc., and Troy and Stacy Hadrick with their communication tools and business ‘Advocates for Agriculture’.
Social media training for agricultural producers has become an important subject for Oklahoma Women in Agriculture and Small Business Conferences. From August 2010 to November 2011, the Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service with planning partners hosted 11 local conferences and one statewide conference for women in agriculture. Half of the 12 events offered a social media session featuring a leader in the communication field who explained and elaborate on social media’s effectiveness, reach-ability, and potential positive influence to agriculture and small business owners. These breakout sessions will be taken a step further at the 2012 Statewide Oklahoma Women in Ag and Small Business Conference through a social media track with a hands-on option for participants. Participants will have an opportunity to work with a specialist at a computer to navigate, design and/or enhance their social media site(s).
Participants will also be encouraged to connect and interact with Oklahoma Women in Agriculture and Small Business Conference’s online presence, which include:
http://www.okwomeninagandsmallbusiness.com,
Facebook http://www.facebook.com/OKWomenInAg
Twitter http://twitter.com/OKWomeninAg
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Materials
Social Media Applications in Ag Risk Management
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Teaching Tax Issues to Beginning Farmers and Ranchers |
30 Minute Breakouts |
Ruby Ward, ruby.ward@usu.edu
Utah State University
http://RuralTax.org
Tax issues can be overwhelming. They can also pose a significant expense to an operation. For beginning farmers and ranchers the tax liability for self-employment tax may be unexpected and if not planned for could be a source of risk for an operation. Often a new producer is only worried about income taxes and not aware of self-employment tax issues which are often much higher than income tax. Beginning farmers and ranchers may also need information about choices they can make in starting their business.
This presentation will draw on the experience of all members of the Rural Tax Education group in presenting these materials to a beginning farmer and rancher audience. It will provide materials that can be used in other educational programs including presentations, handouts, and additional resources for participants. The presentation will also explain the motivation for including tax issue in other educational programs.
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Materials
powerpoint
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Team Up With Formal Education for Maximum Impact |
30 Minute Breakouts |
Ruth Hambleton, ruthhambleton@wildblue.net
Annie´s Project--Education for Farm Women
http://anniesproject.org
This 30 minute session will share an idea for pairing formal education settings and seminar style programs that complement each other. Some formal education settings can use reinforcement for certain topics and some seminar style programs can use the younger audience a formal education setting often attracts. Ruth Hambleton served as an adjunct professor for a farm management class at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, Illinois. In the farm management class she found a high percentage of students returning home to the family farm but found it hard to incorporate certain materials that would be beneficial to them in the formal education environment. Of particular interest were the numbers of young women returning home to the family farm and some of the barriers they were facing because of their gender and traditions. Surveying the needs of the students in the class room, Hambleton found considerable interest for a program addressing farm transitioning issues. She designed a two-part six-hour seminar that focused on issues of transferring farm assets and communications skills to help bridge the gap between generations and gender. Families of the students were invited to the seminar, as were farm families from the surrounding area. The seminar was offered as extra credit to the students in the farm management class; local farm families that had never been on campus had a chance to visit an academic environment. There was considerable interaction among students, family members, and local farmers as they interacted with outstanding presenters discussing real life issues and solutions.
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Materials
Team Up with Formal Education for Maximum Impact
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Technology and Managemnt Educational Center for Socially Disadvantage Farmers and Ranchers of Puerto Rico |
30 Minute Breakouts |
Alexandra Gregory, alexandra.gregory@upr.edu
University of Puerto Rico, Ag- Extension Service
http://www.uprm.edu
A computer is a necessary tool for any business especially for management purposes. Computers are used as a communication tool, seek information (especially market prices, government programs, among others), record keeping, advertise, among other uses. One of the main objectives of the Technology and Management Educational Center for Socially Disadvantage Farmers and Ranchers of Puerto Rico is to enhance computer skills among socially disadvantage farmers. The Center has trained various groups of women in computer skills. Participants are from various locations of the Island, and differ in income levels and commodities produced. Workshops include the following: basic computer skills, internet use, create e-mail accounts, Introduction to Word, creation of a business card and promotional material, Introduction to Spreadsheet Use, and in some groups social networks. A pre-test on basic computer knowledge, applications for their business and knowledge in computer programs (spreadsheets, word) was performed and an exit test was also done at the end of the course. Results showed that knowledge of the participants increase significantly with a at least 12 hours of computer training and that they were using or will use this knowledge to keep their farm records which will allow them to manage better their time, take better decisions, thus increasing their income levels. In addition, each professor and each workshop is evaluated and comments are also recorded. Results from the evaluations showed that participants are very satisfied with these workshops but they will like to have more workshops of this nature.
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Materials
Technology and Managemnt Educational Center for Socially Disadvantage Farmers and Ranchers of Puerto Rico
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The Use of High Tunnels and Crop Insurance to Manage Risk in Specialty Crop Production |
30 Minute Breakouts |
Annette Wszelaki, annettew@utk.edu
University of Tennessee
http://organics.tennessee.edu
Co-Presenters
Eric Belasco, Montana State University
Carol Miles, Washington State University
Debra Inglis, Washington State University
High tunnels can be a cost effective management option for reducing weather-related risks associated with growing specialty crops. The fixed costs associated with installing a high tunnel are declining, enabling more farmers to access this technology. High tunnels are unheated, single-layer plastic-covered structures that provide an intermediate level of environmental protection and control compared to open field conditions and heated greenhouses.
There are two main ways that high tunnels effectively lower risk to profitability for specialty crop production: (1) the tunnel can block heavy winds and rain, and decrease solar radiation thus mitigating crop sunburn; and, (2) the temperature inside the tunnel is greater than outside, enabling the grower to plant earlier or grow crops that might not otherwise be suitable based on accumulated heat units. We will present results from our experiments on tomatoes, strawberries, and lettuce under high tunnel production in three diverse summer climates: Mount Vernon, WA; Lubbock, TX; and Knoxville, TN. These experiments compare yields, quality, and timing differences between growing crops with and without a high tunnel at each location. This paper will evaluate the effectiveness of risk management strategies that use high tunnels and/or federal crop insurance. The results from our study are intended to aid high tunnel producers in drafting optimal risk management strategies.
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Materials
Use of High Tunnels and Crop Insurance to Manage Risk
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Turn your presentation into an experience |
30 Minute Breakouts |
Jeff Reisdorfer, jreisdor@umn.edu
Center for Farm Financial Management - University of Minnesota
http://www.cffm.umn.edu
Do you make presentations to groups of people?
This session will discuss the ways to convert your presentation into an experience for attendees, and why it´s important.
Attend and learn about ways to bring your audience into your presentation and leave them with an experience and not just a memory.
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Materials
Not Available |
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Understanding and Accessing Credit available from Farm Service Agency under the Agencies socially disadvantaged program. |
30 Minute Breakouts |
Carrie Novak, carrie.novak@ma.usda.gov
USDA-FSA
http://www.fsa.usda.gov/FSA/stateoffapp?mystate=ma&area=home&subject=landing&topic=landing
Co-Presenters
Lynn Vozniak, County Executive Director, USDA-FSA, Middlesex County Office, Westford MA
Each fiscal year, the Farm Service Agency targets
a portion of its direct and guaranteed farm ownership (FO) and operating loan (OL) funds to women and minority farmers. This session will overview basic eligibility information and assist producers in understanding what tools they need to place their application in the best possible light.
