Diversified Farming and Food Systems

A Beginning Farmer Workbook:

How to Plan, Support, and Grow Your Farm or Ranch

ID-487
 Acknowledgements
One of my favorite quotes is, “It takes a village.”
There is no way this workbook would have come to
fruition without the help and support of many Extension
educators and farmers throughout the world. I have
learned from the best and am happy to have been able
to contribute back a bit to making you a better farmer.
I also want to give a special thank you to the following
for reviewing and contributing to this publication:
Natalie Carroll, Purdue Agricultural and Biological
Engineering and Purdue Youth
Development and Agricultural Education
Sam Smith, Intervale Center, Burlington, Vermont
Daniel MacPhee, Educational Programs Director,
Maine Organic Farmers and
Gardeners Association
Nick Rogers, Purdue Agricultural Communication
Kevin Leigh Smith, Purdue Agricultural Communica-
tion
Tim Thompson, Purdue Agricultural Communication
Amy Thompson, Purdue Extension-Monroe County
Kevin Gibson, Purdue Botany and Plant Pathology
Cindra Chastain, Purdue Agricultural and Biological
Engineering
Stephen Swain, Purdue Agricultural and Biological
Engineering
Katherine Prasuhn, Purdue Agricultural and Biological
Engineering
I would also like to acknowledge The Tropical
Agricultural Research and Higher Education Center
(CATIE) in Costa Rica and the Sustainable Agroforestry
Planning course developed by Dr. Eduardo Somarriba,
which I taught for eight years. The students and farmers
from those classes helped me to better understand the
need for designing agricultural systems that would be
sustained for generations. I also would like to thank
John Woodmansee and the numerous Purdue Extension
educators and specialists who helped develop
components within the document.
Design and production by Purdue Agricultural
Communication
This material is based upon work that is supported
by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, U.S.
Department of Agriculture, under award number
2015-70017-22878.

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A Beginning Farmer Workbook:
How to Plan, Support, and
Grow Your Farm or Ranch
Starting a new endeavor can be both daunting and
exciting. You will learn new skills and find others who
have gone through similar experiences.
If you’re a beginning farmer or rancher, the success of
your new endeavor depends highly upon establishing
a careful, practical plan. This workbook will help you
create such a plan — you will list your current assets,
define achievable goals, and develop a feasible action
plan. We’ll also provide resources to support you on
your journey.
We divided this workbook into four sections to help
you achieve your goals:
1. Starting a Farm: What Are Your Realities?
(page 2)
2. Mapping Assets: What Do You Have?
(page 8)
3. Setting Goals: What Would You Like to Do
with Your Farm? (page 33)
4. Creating Feasible Action Plans: How Do
You Get What You Want? (page 39)
5. Resources (page 46)
Completing the activities and worksheets in this
manual should prepare you to embark on your new
adventure and become an important part of the
farming community.
Although this workbook is mainly designed for
someone who is already farming, you can still learn a
lot by working through the worksheets if you are still
contemplating becoming a farmer. Taking time to think
about your assets and what you would like to have
on a farm is a good idea for anyone who is currently
farming or would like to become a farmer.

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A Beginning Farmer Workbook: How to Plan, Support, and Grow Your Farm or Ranch

Starting a Farm: Planning for Success

What Are Your Realities? Our goal is to help you envision what your farm can
be, understand the realities of making that happen,
What Do You Do Now? and help you design a realistic approach to achieve
your goals. When we detail constraints or difficulties,
So, you inherited, leased, or purchased a small plot of
we don't intend to deter you from farming. Rather, we
land. What do you do now?
want to help you think about what you'll need to be
If this sounds familiar, you aren’t alone. Many Purdue successful through careful thinking and planning.
Extension educators have heard this tale from
Take time to think about how you will plan for success,
numerous small acreage landowners across the state.
develop your markets, and determine what training
The USDA-National Agricultural Statistics Service has you need. This will help make you better prepared to
found that a majority of farmers and ranchers (greater capitalize on opportunities that present themselves
than 75 percent) own small tracts of land (less than for your farm or ranch and help you weather possible
200 acres). However, the statistics also show that the problems that might arise.
numbers of farmers and ranchers who are just starting
As you move through this workbook, take time to
out have been declining over time.
complete the tables and questions to the best of
Multiple factors contribute to this decline, including your ability knowing what you know now. Don’t just
the high costs of purchasing land and startup passively read. The real value to your enterprise
equipment. In addition, it can be difficult to find is filling out the worksheets and developing your
enough capital to begin production and sustain the plans. Over time, as your knowledge and experience
business while you’re securing markets for your increase, it may be helpful to revisit or redo this
products. workbook each year as you learn more about your
farm, potential markets, labor sources, and so on.
Numerous people who farm on small acreage
lands struggle to make ends meet. They often need The first step is to think about what you want your
to supplement their income with off-farm work, farm to look in the future — your vision. Where would
particularly during winter when on-farm production you like your farm to be down the road? This could
declines or when they need to maintain health be a mental picture of how you see your farm 5 or 10
insurance benefits. years in the future. It will help you define how to shape
your farm to achieve your goals.
There are challenges and frustrations whenever we
start something new. Understanding the realities of The second step is to think about what you want now
what it means to own (and be successful on) a small and how you can actually achieve the long-term goals
farm or ranch can reduce some of these uncertainties. you have for your farm — your mission. It doesn’t
You should ask questions about what you expect from necessarily define the future of your farm but helps
the farm and what limitations and opportunities exist you think about why you farm the way you farm, how
so you understand these realities better. will you do this, what makes your farm different, and
what benefits can you get from making a farm as you
Some of these questions are:
have envisioned it.
• How much time will you commit to working
Let’s think about your vision and mission for your farm.
on the farm?
This will help as you map out your assets, think about
• Do you have startup capital? your goals, and plan your action steps to make your
• Will you need to work a part-time job to survive? dreams a reality.

