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National Young Farmers Coalition holds Farming Fundamentals Seminar

The National Young Farmers Coalition held their second “Farming Fundamentals” meeting, Feb. 4, focusing on the “Costs of Farming" at the Fallbrook Community Center. Despite the rain, farmers and aspiring farmers from throughout San Diego County and Riverside County attended the event.

Mai Nguyen, the California organizer for the NYFC, facilitated the four-hour presentation. Nguyen opened with some issues that affect farmers in San Diego: finding land with water, the cost of farming and where to get money to farm, lack of resources for farmers and ecological practices and climate change affecting farmers.

The first speaker, Mike Parker, also from the NYFC, discussed financial planning for the costs of farming. Parker said that financial planning is unique to each farm, and there is no one-size-fits-all budget for farmers. Parker recommended that each farmer first ask themselves, how much does it cost to start their farm, how much do they need to earn and how much do they need to produce to get to that number?

Parker shared free financial planning resources, including a Finding Farmland Calculator at http://www.findingfarmland.org, and the Farm Service Agency Guidebook, which is written for farmers and ranchers who want access to low-interest federal credit options aimed at family farmers.

The following two speakers, Iris Nolasco and Brett Melone, represented California FarmLink, a nonprofit Community Development Financial Institution. Their mission is to “link independent farmers and ranchers with the land and financing they need for a sustainable future.”

Nolasco and Melone discussed land access and traditional farm and ranch land financing.

California FarmLink works with beginning and established farmers to find land that meets their current needs, as well as their goals for growing businesses. The nonprofit also helps facilitate negotiations between landowners and farmers, develops and review leases and other land tenure agreements and guides farm successions and business transfers.

After hearing about traditional financing for farmers from the representatives from California FarmLink, attendees learned about grassroots financing from Cameron Rhudy of the Sustainable Economies Law Center.

The Sustainable Economics Law Center provides education, research, legal advice and policy advocacy to advance food and farm systems. Rhudy discussed obtaining funds for farm enterprises in California through methods other than bank and institutional loans, such as crowdfunding websites like http://www.Kiva.org.

Rhudy also explained that seeking investment dollars from community members rather than large institutions might be more feasible for beginning farmers. She also said that before seeking donations, farmers should be aware of the basics of securities laws.

Parker wrapped up the seminar, bringing focus back to the earlier mentioned Finding Farmland Calculator. This calculator tool allows farmers to compare farmland financing scenarios and helps farmers determine what they could afford. To try the calculator, visit https://findingfarmland.youngfarmers.org/calculator.

These presentations are a great source of information for farmers, aspiring farmers and anyone interested in farming in San Diego County. The next event, “Business Entity and Planning: Business entity choice and business planning basics,” will be held 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., March 20, at the San Diego Small Business Development Center. To register for this event, visit http://www.youngfarmers.org/events/farming-fundamentals-3-business-entity-and-planning-55098042729.

For more information about the organizations mentioned in this article, visit National Youth Farmers Coalition at http://www.youngfarmers.org; California FarmLink at http://www.californiafarmlink.org and Sustainable Economies Law Center at http://www.theselc.org.

 

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