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Materials
Women in Agriculture, What can FSA do for you
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Using Farm Financial Statements for Better Business Decision Making |
30 Minute Breakouts |
Trisha Wagner, trisha.wagner@ces.uwex.edu
Jackson County UW-Extension
http://www.yourcountyextensionoffice.org
Heart of the Farm - Women in Agriculture is a University of Wisconsin Extension and UW Center for Dairy Profitability program. The Heart of the Farm offered a new program called Using Farm Financial Statements for Better Business Decision Making, designed to improve farm business decision-making by specifically addressing the understanding and use of financial statements.
Intended outcomes of the program were to study core financial information and begin to incorporate financial information into the fabric of farm life, in order to make better business decisions.
A group meeting prepared participants for a meaningful exercise and conversation about financial information and analyses. Participants then completed an assignment to construct their financial statements, and analyze their financial position and performance. While completing this exercise, participants met with program instructors via three weekly webinar meetings. Here progress was monitored and questions answered, uncovering areas where participants had previous challenges working with financial information.
Participants indicated they increased their confidence and knowledge of, and how to use financial statements. Results from the first meeting evaluation found that 80% of the participants said their knowledge of the topics improved from “poor” or “average” to “good” or “excellent”. Participants created their farm financial statements (balance sheet and income statement), calculated financial ratios for their farm, and analyzed their farm financial position and performance. Participants stated an “improvement in understanding farm financial basics” and “using farm statements for profitability analysis, and the steps on how to start making better financial decisions”.
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Materials
Using Farm Financial Statements... for better business decision making
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WOMEN IN PUERTO RICO’S AGRICULTURE PRESERVING FARM LANDS FOR A SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT |
30 Minute Breakouts |
Gladys González-Martínez, gladys.gonzalez7@upr.edu
University of Puerto Rico
Co-Presenters
Gladys M. González-González
The Entrepreneurship Center for Women in Puerto Rico’s Agriculture was established in the University of Puerto Rico at Mayaguez in 2007, supported by USDA/CSREES funds through a Southern Region Risk Management Education Center, TAMU grant. The mission was to empower women to contribute to Puerto Rico’s economic development. A total of 268 women were impacted during Phases I-III. The specific objectives were first, to improve farm business profitability by enhancing agribusiness management skills; and second, contribute to the transformation of women in agriculture, from keeping a passive role, to perceiving themselves as entrepreneurs. Topics included agribusiness management, marketing, finance, risk management, and legal aspects, as well as self-esteem enhancement activities. Assessments show that women began to use electronic tools for financial planning and began to develop business plans. Now, over two thirds identify themselves as entrepreneurs and their self-esteem improved.
Since 2011 a USDA-NRCS grant has made possible the continuation of the Center for an additional Phase (IV). The Center’s new vision is to empower women engaged in agricultural activities to contribute to Puerto Rico’s sustainable economic development, which will be accomplished through the fulfillment of the specific objectives of the previous phases, plus an additional objective: enable the adoption of soil conservation practices among participants by demonstrating their benefits to current operators as well as to future generations. Two groups of women operators or managers were trained in 2011 and the Center keeps receiving requests from women who want to participate, showing the need to form additional groups.
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Materials
Women in PR's Agriculture
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60 Minute Breakouts60 Minute Breakouts |
An FSA For All Seasons |
60 Minute Breakouts |
Anne Steppe, anne.steppe@wdc.usda.gov
Farm Service Agency, USDA
http://www.fsa.usda.gov
Co-Presenters
None planned; however, this can be revisited based on your review.
The Loan Making Division of the Farm Service Agency (FSA) will greatly appreciate the opportunity to present an overview of its mission, covering such topics as: What does FSA have to offer? Who should I speak to? How is a loan application obtained and submitted? What should a loan applicant expect from FSA? How should an applicant prepare for a meeting with a loan officer? What happens if a loan application is denied? If I don’t qualify for a loan, what can I do to meet the program requirements?
FSA will briefly discuss its various operating loan programs and farm ownership programs. FSA has specially targeted loan funds for Beginning Farmer and Socially Disadvantaged Applicant (women and minorities) loan programs, which will be the focus of our discussion. Also of particular interest to immigrant, new, and urban farmers is FSA´s ability to provide microloans, which is not widely known. We also will touch on the funding of our programs, which involve both federal and commercial opportunities, and what happens when federal funding is insufficient to meet the demand.
A round-table discussion based on the questions and interests of the attendees is proposed for the second half of the breakout session.
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Materials
Not Available |
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Building Your Legacy, Tips and Tools on Developing an Agricultural Advocacy Program |
60 Minute Breakouts |
Jennifer Williams, JOWilliams@mail.wvu.edu
West Virginia University Extension Service
http://anr.ext.wvu.edu/home
Co-Presenters
Stacey Huffman, WVU Extension Service
Jodi Richmond, WVU Extension Service
We live in a society that is becoming increasingly populated by individuals whose knowledge base of agriculture involves large box type grocery stores filled with plastic containers and glass jars. How many of your friends, neighbors, community members do not comprehend the number of variables farmers face each year to bring in the harvest or the amount of time, effort and resources involved in getting that harvest to table. Few understand a producer´s passion for the land or compassion for the animals entrusted to their care. As women in agriculture how many of your consumers do you interact with on a regular basis? Are you a resource for reliable information on agriculture to your local media outlets or policy makers? In this session learn the skills and techniques on how to reach out and impart your passion for agriculture to others. Develop your personal advocacy mission statement and learn to implement it in your community. Become a leader in agricultural literacy and advocate for your cause. The future is too important not to leave a legacy.
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Materials
Women in Ag: Building Your Legacy: AGvocate
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Educating Women Farmers to Assess Local Foods Opportunities and Risks |
60 Minute Breakouts |
Winifred McGee, wwm1@psu.edu
Penn State Extension
http://extension.psu.edu/farm-business
Co-Presenters
Lynn Kime, Penn State University
The NCSU’s General Facts about Agriculture asserts that the American farmer receives approximately 23% of each consumer food dollar, while the remaining 77% covers production, processing, marketing, transportation, and distribution costs. Consumer concern about safety of imported food, and the carbon footprint associated with traditional food choices, has resulted in increased demand for local foods. Reacting to these trends, female farmers are more apt to consider direct marketing their agricultural commodities, and value-added products, to the consumer. Because producing and selling value -added items requires different skills-sets than does traditional production agriculture, and introducing foods to the marketplace opens the seller to unique business risks, it is important that farmers receive education and support from Extension to effectively start and manage local food enterprises. The multi-faceted Penn State Extension program, "Food for Profit" combines a one-day face-to-face workshop, a self-paced Internet training, and a set of Extension Fact Sheets to instruct farmers adding value and other local food entrepreneurs. Participants are taught to conduct feasibility studies, develop written plans, and ultimately launch food ventures. A 2011 USDA RME grant supported the addition of risk awareness and mitigation strategies. This presentation will provide a quick overview of the educational content and materials, followed by detailed impact analysis for this program (reaching over 300 participants from fall 2010 to spring 2012), including a profile of participants, aggregated post-workshop feedback about KASA gains, and adoption rates of: 1) business start-up in general (go-/no-go), and 2) specific risk management strategies advocated by this program.