• Who will purchase your products?

This workbook will help you think about many of the
questions you need to ask yourself before starting
a farm. We will ask you to consider questions about
yourself, your farm, your family, and other topics to
help you better understand the opportunities available
and any constraining limitations.

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 A Beginning Farmer Workbook: How to Plan, Support, and Grow Your Farm or Ranch

Creating Your Farm Vision and Mission

Let’s Figure It Out
Where Do You Want to Be?
Take some time to describe your farm today and to envision your farm in the long-, medium-, and short-terms. If
you are not currently farming, you might skip part one, unless you have a clear picture of how that farm might look
right now. Write your responses in the spaces provided below.

What is happening on your farm today? How did you get to In 10 years, how would you like to see your farm? How
where you are today? What have you already learned or will it fit into your community? How will your farm work
completed on your farm? within your family unit?

Describe your enterprises, scale, infrastructure, skills learned,

networks established, or others.

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In about five years, how would you like to see your farm in In one to two years, what would you like to see occurring
terms of your family, community, and the environment? on your farm in terms of supporting you, your family, the
land, or your community?

Vision Statement
You can construct your vision statement by combining the answers to the questions above into one statement.
Your statement should explain how you hope your farm will support you, your family, your community, and the
environment.
Write your vision statement in the space below.

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Let’s Figure It Out

How Will You Achieve Your Vision?
In order to make your vision a reality, it is important to answer some questions about how you might actually
achieve some of these goals on your farm.
Write your answers to the questions in the spaces below.

Why do you want to farm? What are some of the important core values that could affect
how you will achieve your long-term goals for the farm?

Some examples of core values might be organic production,

selling locally, environmentally friendly, family-oriented,
community-supported, low-technology, no debt, etc.

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What sorts of activities and changes might you need to What benefits do you receive (social, economic, or
make to achieve the vision you have for your farm? environmental) by farming?

What makes your farm different than other farms in What benefits might others receive from your efforts?
your region? What is your unique niche?

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Let’s Figure It Out

Mission Statement
You can construct your mission statement by looking at your answers on the How Will You Achieve Your Vision?
worksheet to understand how you want to achieve your goals.
Here are some examples of mission statements for small, diversified farms:
• The mission of our farm is to be a local source for high-quality vegetables and fruits that uses organic principles
to provide safe foods for our customers and a healthy environment. We hope to provide an innovative shopping
experience while educating the surrounding community about the benefits of eating locally grown foods.
• Our primary mission is to educate our local community while using our farm as a model. We use sustainable
and organic practices while taking land stewardship into consideration. By producing locally grown, organic
crops, we will provide opportunities for our students to be responsible for the environment and to learn how to
foster a sense of community by working together.
Write your mission statement in the space below.

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Mapping Assets:
What Do You Have?
Once you start to think about what a farm means to
you and your family, the next step is to start figuring
out the assets you have. These assets might include
the land, your workforce, buildings, access to capital,
financial resources, family loans, credit, social
connections, business relationships, infrastructure,
knowledge, and farming experience, among others.
Evaluating any potential negative issues on your farm
is also critical to mapping your farm's assets. Aging
infrastructure can be more of a liability to a beginning
farmer than an asset. Look at the opportunities on
your farm, but be realistic about the potential liabilities
imposed by old infrastructure or even abused land.
A good way to start thinking about your assets is to
draw a map of what your farm looks like now. What is
on your farm? Where are your crops located? What is
the orientation of your pastures? Where do you have
soil drainage or fertility problems on your farm?
By drawing an image of your farm that includes details
of what is physically there, you can start the process
of listing all your assets. You also can work on some of
the goals or objectives as to how you would like to see
your farm grow in the future. Once you complete your
map, it is useful to have your family members draw
out how they perceive the farm. It can be quite telling
to see how they envision the farm. But getting family
input is also essential for success because it allows
you all to reach a consensus or agreement about how
your farm should look or work.

Before you can plan your farm’s future, you must

first determine what you already have.

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Let’s Figure It Out

Draw a Map of Your Farm or Ranch
Use this page, a separate sheet of paper, PowerPoint, or some other software to draw a map of your farm or
ranch as it looks now. Include all buildings, roads, trails, fields, paddocks, plots, waterways, areas of concern (soil
drainage or poor fertility), woodland areas, or other notable land markers. Feel free to use a larger piece of paper
for more details, colored markers, or a computer (PowerPoint) to define different sections of your farm.

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Tools to Help You

Map Your Farm
There are other resources that help you better
understand what is on your land. For example, you can
ask for an Extension expert or state soil scientist to
walk your land with you before you buy or lease. (Think
of it like getting a home inspection, except it's free.)
Online soil maps can help you understand any fertility
or drainage limitations. The USDA-Natural Resources
Conservation Service (USDA-NRCS) provides these
maps at websoilsurvey.sc.egov.usda.gov. You can also
access printed soil maps and reports at your local
Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD), USDA-
NRCS, or USDA-Farm Service Agency (FSA) offices.
These soil maps can be very helpful. Farmers often
plant in soils that do not provide optimal conditions
for specific crops. If you understand what is present
on your property, it will give you a better chance of
matching the right crops with the soil types you have
for maximum growth.
Google Maps (www.google.com/maps) is another
great tool that can help you draw your property lines
and place your farm or ranch in the context of the
regional landscape. By using the historical imagery
tool in Google Maps, you can see past land use over
time. This can be very helpful to compare wet and
dry years. By understanding the location of where
you are working, the natural contours of the land,
the watershed, and other natural features, you can
optimize where you will place windbreaks, drainage
systems, terraces, and other features.
If you are not currently farming, use this space to
assess potential land that you would like to purchase
or lease. Take these worksheets with you while you
are walking the land to determine if it meets your
expectations.
After you map how your farm looks to you today, you
can start to assess what you have and how you can
put it to better use. Don’t forget to consider assets
you might not “have,” per se, but “have access to” or
“could access” through relationships, networks, or
educational opportunities.
The USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service
(NRCS) offers technical assistance, financial
assistance, tools, and resources for all farmers.
There is an NRCS office in every state with
specialists who can help you. For more information,
visit www.nrcs.usda.gov.
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 A Beginning Farmer Workbook: How to Plan, Support, and Grow Your Farm or Ranch

