Federal Beginning Farmer Program Launched this Month

CONTACTS:  Bill Gorman, LSP Federal Farm Policy Committee member, 651-258-4127
Adam Warthesen, LSP organizer, 612-722-6377

3/19/09
MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. — The USDA announced this month that it is accepting applications for efforts that support new farmer training, education and assistance. Applications will be accepted through May 13 for the Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program (BFRDP). BFRDP, passed in the 2008 Farm Bill with $75 million in dedicated funding, is a competitive grants program aimed at providing resources to community-based organizations and other institutions and groups which offer support to beginning farmers and ranchers. To see the Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program’s “Request For Applications,” as well as additional information on the program, visit www.grants.gov/search/search.do;jsessionid=f8nvJ6sKSKmyQK9lvyLqRKpytQcGKDFhl
1L0BVNNh3lD1GpHch2n!1057178580?oppId=46027&flag2006=false&mode=VIEW.

“The program is a good example of how federal support can provide resources to on-the-ground organizations in communities across the country to stimulate action,” said Bill Gorman, a Land Stewardship Project Federal Farm Policy Committee member and Goodhue County dairy farmer. “This program is geared to those working to help new farmers succeed — new farmers that are needed to grow our food, care for the land and strengthen our rural economy and Main Streets.”

During the 2008 Farm Bill debate, the Land Stewardship Project (LSP) organized widespread grassroots and organizational support for the BFRDP initiative. LSP testified in Congressional hearings and worked closely with policymakers such as House Agriculture Committee chairman Collin Peterson (D-MN) and House Agriculture Committee members Tim Walz (D-MN) and Stephanie Herseth-Sandlin (D-SD), as well as Senate Agriculture Committee chairman Tom Harkin (D-IA), to win for the first time ever a beginning farmer development policy with dedicated funding.

USDA announced the availability of funds and issued a request for applications on March 13. The initiative will be administered by the Cooperative States Research, Education and Extension Service (CSREES), an arm of USDA. This year over $17 million is available in grants to applicant organizations that work with beginning farmers and ranchers.

“Never before have there been these type of resources to support those who work face-to-face and often day-to-day with new farmers,” said Gorman. “This isn’t the only public policy or approach to help new farmers, but it is a piece of the puzzle and an important signal for those interested in starting farming.”

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