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Materials
Local Foods Opportunities and Risks Presentation
Local Foods Opportunities and Risks Report
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Empowering Beginning Women Farmers through Whole Farm Planning |
60 Minute Breakouts |
Peggy Sechrist, psechrist@holisticmanagement.org
Holistic Management International
http://holisticmanagement.org
A holistic approach to farm planning and decision-making is successfully preparing women farmers to mitigate their risks. Since risk variables are so dynamic, a method for managing risks that is grounded in decision-making skills prepares the farmer for whatever comes.
For two years the “Empowering Beginning Women Farmers in the Northeast through Whole Farm Planning Program” has served the target population in New Hampshire, Vermont, Maine, Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New York. The 180 women (a total of 270 to be trained) received training in goal setting, decision-making, financial planning, business planning, marketing, time management, leadership and communication, grazing planning, soil fertility, and land planning.
This presentation will focus on two of the skill sets included in whole farm training. The first is Gross Profit Analysis. While training a farmer to make savvy choices about marketing is vital, the real leverage point is in managing expenses. There a farmer has total control. Gross Profit Analysis lets a farmer see which enterprises, after direct costs and risks associated with them have been factored in, produce the most income for the least additional cost.
The second skill set is a holistic decision-making matrix. This set of seven questions is specifically designed to enable the farmer, when faced with a risky choice, to sift through the many complex variables to get to the heart of the matter – the choice that meets the triple bottom line of economic, ecological, and social sustainability. This skill set empowers a farmer to assess any risk that arises.
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Materials
Not Available |
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Iowa Women Marketing Clubs - If you present it , they will come! |
60 Minute Breakouts |
April Hemmes , a.hemmes@hotmail.com
Hardin County Extension Council
http://www.extension.iastate.edu/hardin/
Co-Presenters
Kelvin Leibold, ISU Extension
Bob Wells, ISU Extension
In the search for further interaction with women in agriculture and education on grain marketing, Iowa women marketing clubs were developed in 2011, and were funded by a NCRME grant. The groups grew from graduates of Annie’s Project, a women’s risk management program as well as other women in the area near the clubs who are experienced marketers. Helping to identify these women are the Women, Land and Legacy groups that have formed in many Iowa counties. It has become a source of support and information for women who are already marketing grain but would like the in-person connection with others like them and more information on the grain outlook throughout the marketing season.
The groups are facilitated by the ISU extension farm management specialists in that area. These clubs are member directed in that members decide the topics and direction that each meeting will go. To fit the needs of the participants, meetings are offered once a month, November – April.
This breakout session will be presented by a club participant and grant committee member. She will share the unique learning styles of each group and how the members interact. This will include what drives the conversations and how the women incorporate learning activities, speaker’s advice and what others have shared in the groups, into their marketing plans. She will also discuss set-backs of including participants at a distance.
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Materials
Women Grain Marketing Clubs
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Polarity Mapping:Managing Paradoxes in Family Business |
60 Minute Breakouts |
Jack B. Davis, jack.davis@sdstate.edu
South Dakota State University Extension
Co-Presenters
Carrie Johnson, SDSU Extension
A method to manage the multiple paradoxes that make up the very nature of owning and operating a family farm business. Family farms must be ever more efficient and effective to compete in today´s volatile times.Yet, compromises in focus challenge the very success and survival of the family farm. In addition commercial family farms employee and are owned by multi-branches and generations of farm families. The layers of complexity require sophisticated governance systems, succession plans and creative methods of financing growth. Learning to identify and to manage paradoxes brings value to ownership and to the family farm business.
Paradoxes require patience and novel thinking, not perscriptions to manage. Polarity Mapping is a tool to manage paradoxes so farm families who do not want to and need not choose between their business and thier family.
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Materials
Not Available |
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Retirement Planning for Farm and Ranch Families |
60 Minute Breakouts |
Tim Eggers, teggers@iastate.edu
Iowa State University Extension
http://www.extension.iastate.edu/feci/annie/bfrdp/
Co-Presenters
Jason Johnson, Texas AgriLife Extension
Joy Kirkpatrick, University of Wisconsin Extension
Mary Sobba, University of Missouri Extension
It is difficult to engage farm and ranch families in retirement planning educational programs. The program discussed by the team in this session addresses two primary challenges in a way other educators may find useful.
1) visualization of a retirement lifestyle
2) confidence in funding that lifestyle
Business, Succession, Retirement and Estate Planning are components of Managing for Today and Tomorrow (MTT). MTT is an Annie´s Project level II program funded by the USDA Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program. The presentation team developed the Retirement Planning component of the program based on their experience as educators in Iowa, Missouri, Texas, and Wisconsin. The team will explain their prioritization of topics within retirement planning and ways their two hour curriculum fits into the overall twelve hour program. They will summarize their experience in delivering the program and provide evaluation results.
Farm and ranch families are uniquely situated to implement subtle variations of retirement. This allows for individualized alternatives. There isn’t a “turning in the keys” moment. Changes in enterprises, increased use of off-farm labor sources, custom operations, custom farming, crop share and cash rent leasing of land may allow for access to assets by a beginning farmer. The default process allows for a transition from 100% of operations and management being provided by the established farm family to simple ownership of the limiting resource in agriculture – land. It tends to occur on farming operations with or without planning. This program introduces ways to encourage planning for retirement.
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Materials
BFRDP MTT Retirement Planning
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Sharing the Farm Experience: Women Farmers Manage Risk through Agritourism |
60 Minute Breakouts |
Jan Joannides, jan@rtcinfo.org
Renewing the Countryside
http://www.renewingthecountryside.org
Co-Presenters
Jan Joannides, Renewing the Countryside
Lisa Kivirist, Serendipity Farm and B&B
Women farmers and agritourism are natural partners, blending hospitality, educational outreach and a passion for sharing farm life while managing financial risk through income diversification. This session covers key elements that create a successful agritourism enterprise, with a particular focus on women who have created agritourism businesses that diversify their sustainable agriculture operations—from farm stays to workshops.
Session attendees will learn about:
• Challenges and opportunities during the start-up/business development phase
• Working with local zoning and regulations
• Opportunities within green/sustainable travel trends
• Target marketing and advertising, including social media
• Generating off-season income
• Supporting beginning women farmers in agritourism development
Advice and insight from successful women agritourism entrepreneurs will be shared, along with learnings from the RME project, “Managing Risk in New Agritourism Enterprises,” which focused on providing assessment and feasibility study support for small and mid-sized farmers interested in starting or expanding such enterprises.
The session will be facilitated by two leading green travel experts: Jan Joannides is the Executive Director of Renewing the Countryside, a nonprofit organization that runs Green Routes, an educational and marketing program supporting sustainable travel and agritourism, and a Senior Fellow at the Minnesota Institute for Sustainable Agriculture at the University of Minnesota. Lisa Kivirist runs Inn Serendipity Farm and B&B with her family in Wisconsin, one of the “Top Ten Eco-Destinations” in North America (completely powered by the wind and the sun) and co-author of Farmstead Chef, Rural Renaissance and ECOpreneuring.