Liz and Nate Brownlee,

Nightfall Farm
“Putting energy and time into the
land will help it heal more quickly.
It has been worth it to invest in the
health of the soil.”
— Liz Brownlee

Liz and Nate Brownlee were working on a vegetable Liz and Nate found support from their local Soil and
farm when they came to a realization. In order to Water Conservation District (SWCD) and USDA-
nourish their plants, they needed to have some reliable Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS)
form of fertilizer. offices. Experts came out and walked the land,
discussed where the problem areas were going to be,
So, when the couple decided to start their own farm,
and helped the couple find necessary funding to build
they decided to start a humane animal operation that
fencing and a well to water their animals, establish
would feed themselves, their neighbors, and their soil.
pollinator habitats, and plant cover crops.
Today, they raise chickens, turkeys, pigs, and sheep
— selling direct through farmers markets and a meat Because they felt like they didn’t know where to put
CSA (community supported agriculture) service. in a fence or what they needed to do to install one,
these programs helped them get a good start on their
When they started their livestock operation, Liz and
humane animal production enterprise.
Nate realized they were having problems with their
soils but did not understand why. The official soil maps Liz Brownlee shares this piece of wisdom about
of their farm said that their soils were silt loam, but starting a new farming enterprise: “Find a mentor who
they learned later that they actually have heavy clay you can learn from before you get started and while
soils. Moreover, their farm is in a floodplain, and if they you are starting out. Especially with livestock, you
get a heavy rain, the pastures will have standing water. need to have someone you can call and ask questions.”
They have had to adapt to these conditions. They pull
their chicken tractors around the wet spots and have
to move their pigs more regularly when they get heavy
rains. Liz and Nate don’t raise cattle on their farm
because of the heavy soils and soil compaction issues.
Sheep are lighter on the soil, so they don’t need to be
moved as frequently as the chickens and pigs.

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Three Types of Farm Assets There are many reasons for low production, but the
most common problems stem from a biophysical
You can divide assets on a farm or ranch into three cause. When you improve your understanding of all
categories: of the nooks and crannies on your farm or ranch, it
•B
 iophysical assets. These include the natural capital helps you become a better producer. Learning to be
of your farm, such as the climate, land, vegetation, observant is critical, but it is also important to learn
and water. more about soil health, crop production, plant health,
and other topics — both in general and on your farm.
•E
 conomic assets. These include the financial and
built capitals that affect your farm, such as access to Complete the Map Your Biophysical Assets table
credit, infrastructure, expenses, and income. and keep records to help you think about your farm’s
strengths and weaknesses. Consider what has
•S
 ociocultural assets. These include the social, benefited, or has the potential to benefit, your farming
political, and cultural capitals that play a role on operation. Also consider what has limited, or has the
your farm, such as your family, values, education or potential to limit, you from accomplishing your goals.
training, networks, and community. Remember the key factors that you should consider
There are many aspects to consider with each of these when thinking about each resource. You can use this
categories. It is important to take the time to think table as an evaluation tool if you are thinking about
about the opportunities and limitations your farming purchasing or leasing land to start your farm.
operation has from your unique assets. For example: Under the Water Resources asset, you
Since we have already started thinking about might write: "On the farm, there is water for irrigation
biophysical assets (the natural capital of your farm), in the SW corner" in the Opportunities/Strengths
let’s start there. column. Under the Limitations column, you might
write: "There are no water sources for the other parts
Biophysical Assets of the farm without putting in a new well." For the Key
Biophysical assets include land, soil, weather, climate, Factors to Consider column, you might write: "The
microclimate, diseases, pests, production units (crops, quantity of water during certain periods of time, the
pasture, animals), and water — all of which can quality of the water, season fluctuations, regulatory
positively or negatively affect your production. issues."
Are you aware of what you have on your land? You
just drew a map of your land; do you think you could
answer questions about all of these assets? Most
seasoned farmers and ranchers would say they knew
some of these answers when starting out but learned
the others over time through trial and error.

For example, a farmer might say, “The northeast

corner of my farm has never been able to produce
anything.” The farmer may say this because she has
planted three different crops in that corner three years
in a row and all of the yields have been below the
average of the rest of the farm.

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Richard and Susan Kremer,

Little Prairie Farms
“The key to success is knowing what
you are up against, up front.”
— Richard Kremer

Richard and Susan Kremer live on about three acres crops harvested per season, and improves soil
of land with their two daughters. Their initial goal was structure.
to plant a large garden and homestead the land to
His biggest challenges have been the biophysical
produce as much food as they could on the ground
conditions of where he is trying to farm. He has
available to them.
planted windbreaks to reduce wind erosion. He has
They grow, process (freeze, dry, ferment, and can), also installed three modified high tunnels that can
and eat about 80 percent of their own food. But when withstand 90-mile-per-hour winds. He received a
they selected their farm, they didn’t realize that they USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Services-
were picking one of the worst possible places to build Environmental Quality Incentives Program (NRCS-
a farm. The property had no trees to block the winds EQIP) grant to build two of the high tunnels, primarily
racing across the prairie. They are surrounded by because the high tunnels reduce wind erosion and
thousands of acres of corn and soybean farms. Their improve vegetable production.
soils are very fertile, but the dense prairie loams can
With the high tunnels, he transplants more of his crop
be very wet.
to reduce plant loss in the raised beds that aren’t tilled.
Rich grew up on a farm in Pennsylvania, so he read as Direct seeding only works in ground that is tilled, so
much as he could about other people farming on small he has to trade off the extra labor in the greenhouse
acreage and making a living. He realized he didn’t and growing the plants for transplanting. He is also
need large swaths of land, he just needed to farm very able to suppress weeds by covering the rows around
intensively and understand the biophysical conditions the transplants. He uses a planting spreadsheet to
that were limiting his success. determine what he needs to plant to get his best yields
and rotates his crops to increase soil health.
His main goal is to stop tilling the soil. He wants
to create a permanent system in which he strip- His most recent interest is dealing with extreme
composts in the walkways and then deposits the climate events — such as managing 7 inches of rain in
composted wood chips on permanent raised beds the 24 hours, tornado-type windstorms, or long droughts.
following season. This cuts down on wind erosion and
Rich’s piece of wisdom: “Evolution is the only way to
the amount of water that ponds in his beds, reduces
stay relevant.”
hard crusting of the soil, increases the number of

