Accessing Farmland

In spite of the uneven playing field that often leaves beginning farmers few opportunities to access land to farm, there are some innovative ways that beginning farmers are accessing land. Check out a few of these examples:

Are you just beginning your journey to land access? Here is a helpful toolkit to guide your journey: Farmland Access Financial Decision-Making Tool.

If you are pursuing financial management education (LSP’s Farm Beginnings and Journeyperson Courses are approved!) consider getting a tax credit through the Minnesota Beginning Farmer Tax Credit. Additionally, if you are planning to rent or buy land from an unrelated landowner, consider whether the Minnesota Beginning Farmer Tax Credit would be applicable to your situation. Details are here.

Recognizing the incredible barriers in the way of beginning farmers accessing land, here are some alternative pathways to accessing land:

Are you ready to find the land for your farm? Post an advertisement in LSP’s Seeking Farmers-Seeking Land Clearinghouse.

LSP has a number of education, training and networking opportunities for beginning farmers click here to find out more about these courses and workshops.

Upcoming Events

August 2022

Tuesday August 9

6:30 pm – 8:00 pm: LSP Deep Canvassing Training

LSP Deep Canvassing Training

Tuesday August 9

6:30 pm – 8:00 pm

Deep canvassing is a candid, non-judgmental, two-way conversation wherecanvassers ask voters to share their relevant, emotionally significantexperiences and reflect on them aloud. It is one of the most durable and provenforms of persuasion when talking to people who might hold differing beliefs thanyou and is going to be critical in creating the world we want and need.

Join the Land Stewardship Action Fund to learn about deep canvassing, what itis and why it’s important, and get trained on how to deep canvass so you’re ableto powerfully participate in LSAF’s upcoming deep canvasses and put theseimportant skills to use in your community. Register at https://secure.everyaction.com/mLpXBrNOT0q0uzsGDRa6Ig2.

Thursday August 11

5:30 pm – 7:00 pm: LSP Food Systems Listening Event in Madison, Minn., Aug. 11

LSP Food Systems Listening Event in Madison, Minn., Aug. 11

Thursday August 11

5:30 pm – 7:00 pm

With the rising cost of food and continued supply chain issues, our communities are facing ever increasing uncertainty. Many are left asking: Where will our food come from? A more secure and sustainable food system is within our reach. If we increased direct sales of food in Minnesota to 1% of all agricultural sales, we’d have an additional $76.25 million going directly to farmers.

We need you with us to make sure we can make this a reality! Join Land Stewardship Project members and supporters on Thursday, Aug. 11, from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m., in Madison, Minn.

Come and share your ideas about how we can connect farmers, consumers, and food businesses to coordinate markets and support economic development through local foods. We’ll also talk about how the next Farm Bill can help direct federal resources toward community food security, health, and economic vitality.

Register here.

Saturday August 13

9:30 am – 3:30 pm: Growing Peaches in Cold Climates

Growing Peaches in Cold Climates

Saturday August 13

9:30 am – 3:30 pm

Whoever thought peaches could be grown in Minnesota? Not only can we grow them here, but you will learn how to do it in a commercially viable way organically and they will be the best tasting peaches you have ever picked off your own tree. WEI presents Dan Sheild, our local expert on growing peaches in Minnesota. Learn about his innovative and effective techniques for getting the best peaches around, and how you can too!

To register, click here.
4:00 pm – 7:00 pm: LSP Grazing Group Pasture Walk: Cattle, Grass & Streams

LSP Grazing Group Pasture Walk: Cattle, Grass & Streams

Saturday August 13

4:00 pm – 7:00 pm

Nick and Tesla Prigge of Sugarloaf Creek Farm are hosting an LSP pasture walk for area graziers. They will show their cattle grazing system, share their farm story (including current and future plans), and look forward to conversations on various pasture and herd
management styles. There will be a discussion on including cattle grazing in riparian corridor management. Larry Gates, retired DNR Watershed Coordinator, will be a guest speaker during the riparian management section of the pasture walk.

Ralph Lentz began rotationally grazing the land in 1980. Ralph demonstrated it is possible to mix cattle with creeks when you are operating your farm as an ecosystem. After Ralph passed away in the fall of 2017, his grandson Nicholas Prigge and family began operating and maintaining the farm. The beef herd consists of 35 cow-calf Pinzgauer Black Angus animals grazing on 80 acres.

Potluck: bring a side to share. Hamburgers will be provided by hosts featuring Sugarloaf Creek Farm beef. Bring your own utensils (plate, silverware) to help
reduce waste. Open to all graziers; do not need to be a member of LSP.

To register for this field day by Aug. 12, click here.

Tuesday August 16

6:00 pm – 8:00 pm: LSP Farm Bill Platform Launch

LSP Farm Bill Platform Launch

Tuesday August 16

6:00 pm – 8:00 pm

We are confronting many challenges on our farms and in our rural communities: from extreme weather to land access challenges for beginning farmers, as well as corporate interests influencing so much of our food and farming system. But we have an enormous opportunity to address these challenges through the upcoming 2023 Farm Bill!

Join us for the Land Stewardship Project’s Farm Bill Platform Launch Aug. 16, from 6 p.m. – 8 p.m., at the Legvold Farm in Northfield, Minn.

For details and to register, click here.

View Full Calendar

Land Stewardship Project

Ear to the Ground 227: From Crisis to Community

Renting It Out Right: A Hilltop View of the Land’s Potential

Ear to the Ground 202: Regenerative Renting

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