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Materials
Women Farmers: Managing Risk Through Agritourism
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The Many Hats of a Farmer Entrepreneur |
60 Minute Breakouts |
Beth Osmund, cdrvalleyfarm@gmail.com
Cedar Valley Sustainable Farm
http://www.cedarvalleysustainable.com
As the co-owner of a successful family farm business Beth Osmund will explore the many hats that she wears while running a diverse, direct to consumer farm business.
Cedar Valley Sustainable Farm has been in existence for almost 10 years, and for six years has been the sole source of income for Beth and Jody Osmund and their three children. Cedar Valley is one of the many new farm businesses that sell directly to consumers, making it possible to make a living wage off of a small acreage.
The demands of running a business, coupled with the responsibilities of raising livestock have meant that Beth and Jody have become accomplished at many different skills. Beth will survey the list of roles and responsibilities they fulfill, and offer insights how agricultural professionals who are engaged in outreach education can support new farmers like them.
Farmers who are running direct to consumer businesses have many jobs on their plates that are may not be thought of as traditional farm work, but are critical to running a successful farm business. Market research, media relations, customer communications, database management, logistics, marketing, and website/social media management are some of the tasks that are necessary for running Cedar Valley Sustainable. Beth will talk about the roles that she fills in her business and offer ideas for support and programming that can help meet these diverse needs.
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Materials
Many Hats of the Farmer Entrepreneur
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Unleashing the Power of a Discussion Group |
60 Minute Breakouts |
Jonie James, jjames@ksu.edu
Kansas State University Research & Extension Harvey County
Co-Presenters
Mark Ploger,Kansas State University Research & Extension, Pratt County
Glenn Newdigger, Kansas State University Research & Extension, Stafford County
Harvey County Extension invited producers interested in converting to no-till production to form a local discussion group in 2003. A small group formed, and consistently met monthly during the winter months to focus on no till production. Currently this group boasts over 40 members, and still meets to tackle the questions and discuss the ideas they have. The discussion format has worked well to identify their questions, explore their ideas, develop a network of peers, and has helped them take an active role in their no-till education.
This session will highlight the outcomes of this focus group, and will then lead a discussion on the possibilities of developing other discussion groups that could center on topics such as estate planning, farm management, family farm discussions, etc.
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Materials
Unleashing the power of a discussion group
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What´s It Worth If You Stay On The Farm |
60 Minute Breakouts |
John Baker, jrbaker@iastate.edu
Beginning Farmer Center, Iowa State University
http://www.extension.iastate.edu/bfc/
In a 2006 survey of Iowa Farmers a majority of the respondents who had estate plans stated that the best plan for the farm was to divide it equally among all heirs. Conversations with colleagues in Wisconsin and Nebraska confirm these findings. There is disagreement as to whether it is the mothers or fathers who favor the equal division of the farm. The attribution to the mothers or fathers appears to be influenced by the gender of the observer. Joy Kirkpatrick with the Center for Dairy Profitability at the University of Wisconsin believes that the fathers are more likely to favor an equal division while I believe it is the mothers that favor the equal division. (Perhaps evidence of gender bias of the observer.) If the division is not equal but equitable how then will the equitable share be calculated? The Beginning Farmer Center has developed a conceptual frame work to assist families in deciding whether or not an equitable division is appropriate. The Center also developed a case study and spreadsheets to assist families in valuing the financial contribution of the in business heir to the value of the owners estate. The spread sheets allow the families to quantify the in business heirs contribution and account for that heir’s benefits received. In this breakout session gender bias will be discussed and the conceptual frame work, case study and spread sheets will be demonstrated.
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Materials
What's It Worth If You Stay On The Farm
Contribution Case Study Spread Sheets
Contribution Case Study
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What’s the Value of Your Experience? Assessing a WIA Conference. |
60 Minute Breakouts |
Marilyn Schlake, mschlake@unl.edu
University of Nebraska Extension, Department of Agricultural Economics
http://wia.unl.edu
Co-Presenters
Cheryl Griffith, Women in Agriculture, Department of Agricultural Economics, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Experience proves that women agriculturalists enjoy the learning and social experience of a WIA conference – evident by 26 years of a successful Nebraska program. Critics, however, challenge the program asking if the experience translates into real on-farm, on-ranch change. Is the learning affecting production operations? Are women expanding their agricultural roles? What issues and topics do the women feel to be important to their roles? To answer these questions, the University of Nebraska researchers conducted a comprehensive survey of the Nebraska WIA conference attendees. They wanted to learn first-hand the roles of the women agriculturalists and the importance they give to risk management tools, marketing, value-added business and much more. Attend the workshop to learn what the women are doing, saying and learning as well as how the results will be used for future programming. A copy of the results and survey tool will be available.
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Materials
Nebraska WIA Program Evaluation presentation
Nebraska WIA Evaluation Survey Tool
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What’s your Perspective? Communicating with the public about animal welfare |
60 Minute Breakouts |
Maria Bendixen, maria.bendixen@ces.uwex.edu
UW-Extension
http://yourcountyextensionoffice.org
Co-Presenters
Maria Bendixen Clark County UWEX Dairy and Livestock Agent
Sara Gronski Clark County UWEX 4-H Agent
An evolving risk in the production of food is the consumers’ willingness to buy the product and their perception of how food is produced. Women in agriculture are often involved in conversations about the welfare of food production animals. Everyone has their own idea of what good welfare looks like and it is really hard to think logically about these issues. It is an emotionally charged issue that can and often is handled poorly by many who are involved with agriculture. This session is highlights a program that can be used to help women get their message across more effectively. It works first to help us to better understand our own beliefs about animal agriculture so that we can better understand the beliefs of others.
This understanding leads to more productive conversations and marketing of products. The evaluation of the program indicated that 100% of participants increased their knowledge in several areas of animal welfare, animal handling, public speaking and cultural awareness based on the post-then-pre formatted evaluation that was conducted. One participant said, “I’m now aware that the public might think we mistreat animals and you really need to think before you say things, the fastest response isn’t always the smartest.”
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Materials
Ag perspectives
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Women Involved in Agriculture - A Kansas Annie´s Project |
60 Minute Breakouts |
Jonie James, jjames@ksu.edu
Kansas State University Research & Extension, Harvey County
Co-Presenters
Glenn Newdigger, Kansas State University Research & Extension, Stafford County
Mark Ploger, Kansas State University Research & Extension, Pratt County
The “Kansas Annie’s Project” developed as a result of the “Women in Ag” conferences held in
Kansas over the past several years. Attendees expressed the desire for more in depth training on
specific farm-related issues. The Annie’s Project format was the avenue deemed best for this
type of approach. Three counties from south central Kansas submitted a grant to the North
Central Risk Management Education Center to accomplish this task. Topics of discussion, most
requested, have been determining costs of production, understanding financial statements, family and employee relationships, farm transitional planning, marketing, farm programs and computerized record keeping.
This session will highlight how it was started and supported within Kansas and the project’s ongoing outcomes. It will also highlight several of the hands on activities used to help reinforce the education provided.