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Let’s Figure It Out

Map Your Biophysical Assets
Complete the table below about the current biophysical assets on your farm.

Biophysical Assets Opportunities/Strengths Limitations Key Factors to Consider

Water Resources

Soil Resources

Land Availability

Climate Characteristics

Crop and Animal

Production Possibilities

Pest Pressure
(Insect and Disease)

Weed Pressure

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Dan and Julie Perkins,

Perkins Family Farm
“Vegetables are very hard on the
soil. You are mining the soil of
nutrients and carbon as well as
tilling and disrupting soil.”
— Dan Perkins

Dan and Julie Perkins decided to look for land where compost. Their main goal in applying the compost is
they could be close to both family and markets. They to increase the soil’s water-holding capacity and soil
didn’t necessarily look for land that was good for fertility.
producing vegetables.
The family has a checklist to ensure success. They
Dan had mainly worked on heavy clay soils, so determine what crops they are going to grow and
when the family ended up on a farm with sandy sell, then figure out how to deliver enough water and
soil in Northwest Indiana, they didn’t understand fertility to the plants to increase production. They
the challenges they would face from wind erosion, constantly worry about keeping enough carbon in the
irrigation, and low fertility. On their farm, they could soil that can be depleted from farming vegetables, so
not rely on the soil to hold enough water to produce they add carbon back through cover crops, compost,
vegetables. In the beginning, they didn’t get the and rotation.
yields they anticipated because they weren’t watering
They also deal with unpredictable weather by using
enough, which is critical for vegetable production.
a high tunnel. By producing under plastic culture,
After reading some books and visiting accomplished you remove the variability of the weather. Better high
farms, Dan assumed that if he started with a good tunnels need to be engineered to deal with snow load,
soil base, he would be able to produce multiple crops wind, and hail. The Perkins family is constantly dealing
of vegetables on raised beds in a season. In order to with the risk of farming.
increase his production, Dan needed to increase the
They are always trying to answer questions such as,
amount of carbon in his soil — a process that can take
“How do you manage receiving 5 inches of rain in
years of applying tons of compost.
a couple of hours?” Dan’s answer: “Through raised
Sandy soils thrive in wet years because they have beds, taking away risk, mulching, and protecting your
sufficient water, but they still lack fertility and organic soils.”
matter. The Perkins family combines leaves delivered
from a local town every fall with local manure to make

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Financial and Economic Assets Determining Your Inputs

Just as it is important to know what you can grow on When you think about economic factors, consider
your farm based on biological and physical conditions, all areas of your farm. For example, it is critical to
it is essential to understand the financial and understand both the market and all production costs
economic resources you need to start your farm and for your farming enterprise in order to gauge the price
ultimately to sell what you produce. You should look at you will be able to sell your product for and break even
your financial needs as early as possible. This will help or have an income.
you understand the potential scale of the enterprise
You can divide production costs into fixed costs (land,
you need to meet your goals, which can be determined
equipment, taxes) and variable costs (labor, inputs).
through enterprise analysis. The scale should align
Understanding these costs will help you understand
with the land and human assets as well.
how well you are managing the different components
This guide does not consider your personal financial of your farm. The more complex your farming
needs or off-farm income. This workbook mainly enterprise, the more complex the economic analysis.
focuses on how your farm enterprise is working
Let’s start with what you will sell and how you plan to
economically and where you are allocating your time
grow or raise that product. You will need to know what
and resources. There are in-depth guides and manuals
input costs you will need to achieve a desired yield for
you can use for a more holistic analysis of your family’s
a particular crop (vegetables, grains, fruits, flowers)
financial needs. (We list some of these in Resources
or animal product (meat, eggs, milk, honey). You will
on page 46.)
also want to determine the price you are receiving or
We often forget that it may take a couple years to would like to receive for selling a unit of your product
establish a business. It is important that you take to determine your total income.
into account that your farming enterprise may not
Next, consider what it would take to produce this
produce an income during the first few years. You
given amount of a crop or product (not including the
should consider other economic aspects when you
labor). These are considered the inputs you need to
are a beginning farmer, such as what markets are
produce a certain yield. Fill out the List Inputs Needed
available to you, where those markets are located,
to Start Your Crop/Product table.
land expenses for expanding, equipment needs, your
available capital for expansion, and how you will
manage risk.
This section will help you think about the financial and
economic assets of your farming system.

This workbook doesn’t provide

information about personal
finances. For more information,
check out some of the
resources on pages 46 and 47.

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Let’s Figure It Out

List Inputs Needed to Start Your Crop/Product List Inputs Needed to Raise Crop/Product
What do you need to start producing your crop or What do you need while raising your crop or product
product (seeds, fertilizer, soil amendments, (medicines, organic or nonorganic pesticides,
buildings, equipment, etc.)? Complete this worksheet fertilizers)? Complete this worksheet for each
for each enterprise on your farm by writing enterprise on your farm by listing the inputs you need
the inputs you need to start the enterprise. Add as to successfully raise your crop or product. Add as
many inputs as you think you will need. many inputs as you think you will need.

