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 Beginning Farmer Program for MN, WI & IA Accepting Applications for 2025-2026 Course

Early Bird Discount Deadline for Farm Beginnings Class Aug. 1

July 16, 2025

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LEWISTON, Minn. — One of the most successful beginning farmer training programs in the country is now accepting applications for its 2025-2026 course session serving the Minnesota, western Wisconsin and northern Iowa region. The Land Stewardship Project’s (LSP) Farm Beginnings initiative is a training program that focuses on the goal-setting, marketing and financial skills needed to establish a successful farm business. The deadline for applications is Sept. 1. The cost of the class is $1,000 for up to two participants per farm. Early bird applications submitted by Aug. 1 will receive a $100 discount if they are accepted into the class. Scholarships are available. For more details (including a class schedule) and to apply, see landstewardshipproject.org/farm-beginnings-class or contact LSP’s Annelie Livingston-Anderson at annelie@landstewardshipproject.org, 612-400-6350.

Beginning and prospective farmers are invited to apply to the course. The 2025-2026 session will be in hybrid form, taking place mostly online via Zoom, but also including some in-person sessions in the Twin Cities, Minn., area. The course will run from December 2025 through March 2026. For LSP’s 2025-2026 Farm Beginnings class, applicants from Minnesota, western Wisconsin and northern Iowa will be given priority because the organization is best able to provide resources and connections in this region.

The Farm Beginnings course creates a space for students to name their vision, acquire the tools and skills needed to make it happen and become part of a community of support to help them succeed. Since it was launched in the late 1990s, over 1,000 participants have graduated from Farm Beginnings in the Minnesota-Wisconsin-Iowa region, and many of those graduates are involved in farming enterprises such as vegetables, grass-based livestock, organic grains, Community Supported Agriculture and specialty crops. Farm Beginnings has served as the model for similar beginning farmer training programs across the country. Profiles of past graduates can be read at landstewardshipproject.org/category/farm-beginnings-profiles. Podcast interviews with Farm Beginnings grads are at landstewardshipproject.org/fresh-voices.

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The Land Stewardship Project (LSP) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to fostering an ethic of stewardship for farmland, promoting sustainable agriculture and developing healthy communities in the food and farming system. LSP has offices in the Minnesota communities of Montevideo, Lewiston and South Minneapolis.

Category: News Releases
Tags: beginning farmers • Farm Beginnings • farm transitions

Contact

Annelie Livingston-Anderson, LSP Farm Beginnings organizer, e-mail, 612-400-6350

Upcoming Events

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August 2025

Tuesday August 26

9:30 am – 3:00 pm
UW Organic Agriculture Research Field Day
Tuesday August 26
9:30 am – 3:00 pm
UW Organic Agriculture Research Field Day
Arlington, WI 53911, USA


This University of Wisconsin Organic Grain Resource and Information Network field day will feature tours and talks about the latest in organic systems research. Attendees will learn about reduced-tillage corn and soybeans, no-till dry beans, advances in food-grade grains, emerging crops, biocontrol agents to manage white mold in soybeans, and on-farm soil health research. 

For more information and to register, click here. 

Wednesday August 27

10:00 am – 4:30 pm
Field Day: Farmer-Distiller Grain Connection
Wednesday August 27
10:00 am – 4:30 pm
Field Day: Farmer-Distiller Grain Connection
Paxton, IL 60957, USA

Join OGRAIN, Artisan Grain Collaborative, The Land Connection, and IDEA Farm Network for this unique field day tailored for farmers and distillers alike to learn in the field and at the distillery. Dallas and Will Glazik will lead attendees through Cow Creek Organic Farm’s organic fields and discuss proper food-grade grain handling. The day will end with a distillery tour, grain quality talk, farmer-distiller social event, and optional tasting at Silver Tree Spirits.

For details and to register, click here. 

September 2025

Monday September 1

All Day
Final Deadline for LSP's Farm Beginnings Course
Monday September 1
Final Deadline for LSP's Farm Beginnings Course

Beginning and prospective farmers are invited to apply to the Land Stewardship Project’s Farm Beginnings course, a year-long training program that focuses on the goal setting, marketing, and financial skills needed to establish a successful farm business. The Farm Beginnings course creates a space for folks to name their vision, acquire the tools and skills needed to make it happen, and become part of a community of support to help them succeed.  

The course will run from November 2025 through March 2026, with some additional educational opportunities to take place later in 2026. 

The deadline for applications is Sept. 1. Early bird applications submitted by Aug. 1 will receive a $100 discount if you are accepted into the class. Partial scholarships are available.

More details are at http://www.farmbeginnings.org or Annelie Livingston-Anderson at annelie@landstewardshipproject.org.

You can apply to the course here.

Friday September 5

9:00 am – 3:00 pm
Soil Health Field Day: Austin
Friday September 5
9:00 am – 3:00 pm
Soil Health Field Day: Austin
50203 205th St, Austin, MN 55912, USA

Details are here.

Saturday September 6

9:00 am – 5:00 pm
Soil & Food Health Field Day: Austin
Saturday September 6
9:00 am – 5:00 pm
Soil & Food Health Field Day: Austin
50203 205th St, Austin, MN 55912, USA

Details are here.

View Full Calendar

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Montevideo, MN 56265

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Lewiston, MN 55952

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(612) 722-6377

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https://landstewardshipproject.org/beginning-farmer-program-for-mn-wi-ia-accepting-applications-for-2025-2026-course