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Materials
Not Available |
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Women involved in American Indian Agriculture |
60 Minute Breakouts |
Staci Emm, emms@unce.unr.edu
University of Nevada Cooperative Extension
http://www.unce.unr.edu
Co-Presenters
Loretta Singletary,University of Nevada Cooperative Extension, Steve Lewis, University of Nevada Cooperative Extension, Fara Brummer,University of Oregon Cooperative Extension Vicki Hebb,Intertribal Agriculture Council, and Kathy Frasier, University of Nevada Cooperative Extension
American Indian Women Farmers and Ranchers are designated under the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)as socially disadvantaged due to the impacts of historical federal Indian policies, significant disparities in education and income levels, and issues that accompany geographic isolation and Indian land tenure designations. The agricultural industries in the 6-state targeted region (Nevada, Oregon, Washington, Idaho, North Dakota, and South Dakota) are important to the economic sustainability of rural communities on reservations. Increasingly, there are record numbers of women involved in American Indian agriculture. According to the U.S. Census of Agriculture (2007), approximately 8,515,189 acres of land in farms are operated by American Indian farmers and ranchers in the targeted 6-state region. USDA programs are designed to sustain and grow rural reservations. The 2010 Farm Bill provisions offer considerable opportunities for American Indian tribes and individual farmers and ranchers to participate in USDA assistance programs. On most American Indian reservations, however, these programs are underutilized. This project focused on the following goals: 1) Created a record utilizing secondary data collection to identify which American Indian farmers and ranchers are utilizing the different programs within USDA compared to the number of American Indian farmers and ranchers in the six-state area; 2) Targeted USDA professionals who work on reservation lands and Indian farmers and ranchers living on reservations in the project area to identify barriers and obstacles; and 3) Provided new and innovative ways to more effectively connect the target audience to USDA programs and services.
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Materials
Powerpoint - Women involved in American Indian Agriculture- Staci Emm
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Women, Farms & Food - Education and Networking for Women in Agriculture |
60 Minute Breakouts |
Margaret Viebrock, viebrock@wsu.edu
Washington State University Extension
http://www.womeninag.wsu.edu
Co-Presenters
Potential for co-presenters if they attend the conference
Women, Farms & Food
Women involved in agriculture face unique challenges with the demands from both the farm and family. Equally important is the challenge to take care of their personal well-being. Travel to one state location for a state-wide conference served its purpose for several years, but continues to be a challenge for women. This presentation will illustrate the success of using webinars to reach women in various locations in the state. This new approach offers the same headline speakers at 16 locations, while also making the conference specific to each region with local facilitators and presenters. Farming is risky business and women farmers benefit from the support of other women. Creating women farmer networks is also an important strength of this project. The ability to network with other women is an asset for women producers and a needed addition to their educational training for sustainable farming practices. The numbers of Latino women producers is increasing and language is a barrier. Hear how two locations successfully used translators to engage monolingual women as full participants. A dedicated website, electronic newsletters and social media contact throughout the year have kept women producers engaged. Using a new paradigm for reaching women producers requires a shift of resources, a fully engaged planning team and willingness offering a variety of alternative learning formats.
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Materials
Women, Farms & Food
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90 Minute Professional Development Sessions90 Minute Professional Development Sessions |
Cultivating Accessible Agriculture- Understanding the National AgrAbility Project adn the Impacts of Arthritis as a Disability in Agriculture |
90 Minute Professional Development Sessions |
Amber Wolfe, awolfe@arthritis.org
National AgrAbility Project- Arthritis Foundation
http://www.agrability.org, www.arthritis-ag.org
The National AgrAbility Project is a USDA-sponsored program that assists farmers, ranchers, their families and other agricultural professionals with disabilities. The AgrAbility Project is led by Purdue University, the Arthritis Foundation and Goodwill Industries International.
The Arthritis Foundation is leading the way in improving the lives of those in the agricultural industry through the prevention, control and cure of arthritis and its 100 related diseases. Fifty million Americans suffer from some form of arthritis.
The presentation will increase awareness of arthritis prevalence in agricultural occupations, identify activities on the farm that may escalate the severity of arthritis, and to promote methods of prevention and control, including pain management. Free “Arthritis and Agriculture” and AgrAbility materials will accompany the session and will serve as resources for future community educational opportunities. Presentation topics will include, but are not limited to, working with machinery, livestock husbandry and management, healthy eating, exercise, outdoor recreation, equestrian activities and lawn care.
Essential information will also be provided about how AgrAbility operates and how to access AgrAbility services. Many people can benefit from what AgrAbility has to offer, including:
•onsite visits and case management services for individuals in states that have an AgrAbility Project (currently in 25 states)
•information and referral services for those in states that don’t have AgrAbility Projects
•a multitude of resources, including an online assistive technology database
•5- and 20- minute videos with interviews of AgrAbility clients
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Materials
A. Wolfe- AgrAbility and Arthritis
Rural Youth Arthritis Risk Assessment
AgrAbility 20 Year Report
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In Her Boots: Reaching out to Women in Sustainable Agriculture |
90 Minute Professional Development Sessions |
Lisa Kivirist, lisa@innserendipity.com
Inn Serendipity Farm and B&B; Midwest Organic & Sustainable Education Service (MOSES) Rural Women´s Project
http://www.innserendipity.com; www.mosesorganic.org/womensproject
Co-Presenters
Jan Joannides, Renewing the Countryside
Beth Osmund, Cedar Valley Sustainable Farm
(Please note: This topic seems to best fit under the description of the Track Session; however, if you see if better as a 60-minute breakout/concurrent we would be open to that as well. Thanks!)
The number of women farmers in sustainable agriculture continues to grow, further supported by increasing consumer demand for local and organic foods. With smaller farms prioritizing community-based agriculture and conservation, these women see their operations as more than businesses: their farms are educational tools for connecting families to food sources. Who are these women and how can risk management programs better reach this group, particularly young and beginning farmers? What are their unique challenges and needs? This session provides a synthesis of this inspiring movement and agricultural trend with tools and resources to reach this growing segment.
Topics covered include:
• National trends and overview of the growth of women in sustainable agriculture
• Profiles of women in sustainable agriculture, including where they go for information
• Issues and opportunities facing young and beginning farmers
• Elements of successful outreach programs targeting this group
• Success stories of organic and sustainable women farmers managing risk through business diversification
A team of seasoned women farmers and sustainability educators will facilitate this session: Lisa Kivirist directs the women farmer training program for the Midwest Organic and Sustainable Education Service (MOSES) and runs Inn Serendipity Farm and B&B in Wisconsin. Jan Joannides is the Executive Director of Renewing the Countryside and a Senior Fellow with the Minnesota Institute for Sustainable Agriculture. Beth Osmund runs Cedar Valley Sustainable Farm with her family, the first meat CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) serving Chicago.
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Materials
In Her Boots
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Learning Styles - Learning How to Communicate With Different Types of Individuals |
90 Minute Professional Development Sessions |
Glenn Newdigger, Gnewdigg@ksu.edu
Kansas State University Research and Extension,Stafford County
Co-Presenters
Jonie James, Kansas State University Research and Extension, Harvey County; Mark Ploger, Kansas State University Research and Extension, Pratt County
How people take in information effects how they communicate and respond to other individuals in everyday life. “Learning Styles” is a tool to help people better understand how they, and others they work with in daily life take in information . “Learning Styles” is a highly researched tool that resembles, in terms of it’s purpose, other “personality” inventories like Meyer’s Briggs, and True Colors. The value of “Learning Styles” is how it helps us think about how we can work together most effectively. Once participants have this understanding, they can then present important information to stakeholders in their farming operations and others in different settings in a way to make the information better understood and accepted.