Farm Enterprise: Farm Enterprise:

List the inputs you need to begin this enterprise. List the inputs you need to complete this enterprise.

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Determining Variable Input Costs

Now that you have an idea of what inputs you will
need for each crop or product, we need to figure out
how much you need of each input to get a desired
outcome and how much the input will cost. (See the
example in the List Variable Input Costs table.) You will
need to think about how long it will take to produce
the good you will be selling, so also think about how
much you will need over the life of your enterprise.

For example, if you expect to produce farm-fresh eggs,

you need to think about the investment of purchasing
chickens as well as all other input costs. Your goal is
to earn enough income from selling eggs to offset the
inputs (feed, medicines) you need to produce them.

Variable input costs to produce eggs might include

the chickens or chicks, feed, medicines, cartons, and
any other inputs you might purchase at a local farm
store or online. These costs are usually easy to track
because you will have a receipt for each one and they
are a direct cost for a specific farming enterprise.

If you expect to produce tomatoes, the variable inputs

will be different and might include seeds, trays,
fertilizer, and pesticides.

It is important to think about all of the inputs required

to produce whatever crop or product you hope to sell.
You should keep track of all direct variable costs for
each enterprise on your farm. For each enterprise,
search out information on the needs of the crop or
product you hope to sell. Ask others, seek help from
Extension educators, read applicable books, explore
objective and expert online resources, and find
enterprise budgets. Any additional infrastructure or
special equipment costs used for more than one crop
or rotation are considered capital costs and will be
considered later in the workbook.

Purdue Extension has an office in every county in

Indiana. Educators are able to help you with nearly
all aspects of production — from planning to
diagnosing problems. Learn more at extension.
purdue.edu or call 888-EXT-INFO (398-4636).

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Let’s Figure It Out

Example: List Variable Input Costs
Crop/Product: Eggs
Item Cost

Cartons 32 cartons @ $0.25 = $8/month

Feed 2-50lb bags of feed = $35/month

Medicines $7/month

$20 for each pullet (young hen that is starting to lay eggs)
Chickens
$3 for a baby chick

Your Turn: List Variable Input Costs

Crop/Product:
Item Cost

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Determining Yields and Sales

After you list your economic assets, you should consider how much you’ll actually produce (or what you
conservatively anticipate you will be able to produce), taking into consideration a loss in yield due to
unforeseen circumstances such as weather or poor management, as well as other situations.

Let’s Figure It Out

List Products and Potential Yields
What do you hope to sell and what do you anticipate the yields to be in a given unit of time (week, month, year)?

Item Yield

Will the yield change over time or will it stay consistent? Do you intend to increase yield over time?

Describe the change you anticipate. Think about this for all the crops or products that you hope
to commercialize.

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Determining Labor Costs

Will you be able to sell 100 percent of your entire yield?
For the farm-fresh egg example, you also need to
Remember that unforeseen issues (demand, accidents, account for your fixed costs and labor. To account
etc.) can reduce the amount niche market farmers can sell for your time in this example, estimate the amount of
by a certain percentage each year. Reduce your income by time you will need to take care of the chickens, collect
this percentage if it is known. One way to determine this and clean the eggs, bring the eggs to your consumer
percentage is to talk to other farmers to find out how much (delivery, farmers market, etc.), and any other jobs
of their yields they expect to lose. For example, some farmers related to producing eggs at a given cost per hour.
might say they lose 20-30 percent, but this is highly variable
and depends on many factors, including weather, customers, If you are doing the work, you often estimate the labor
markets, and accidents. You can also start annually cost. A common practice is to use the minimum wage
calculating how much you plant and your actual yield to more as a reference if you think you can find someone to do
accurately determine what you can anticipate for yield loss. the job for that amount. However, it can be challenging
to find people to work for minimum wage for some
farm jobs.
Labor costs often can be the key factor when
determining the sustainability of a farming enterprise,
so carefully consider labor costs and estimates. Paying
for outside labor can be a prohibitive expense, but it
may be necessary to get the farm started.
Thinking about the types of labor you need also
dictates whether you will need to contract out for
help or can cover it yourself. It may be worth it to pay
for high-quality labor, particularly if it is a skill you or
someone in your family does not have. Calculating
labor costs can be complicated because the work will
probably change during the day (or hour). Farmers
frequently multi-task as they go through their land
(weeding, planting, scouting for disease, making
phone calls for new markets, and so on).

Once you know how much you think you will be able
to realistically produce and sell, enter this number into
the List Farming Enterprises worksheet (page 26).
If you think the yield will change over time, include
multiple lines in your table for your crop or product to
see how this might affect your total income.

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Let’s Figure It Out

Estimate Labor Needed to Raise Crop/Product

Complete this table with the types of jobs you will need for each farm enterprise and estimate how many hours
you will need to accomplish each task.

Farm Enterprise:

Hourly Wage Used:

Task Hours Cost

How many different farm enterprises do you have on Considering all jobs necessary for these enterprises,
your farm that are taking up your time? do you and your family have enough time to ensure
you will obtain estimated yields?

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 A Beginning Farmer Workbook: How to Plan, Support, and Grow Your Farm or Ranch

production so you can set a fair price consumers are

Is there an available labor force to tap just for particular willing to pay and at which you ensure that you cover
times or skills, or do you need to consider scaling your all production costs. If you are unable to do that, then
enterprises to be able to afford (and provide reliable you probably need to find something else to produce
work for) regular employees (full-time or part-time)? or a different cropping system in order to make the
price more economical.