In this session we will discuss the different “Learning Styles”, how to identify yourself with others “Learning Styles”, and how to teach this tool to stakeholders.
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Materials
Learning Working Thinking Styles
Grid pdf
Phrase Pdf
Egg pdf
The Stretching Egg pdf
Working with others pdf
Learning Styles Def pdf
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Planning for Intergenerational Family Business Transition |
90 Minute Professional Development Sessions |
Jesse Richardson, jessej@vt.edu
Virginia Tech
Co-Presenters
Dr. Robert Parsons
University of Vermont
One of the most important issues facing family farms involves the transfer of the business to the next generation. This transfer involves estate planning, but much more. To effectively transfer the business, assets, management and control must be passed to the new generation. Often, estate planning (the transfer of the assets, is the easy part.
Two trends make this topic particular applicable for the Women in Agriculture Conference. First, the average age of farm operators increasing. Second, the percentage of primary operators that are women is increasing rapidly.
This session will cover the basics of planning for intergenerational business transition in conjunction with estate planning for family based agricultural producers. The course will cover the basics of estate planning for farmers, business agreements to aid the intergenerational transfer, consideration of retirement income needs and income sources, and clarifying steps toward reduced involvement in the farm business by the older generation.
The session will also cover considerations needed when transferring assets through gifts, sales, or leases, impact of taxes, and other business and family considerations. The team will also cover the different ownership options and provide examples how a farmer can use the different legal structures to assist in transfer ownership of the business management and ownership. This session will be taught through an interactive process led by an experienced farm transition educator and an experienced agricultural attorney. The session builds on the “Transferring the Farm” series that the presenters have conducted throughout New England over the past 5 years.
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Materials
Planning for Intergenerational Family Business Transition
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Reducing Liability and Asset Protection for the Family Farm |
90 Minute Professional Development Sessions |
Rick Zapata, rrz0001@auburn.edu
Al. Cooperative Extension System
http://aces.edu
The topic will cover the actual steps that occur in an law suit against the farmer; possible outcomes that include an order of judgement; the effects of a judgement or lien; the steps necessary to reduce the farmer´s risk; the steps necessary to protect the farm´s assets and the steps necessary to protect the farmer´s personal assets.
Some farmers continue to operate their farm under their social security number as a sole-proprieter and this makes it very easy for an attorney to collect from a law suit. The personal assets and the farm assets need to be protected or sheltered in a form that would prevent loses from occuring. Asset protection is usually not done by small family farmers until it is too late. By using legal trusts and other tools, the farmer can protect family and farm assets and provide for an estate plan at the same time, thereby reducing costs for both functions.
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Materials
Powerpoint Reducing Liability
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Poster Sessions |
"Women in Ag - A Kansas Annie´s Project" |
Poster Sessions |
Mark Ploger, mploger@ksu.edu
Kansas State University Research and Extension -Pratt County
Co-Presenters
Jonie James - Kansas State University Research and Extension - Harvey County
Glenn Newdigger - Kansas State University Research and Extension - Stafford County
The “Kansas Annie’s Project” developed as a result of the “Women in Ag” conferences held in Kansas over the past several years. Attendees expressed the desire for more in depth training on specific farm-related issues. The Annie’s Project format was the avenue deemed best for this type of approach. Since the Ag Economics Department at Kansas State University was understaffed, due to budget constraints, a program focus team at the county level was asked to pilot such a program. Three counties from south central Kansas submitted a grant to the North Central Risk Management Education Center to accomplish this task. Topics of discussion, most requested, have been determining costs of production, understanding financial statements, family and employee relationships, farm transitional planning, marketing, and computerized record keeping. Since its inception a year ago, over 70 women from 6 areas across Kansas have participated in the program. Advanced, follow-up trainings have since been requested and are currently being developed.
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Materials
Women Involved in Agriculture - A Kansas Annie's Project
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A GIS Based Approach to Applying NMSU Experimental Farm Resources to Reduce Rural Food Insecurity |
Poster Sessions |
Christopher Sylvan, sylvan.cs@gmail.com
University of New Mexico Foodshed Field School
http://unmfoodshedfieldschool.wordpress.com/
Christopher Sylvan BASC Geography University of New Mexico
Food insecurity is a growing problem in the United States. With a inability or limited ability to acquire a sufficient quantity of food, hunger becomes a problem in many households across the country.
My poster proposes using experimental farms in the state of New Mexico as distribution points to help decrease food insecurity in the state. The GIS analysis to the problem includes making a map with the location of the farms and seeing how their placement in USDA designated food insecure areas will be decreased by using the farms as distribution hubs.
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Materials
A GIS Based Approach to Applying NMSU Experimental Farm Resources to Reduce Rural Food Insecurity
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AgBizBuilder.com: Training for the New and Beginning Farmer |
Poster Sessions |
Devin Swindall, dswinde@clemson.edu
Clemson Institute for Economic and Community Development
http://www.Clemson.edu/CIECD
Co-Presenters
Devin Swindall, Clemson Institute for Economic and Community Development; Will Culler, Clemson Institute for Economic and Community Development.
Clemson University’s Institute for Economic and Community Development along with BizBuilderSC provide an educational network of programs targeted toward entrepreneurial development in South Carolina. New entrepreneurs interested in starting or expanding a food operation and small farmers have been targeted through these public-private partnerships. The objective of this exciting program is to train the entrepreneur how to use business planning to reduce risk and increase probability for success.
While class enrollment is open to any aspiring food and farming entrepreneur, over 50% of past participants have been women. The class exposes these women to many areas in the agricultural environment that they may have not been exposed to otherwise. The ten session course focuses on areas such as legal structure, research, marketing, budgeting, and cash flow. While the business training proves to be critical for the success of the young businesses, class reviews indicate that the networking could be the most beneficial outcome. The facilitators at the Clemson Institute for Economic and Community Development use their professional contacts to bring in an appropriate guest speaker for each session. As a result, the women participating in the course are not only exposed to networking with the other 15 to 20 farmers in their class, but are also encouraged to develop relationships with attorneys, accountants, insurance agents, representatives from the USDA and extension, and other professionals who specialize in agriculture.
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Materials
Not Available |
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Annie´s Project I & II: Risk Management Education for Farm Women |
Poster Sessions |
Kelly Heckaman, kheckaman@purdue.edu
Purdue Extension
http://www.agriculture.purdue.edu/wia/
Co-Presenters
Bryan Overstreet, Purdue University Extension
Because Indiana farm women want to be successful farm business partners, they requested Annie´s Project, a risk management education program to empower farm women to be better business partners, to be offered in new, expanded Indiana sites. Past Annie’s graduates have also requested more in depth information on financial management, commodity marketing and succession planning. The series, Risk Management Education for Farm Women, was created for these graduates. The Purdue Extension Women in Agriculture Team, specialists, and agri-business professionals developed and taught these risk management programs to Indiana farm women and men. Educational programs were delivered to 51 Annie’s Project and 72 Risk Management participants utilizing adobe connect interactive technology. Six months after completing Annie´s Project, ladies successfully implemented new risk management tools into the farm operation such as making changes in insurance policies, having better organized financial and production records for decision making, improved communication skills, and completing farm financial statements. Sixty percent are planning to set 2012 farm production goals.