When determining product prices, make sure you

consider the time you invested in the enterprise. We
often calculate costs without accounting for all the
time necessary to raise the chickens (feed, water,
clean out coops), and collect, clean, transport, market,
and sell the eggs. When you see what is left over after
the sale to pay yourself, you may not even be making
minimum wage.
One common complaint from advanced beginner and
established farmers is a pattern of new farmers enter-
ing a market, underpricing their product to be “compet-
itive” in order to attract customers and then going out
of business because they did not have a firm under-
standing of their costs. Often, the unrealistic low prices
drove down the customers’ understanding of the value
of the product and willingness to pay a good price.
A number of websites provide the “going” prices
for products in different areas and economic levels,
including:

• The Rodale Institute Organic Price Report Tool,

rodaleinstitute.org/farm/organic-price-report-tool
Determining Prices • The USDA-Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS),
After you produce your crop or product, at what price www.ams.usda.gov
will you sell it?
These are good alternatives to the best way of
One of the biggest challenges farmers have is setting a price, which is to know what your costs
determining a fair price that customers will pay, that are, not forgetting your labor, and adding in an extra
will ensure a profit, and that will not put them out of percentage for profit.
business.

People take many approaches to set prices. They can

Estimate Equipment, Infrastructure,
look around to see what their neighbors are charging and Land Needs
for a comparable product or they can go to the grocery Some of the largest costs for beginning farmers
store and add or subtract a percentage, based on the are investments in necessary equipment and
understanding that they are selling retail. Others take infrastructure to ensure they have the needed tools to
an average of all of these prices and set something turn a profit. For many of these farmers, labor-saving
similar. equipment is the most important economic or financial
asset to make their farm sustainable. But it can be
It is very important to realize that as a beginning challenging to find equipment that suits your land
farmer, you will struggle with this because most resources and your needs. Many farmers retool old
wholesale producers sell at a very low cost while equipment to have it work for their scale while others
farmers who are well-established in farmers markets invest in new machinery that was built for small-
may sell their products at a much higher cost. The acreage farms.
biggest issue is for you to determine your cost of
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Genesis McKiernan-
Allen and Eli Robb,
Full Hand Farm
“We wanted to be our own risk.”
— Genesis McKiernan-Allen

When Genesis McKiernan-Allen and Eli Robb of experience as interns at Practical Farmers of Iowa
started vegetable farming, they already had years of and two years of Schedule F. They received a loan to
experience working on other farms around the country. purchase the property through the beginning farmer
They had a bit of cash and they knew how much they program and received an operating loan to ensure
needed to make it. success on their farm.
They focused for a year or two on saving every penny Genesis and Eli have done everything they can to
to start their own farm. They were very nervous about reduce their expenses. Eli is mechanically minded
taking a loan because they weren’t sure they would and can fix things around the farm. They borrow
be able to repay it if the farm didn’t work out. Taking a materials from others when they can, talk to farmers
loan, they thought, would take away their freedom, so before purchasing equipment, own used cars, look for
they focused on starting small and paying with cash. deals, and get feedback from others before making
They both worked off-farm for the first year. Eli became commitments. They are active in a number of farmers
a full-time farmer after the initial year when it became markets in Indianapolis and previously in Zionsville.
clear how important it was for someone to be on the They attest that their first year was not a good year for
farm on a more permanent basis. Genesis quit her off- farm/life balance and say it took three or four years to
farm job after three years when they felt like the farm get to where they feel like they have some free time.
business was solid. They are full-time farmers and have two children who
are active on the farm.
During their first year of farming, they worked land
owned by relatives. After that year, they felt they had Genesis’ advice to new farmers: “If you dream of an
some traction and decided to seek a realistic loan idyllic life of tilling the soil, you just might fall in love
to help them purchase their own farm. They took a with it and never look back.”
business planning course online during the winter
and had a business plan in hand when they went to
the Farm Services Agency (FSA) office. They were
diligent about filing taxes appropriately to show that
they had three years of experience. They had one year

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 A Beginning Farmer Workbook: How to Plan, Support, and Grow Your Farm or Ranch

Let’s Figure It Out Do you have the appropriate buildings (wash and pack
Special Equipment and Infrastructure Needs area, chicken coops, greenhouses, etc.) and other
infrastructure (fencing, irrigation, drainage, raised bed
Answer the questions in the spaces below to help you construction, etc.) to successfully produce the crop or
determine your equipment needs. product?

What tools do you need to produce the crop or product

you want to raise?

If you don’t know, who might you ask? Where could you find out?

Estimate Land Needs

In order to produce a crop or product, you will need
to determine how much land you need dedicate
for production. Often, land resources are important
limitations because of the cost of purchasing more, the
fertility of the soil, or the location to markets or current
land acquisitions.

Are there tools available if you expand production of your Answer this question in the space below to help you
crop or product? determine your land needs.
Remember that if there aren’t tools that have been engineered
or you can’t afford them to help save on labor costs as you
expand, this may limit expansion. How much land will you need in order to meet your
expected market demand and not overwhelm your labor
resources?

Use the information you collected and entered above

to complete the List Farming Enterprises table (page
26) and determine your total annual income, which is
the annual sales multiplied by the price. Estimate as
necessary.

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Let’s Figure It Out

List Farming Enterprises
Complete the table below to help determine your annual income.

Total Annual
Crop or Total Annual Income
Yield/Sales Input Costs Labor Costs Retail Price
Product Cost (Yield/Sales x
Retail Price)
4 hours/month
Example: Eggs 360 dozen/year $50/month $40/month $3/dozen $1,080 $1,080

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 A Beginning Farmer Workbook: How to Plan, Support, and Grow Your Farm or Ranch

Determining Access to Capital or Credit

A lack of starting capital hinders many beginning
farmers from growing and expanding their operations.
Some farmers are able to receive home equity loans
or apply for the USDA-Farm Service Agency (FSA)
beginning farmer loan program through the federal
government. Others would prefer to avoid debt and
build their farming enterprises gradually.
You need to consider your options. Most loan
programs will require you to have a business plan
and other paperwork before approving your loan.
Numerous resources can help you make this decision,
including the USDA-FSA Beginning Farmers and
Ranchers Loans page, www.fsa.usda.gov/programs-
and-services/farm-loan-programs/beginning-farmers-
and-ranchers-loans/index.

Determining Market Types and Locations

Another factor you should consider is the types
of markets available to you and what you need so
that you can access those markets. You need to
really identify the potential markets and then test
their market assumptions. Often, beginning farmers
are willing to take on thousands of dollars of debt
but unwilling to pick up the phone to talk with their
prospective buyers before making the investment.
Examples of possible markets for beginning farmers
are farmers markets, CSAs (community supported
agriculture), food hubs, direct online sales, schools,
hospitals, institutions, office complexes, restaurants,
and farm stands. Each of these markets is unique,
and you need to do your homework to understand
the demands, potential customers, regulations, and
competition at each type of market. You also need
to know where these markets are located because
you need to consider any costs for transporting your
products to these markets when determining the
feasibility of your operation.
You should also remember to calculate the costs for
any permits or certificates that markets may require.
For many markets, you will be required to take good
agricultural practices (GAPs) training for food safety.
Others may require you to take training to comply with
the U.S. FDA’s Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA). Don’t be afraid to call on prospective buyers to find
out what kinds of products they want. Knowing that
you have a buyer ready to buy from you will help
you sell your goods.

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Nate and Emily Parks,

Silverthorn Farm
“It took five years to really
understand the product lineup
and be confident that it would all
sell out.”
— Nate Parks

Nate and Emily Parks, along with their three young The couple was fortunate that they had other income
children, have been producing vegetables for multiple and did not rely on farmers market sales until the
markets across central Indiana for 11 years. They following year. They had to determine exactly what
produce more than 40 kinds of vegetables on 25 they need to bring to the markets in spring, summer,
acres of land. The farm has been in Emily’s family for and fall. They have learned a lot about selling their
generations but was mainly farmed as a cash-rent products because each market is different. They
operation for conventional grains. When they took over started at the farmers markets in the Lafayette area
the farm in 2006, they decided to use organic practices and then began going to Carmel in year three and
and eliminate synthetic fertilizer and pesticide use. Broad Ripple in year five. In year three, they started a
CSA (community supported agriculture) and added
When they started, their first venture into selling their
multiple restaurant accounts.
produce was to the local farmers market. Nate and
Emily wanted to farm full-time but they knew they Now in year 11, they sell through an on-farm market,
would first need to find markets to sell their products. an online CSA, and to dozens of restaurants. Part of
From their first farmers market experience, they this was to improve their farm/life balance and to give
realized their displays needed to look good to sell them more time on the farm — not going to, spending
produce. time at, and coming back from farmers markets.
“If it isn’t beautiful, you won’t sell it,” Nate says. “We They had to figure out their limitations when they
shop with our eyes.” were selling at the farmers markets. It is important
to understand your market, what people want, the
They learned techniques from the farmers market that
demographics of those at your market, and how your
helped them improve the aesthetics and creativity
stand is set up.
of their displays. A farmers market is a great way
for a new farmer to “cut your teeth” and get some For farmers starting out in farmers markets, Nate’s
experience. advice: “Take everything you can possibly take, and
don’t worry about bringing it home and throwing it
away in the end.”

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Let’s Figure It Out What sorts of demand are there for the products you
Identify Your Markets would like to sell?

What potential markets are near your farm?

Who are your potential buyers?

Considering the products you would like to sell, who else

is selling in these markets?

Social and Cultural Assets

We often overlook social and cultural considerations
when mapping out farm assets. These assets include
What are they selling? your training, education, and experiences; the stability
of your community, family unit (composition, cohesion),
and self; your aversions, preferences, local knowledge,
gender, vision for the future, and networking
opportunities; the history of your area; the status of
your land tenure; and the state of technical assistance,
social organizations, population, adaptation,
immigration (rural flight), and social services in your
area.

How long have they been established?

Family Demographics and Capabilities
A good place to begin mapping your social and
cultural assets is your family. Complete the Family Unit
Demographics table by listing your family members
and their special interests or capabilities for working
on a farm or in a farming enterprise. This will help you
determine how you might fulfill your goals in the next
few years.
What are their prices? Don’t forget to include computer skills, organizational
abilities, and other capabilities or interests that you
might be able to take advantage of when trying to
sell or market your products. It is also important to
consider any limitations this family member might
have such as off-farm work, competing interests,
commitments, family times, etc.

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Tyler Gough,
Indy Urban Acres
“People have a responsibility to
their community so they come out
and help. The key is putting the
community into the community
garden.”
— Tyler Gough

Indy Urban Acres began in 2011 as a way to fight The space allowed many residents to grow friendships.
food insecurity, food hunger, child obesity, diabetes, The garden is a place where 80-year-old women
and negative health outcomes from poor nutrition. befriend guys with tattoos. They have bonded over
They received land from Indy Parks and funding from gardening.
grants. Today, Indy Urban Acres sits on eight acres —
Tyler has been able to break the organization’s
two are devoted to row crops; three to raised beds,
dependence on grants and become self-sustaining.
orchards, and a community garden; and three produce
One way they did that is with their three acres of
flowers. Tyler Gough was hired to run the farm, but he
flowers, which they sell at farmers markets, weddings,
had to do more than just raise crops. He also had to
wholesale flower shops, and grocery stores. Indy
raise up an entire community.
Urban Acres is continuing to expand with a new farm
The farm is located in a lower-middle-income on the west side of Indianapolis.
neighborhood in Indianapolis, near 21st and
The goal of the project is to produce food that goes
Shadeland. Because of the demographics, many
to local food pantries. Two-thirds of the food they
people in the community don’t know each other and
produce goes to the local community food pantry
don’t talk to their neighbors. Tyler’s first job was to
while the rest goes around the city. The neighborhood
engage with the community. He knocked on the doors
also has many Hispanic residents, and this space
of 50 houses to introduce himself and explain the
allows them to grow vegetables that are part of their
project’s purpose. He encouraged residents to get
ethnic diet and ensure that the food will be found in
involved in the farm. In exchange for their work, they
the local food pantry for others.
would get free produce. He also explained the concept
of a community garden where Indy Urban Acres would Tyler’s goal: “Long-term is that we are out of business,
provide raised beds, seeds, transplants, and the tools there is no longer a need and we have figured out food
needed to farm. insecurity, health problems, childhood obesity, and
diabetes.”