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Materials
Annie's Project I & II: Risk Management for Indiana Farm Women
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Annie´s Project in Maryland & Delaware - 2010 Follow Up Survey |
Poster Sessions |
Jennifer Rhodes, jrhodes@umd.edu
University of Maryland Extension
Co-Presenters
Shannon Dill, University of Maryland
Annie’s project is designed to empower farmwomen to manage information systems used in critical decision making processes and to build local networks throughout the state. The target audience is farmwomen with a passion for business and involvement in the farm operation. The focus is the five areas of risk management – Production, Market, Financial, Legal and Human Resources.
In 2010, through a Northeast Center of Risk Management grant Annie’s Project expanded to 9 sites in Maryland and Delaware reaching 144 farm women and participating in 24 hours of class time. There are eight specific actions that participants are encouraged to take to manage information for critical-decision making that will enhance farm operations. To determine if the participants had actually followed through on their intentions, a follow-up survey was conducted 18 months after the class. Eighteen months was chosen as an appropriate time to survey the women because enough time would have elapsed to follow through with the skills and activities taught in the classes. There were 120 participants invited via email, which included a web link for the survey. The survey was anonymous and had a 44% response rate. Participants were asked to complete ten questions regarding actions they have taken or implemented since they attended Annie’s Project
Overall, the follow-up evaluations point to the fact that the program is successful in that women leave the program with the skills and knowledge to take action.
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Materials
Annie's Project in Maryland & Delaware - 2010 Follow Up Survey
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Eat the Foodshed: Improving the Diet with Local Foods |
Poster Sessions |
Layla Wall, laylarose.wall@gmail.com
University of New Mexico Foodshed Fieldschool
http://unmfoodshedfieldschool.wordpress.com/
Layla Wall BASC Nutrition and Dietetics, University of New Mexico
There has been an increasing interest in local food systems viability in providing a sustainable method to supply agricultural products to local consumers. Local food production systems have the potential to provide healthy food to consumers while supporting agricultural jobs. Learning about local food production systems and sharing this knowledge has the potential to facilitate connections that allow for sustainable agriculture growth. This research sought to evaluate the foodshed found in New Mexico, a diverse farming region with limited resources, for the purpose of analyzing this region´s agricultural strengths, shortcomings, and potential. One purpose of this research is to gain knowledge that can be used for education of consumers and producers to maximize the use of local food systems. This research found that there were many local foods in New Mexico that could be produced and marketed as health promoting, products that stored well for improved marketing timing, and that supported local culture. One food in particular was examined, blue corn. It was found that blue corn had potential health benefits, was a culturally appropriate food, was suited to the local climate, stored well, and could demand a premium price in the market. The goal of this research is to encourage producers in all regions to seek out local foods that can afford economic, health, and environmental benefits.
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Materials
Eat the Foodshed: Improving the Diet with Local Foods
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Empowering Beginning Women Farmers in the Northeast Through Whole Farm Planning |
Poster Sessions |
Peggy Sechrist, psechrist@holisticmanagement.org
Holistic Management International
http://holisticmanagement.org
This poster provides a program overview, yearly objectives, class curriculum along with results from years one and two and the key changes that took place.
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Materials
Not Available |
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Evaluating Alternative Low-Water-Use Crops for the Great Basin |
Poster Sessions |
Carol Bishop, bishopc@unce.unr.edu
University of Nevada Cooperative Extension
http://www.unce.unr.edu/counties/clark-ne/
Co-Presenters
Staci Emm, University of Nevada Cooperative Extension
Evaluating Alternative Low-Water-Use Crops for the Great Basin is a ‘train the trainer’ program funded by a Western SARE grant and is multi-state Basin-wide. Water is an increasingly scarce commodity in the west. By planting alternative crops, producers may reduce the amount of irrigation water they consume, allowing them to remain solvent in regions where they are under social pressure to reduce use. By educating those individuals involved with relaying pertinent information to agricultural producers, not only can resource utilization be improved but agricultural communities in the Great Basin can sustain their economic viability. Five all-day workshops were conducted in Nevada (2), Utah (2) and Idaho (1). Eighty-three agricultural professionals from USDA agencies including NRCS and FSA, Cooperative Extension and producers were trained in methods for helping producers to reduce water use, determine economic feasibility, marketing, and locating resources for additional assistance. Pre & post tests were conducted at all workshops. Six-month follow-up evaluations were sent to Nevada and Utah participants.
Of those responding to the six month follow-up survey (n=20)
•45% have introduced workshop curriculum and other SARE resources into producer programming
•35% have worked one-on-one with producers to evaluate the economic feasibility of alternative low-water-use crops
•30% assisted agricultural producers in implementing low-water-use crops
•30% assisted producers with the measurement of changes in water use and resulting environmental improvements such as water and soil quality
•35% assisted producers with the measurement of changes in profitability and economic sustainability of alternative crop use
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Materials
Evaluating Low-Water-Use Alternative Crops Poster
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Female Producers Farming Entrepreneurially for Better Risk Management |
Poster Sessions |
Winifred McGee, wwm1@psu.edu
Penn State Extension
http://extension.psu.edu/farm-business
Co-Presenters
Lynn Kime, Penn State University
The character of agriculture in the 21st Century differs from that of preceding eras, due to an expanded marketplace (with contracts, direct marketing and global competition), more technology and complexity in production, increasing impact of regulations, and a series of economic roller coasters. Business plans – once the exception – have now become the rule. In his Internet column, Business and Economy Trends, Dr. David Kohl (professor emeritus at Virginia Tech) stated that 90% of lenders require a written plan to make a loan, while less than 20% of farmers have written plans and of those, ¼ don’t use them. Because business plans include goals and strategies for business risk management and sustainability, a written document is needed not just when loan or investment funding is sought, but to provide management support on a daily basis. The USDA RMA project, Entrepreneurial Farm Management Strategies for Women Farmers and New and Beginning Producers in the Raleigh, NC RMA Region, is an educational program that instructs farmers to be proactive in business risk management to increase profitability, sustainability, and quality of life in agriculture. In addition to teaching generic proactive farm management strategies, the program stresses the importance of having a written plan and complete, usable farm financial records; anticipation and mitigation of risks are stressed. This poster session will provide an overview of the educational content of the project, a profile of the audiences reached, and the program impact data -- specific risk management strategies advocated and the adoption rates reported by participants.
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Materials
Farming Entrepreneurially Poster
Farming Entrepreneurially Brochure
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Harvey County No-Till Discussion Group |
Poster Sessions |
Jonie James, jjames@ksu.edu
Kansas State University Research & Extension, Harvey County
Harvey County Extension invited producers interested in converting to no-till production to form a local discussion group in 2003. A small group formed, and consistently met monthly during the winter months to focus on no till production. Currently this group boasts over 40 members, and still meets to tackle the questions and discuss the ideas they have. The discussion format has worked well to identify their questions, explore their ideas, develop a network of peers, and has helped them take an active role in their no-till education.
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Materials
Harvey County No-Till Discussion Group Poster
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Kentucky Women in Agriculture--Empowering women through education, involvement, and action. |
Poster Sessions |
Gae Broadwater, gae.broadwater@kysu.edu
Kentucky State University
Co-Presenters
Sharon Furches
President
Kentucky Women in Agriculture, Inc.
Kentucky Women in Agriculture, Inc. (KWIA) works to empower women through education, involvement, and action. The broad goals, as stated in the articles of incorporation, are to: (1) Promote Kentucky women in agriculture; (2) Promote agriculture in Kentucky; (3) Create a cooperative feeling among women in agriculture and strive for good fellowship and integrity of the membership as a whole; (4) Protect the best interest of our members; (5) Communicate with one another and with other consumers to promote agricultural products and services for the benefit of Kentuckians and the world.
This poster will illustrate how KWIA has fulfilled its mission for more than 10 years by promoting educational opportunities that advance the interests and welfare of its members regarding issues surrounding agriculture; educating members on policy, legislative processes, and issues that are of concern to agriculture; serving as a liaison between its members and entities interested in the sustainability of agriculture; and preparing members for leadership roles in agriculture at the county, state and national level.
This member-driven organization benefits from partnerships with 2 land grant universities, state agriculture departments, and federal agencies. These relationships provide ongoing networking, technical assistance, and leadership development for members and others attending KWIA-sponsored events.
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Materials
Kentucky Women in Agriculture--Empowering women through education, involvement, and action
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National Educators Network Empowers Local Women´s Networks |
Poster Sessions |
Madeline Schultz, schultz@iastate.edu
Iowa State Univeristy Extension
http://www.extension.iastate.edu/annie
Co-Presenters
Karisha Devlin, Tim Eggers, Ruth Hambleton, Lani McKinney, Mary Sobba, Bob Wells
This poster session will highlight the impact of educators collaborating with others who are reaching out to farm and ranch women through Annie’s Project. By working together, we can deliver more and better risk management programs.
The vision of the Annie’s National Network Initiative for Educational Success (ANNIES) is to bring financial security and well-being to women in rural communities where food, feed, fiber and fuel production are synonymous with family farms.
To bring this vision to reality; the mission of ANNIES is to cooperate with other educators across the nation to develop and deliver more effective and efficient risk management educational programs; for the purpose of empowering women farmers and ranchers to be better business owners and partners through networks and by managing and organizing critical information.
The Iowa State University Research Institute for Studies in Education conducted a survey of Annie’s Project educators in 2011. The results showed 94 percent of the 69 survey respondents contacted educators in the network for advice, curriculum or other assistance. As a result of participation in the network: 75 percent said they delivered a greater number of agricultural risk management programs; 73 percent said they provided higher quality programs; 87 percent said they reached new audiences; and 79 percent said they built new partnerships.
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Materials
Not Available |
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NORTH DAKOTA FARM/RANCH TRANSITION PLANNING; Program Design, Implementation and Impact |
Poster Sessions |
Willie Huot, willie.huot@ndsu.edu
NDSU Extension Service
http://willie.huot@ndsu.edu
Co-Presenters
Willie Huot, NDSU Extension Service
Since 2006, over 1000 women have participated in the ND Annie’s Project. The success of this program has led to a “tier II” program that focuses on Farm/Ranch Transition Planning education. Initiated in March, 2010, the programs have been conducted five times throughout the state of ND in over 30 locations. Total participation to date has been approximately 600. The overall objectives of this program focus primarily on improving communication skills, increasing knowledge of many effective transition strategies and empowerment of participants to work more effectively with professionals in the development of transition plans.
A state project coordinator provides leadership for the planning, delivery and evaluation of this program. All staff members involved are expected to participate in at least one of the two in-service sessions offered each year to plan and deliver this program. One planning sessions is typically held in the spring and the other in the fall. The program is funded primarily by registration fees.
Program delivery has been a combination of Interactive Video Network presentations combined with local presenters at each site. The sessions are offered in a three part series with each session three hours long. The sessions focus primarily on improving communication skills, pros and cons of various farm/ranch business arrangements and tax consequences of different types of transfer strategies.
Overall evaluations reveal that about 92 – 96 % of participants have increased their knowledge of transition planning issues and improved their confidence to develop/improve an existing transition plan for their farm /ranch business.
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Materials
NORTH DAKOTA FARM/RANCH TRANSITION PLANNING; Program Design, Implementation and Impact
NORTH DAKOTA FARM/RANCH TRANSITION PLANNING; Program Design, Implementation and Impact
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Western Extension Marketing Committee: Regional Model for Outreach Programming to Beginning, Small, and Underserved Farmers and Ranchers |
Poster Sessions |
Ruby Ward, ruby.ward@usu.edu
Utah State University
Co-Presenters
Kynda Curtis, USU
Cole Ehmke, U of Wyoming
Bridger Feuz, U of Wyoming
Dillon Feuz, USU
Karina Gallardo, WSU
Wilson Gray, U of Idaho
Larry Lev, OSU
Ramiro Lobo, UC Extension
Stuart Nakamoto, U of HI
Dawn Thilmany, CSU
Russ Tronstad, U of Arizona
As traditional commodity marketing channels in recent years have not provided sufficient returns for many small and medium sized farmers to maintain a viable livelihood, our program’s materials are focused on helping producers that are looking for ways to differentiate their product so that they may receive higher prices, obtain better market access, and experience less volatile price swings. Our poster will outline the curricula and resources created by the Western Extension Marketing Committee which assist farmers in identifying, selecting, managing, monitoring, and growing agricultural enterprises that increase value-added on farms and ranches. The poster will additionally provide examples of how these materials have impacted producers and unique ways in which they have been used to reach traditionally underserved audiences.
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Materials
Western Extension Marketing Committee Overview
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What does the future hold for cash rental rates? |
Poster Sessions |
Gregg Ibendahl, ibendahl@agecon.msstate.edu
Mississippi State University
Land prices have been increasing at astonishing rates over the last few years. Cash rental rates for cropland have also been increasing as well. However, are cash rental rates appropriate given the level of land prices and the current potential net income. This poster examines cash rental rates for cropland in the midwest and south to determine if rates are appropriate and where they might be headed. This poster will examine the question based on potential net income and also as a factor of the current land price.
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Materials
Not Available |
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Women in Agriculture Educators National Conference - A historical summary infographic |
Poster Sessions |
Jeff Reisdorfer, jreisdor@umn.edu
Center for Farm Financial Management
http://www.cffm.umn.edu
This infographics covers the history of the Women in Ag conference. From total attendance by region to all Keynote speakers. This infographic will provide a visual cumulative summary of every Women in Agriculture Educators National Conference.
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Materials
Not Available |
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Women in Farming Discussion Groups: How To |
Poster Sessions |
Bonnie Collins, bsc33@cornell.edu
Cornell Cooperative Extension of Oneida County
http://counties.cce.cornell.edu/oneida/
More than one million women are among the 3.3 million farm operators counted in the 2007 Census of Agriculture. The number of women operating farms in the U.S. has increased 19 percent since 2002. Farmwomen trust experience and knowledge of other farmwomen who are in similar situations. As they increasingly participant and contribute to agriculture, their desire to meet and talk can provide a valuable tool to help cultivate themselves, their families, their farm operations and their local communities.
I would like to share, through a poster session, how to develop a women’s discussion group, how to collectively and mutually conduct a discussion group for impact, how the group can form professional relationships with each other and with those in their community, and how the social interaction within the group can become more personal and meaningful.
The presentational will be constructed around the success of the Oneida County Women in Farming and how their past and present projects have earned this group the recognition at a local and county level with community and industry leaders.
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Materials
Women in Farming Discussion Group
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