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Let’s Figure It Out

Determine Family Unit Demographics
Complete the table below to help determine your family’s social and cultural assets.

Family Member Age Education Interests Capabilities Limitations

List your family’s capabilities (farming background, training or workshops attended, level of commitment, time and labor available):

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Sara Creech,
Blue Yonder Organic Farm
“I learned how to do everything
from books, and I now use YouTube
all the time.”
— Sara Creech

When Sara Creech served in the Air Force, she admits tax issues, and farm management. She learned about
she didn’t know about the source of her food. That the USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service
changed after her husband became ill with cancer. and signed up for programs that support beginning
They started searching for alternative methods to treat farmers and military veterans. She has learned from
him, as well as examining their diet and what they going to farmers markets and has found it to be a safe
were eating. They talked to farmers about how they place to get into farming.
grew food, visited farms to learn more about organic
She’s found that social life is also built around the
farming methods, and read every book they could find
farm. Her customers have become her friends, and she
on sustainable farming practices.
enjoys sharing what she does with others. Sara aspires
She purchased a Central Indiana farm near her sister. for her operation to do more than just raise food:
But Creech had no plan, and she realized after buying
“I want Blue Yonder to be a place where we can
the property that it had been the dumping ground for
have training programs and hands-on activities for a
the community. She spent days cleaning it out and
weekend. You don’t have to have experience, you just
thinking about what she wanted to do with her new
need a desire to learn what it is like to be on a farm.
farm. The first spring, she purchased six chicks from
Open up a beehive. Gather eggs. Take care of animals.
Tractor Supply, then she got some bottle lambs, 50
You can see the change in veterans. Animals are safe,
apple trees, and 200 raspberry bushes — still with no
you have to be responsible. The animals need you.
plan.
Everyone needs that motivation. Veterans need to
A year after starting, she went to the Arm to Farm keep moving. Any healing from emotional trauma is
from ATTRA in Arkansas. She was so scared that to motivate them. I want to keep doing activities that
she nearly turned around and drove home. But the promote communities with veterans.”
experience (and others, such as the Indiana Small
Farm Conference) have helped her on the farm.
Creech connected with other military-veteran farmers
who have shared experiences. She learned about the
intricacies of farming, including business planning,

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Setting Goals: What Would You

Like to Do with Your Farm?
After you have mapped your assets, it’s time to think In order to start this process, first identify your
about your assets and then integrate them to set some current land uses and list the potential opportunities
goals for a more sustainable and successful farm. or limitations of each one based on your farm’s
assets (biophysical, economic, and sociocultural).
Revisit your mission and vision for your farm to help
The Example: List Opportunities and Challenges on
with this. Doing so will focus your goals and better
Your Farm table shows an example of a hypothetical
define the projects you will take on in this section.
farm’s land uses and its potentials and limitations.
You will need to take some time with this part to really
By defining this part of the planning process, you
delve into what is going on all across your farm. You
will start to see where you can focus your limited
will need to think about what is working and what you
resources for potential change and thus set feasible
might need to tweak.
goals.

Example: List Opportunities and Challenges on Your Farm

Current Farmland Use

Opportunities Limitations/Challenges
(Label accordingly on map)
Produce and sell organic eggs Demand is higher than my supply. Feed is expensive. Increasing the
Excellent price for a dozen eggs in my numbers of hens will increase production
region. costs.
Produce and sell vegetables Good soil fertility and extra space to add Not enough labor to expand.
more beds.
Have taken courses on improving
efficiencies on farm.
Can participate in the Indiana Small Farm
Conference.
Produce honey There is a growing demand for honey at Low supply of honey.
the local farmers market. High cost reduces the actual demand.
Have some apple trees on the There is a demand for applesauce and The varieties I have are not the ones
property apple butter in local community. everyone wants to purchase.
Have participated in some farm tours to Yields are not very high.
local orchards and have knowledge of Some disease problems.
how to improve production.

Now it’s your turn. Complete the Opportunities and Challenges on Your Farm table on the next page. Don’t forget
the items that might not be earning you money at this time. They might be good places to start to add income in
the future.

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Let’s Figure It Out

Your Turn: List Opportunities and Challenges on Your Farm
Complete the table below to help determine your farm’s opportunities and challenges.

Current Farmland Use

Opportunities Limitations/Challenges
(Label accordingly on map)

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Amy Matthews,
South Circle Farm
“Know what your farm is not or
what it cannot do.”
— Amy Matthews

When Amy Matthews started her own farm, she One partner deals with restaurant contacts, sales, and
already had some experience as an apprentice and infrastructure. The other partner works more on the
a farm manager for non-profit farms that served a production side by managing fields, production tasks,
social mission. Her goal for her own venture was to volunteer support, and labor.
determine how to make an urban farm a successful,
There are many challenges with an urban farm,
viable business.
including changing markets, labor issues, land leasing
She started with very little capital — just some situations, access to water in a city environment, food
personal savings and her experience. She leased insecurity, and zoning laws. But Amy has benefited
some land (a quick way to get started) and began by from a wave of new technology that supports smaller-
improving the soil, which took two years of building scale farmers. She has been challenged to figure out
raised beds. She was able to find some initial grant ways to adapt processes and systems to her scale.
money to fence the site and bring in topsoil, which The tools and techniques she uses are very different
included hundreds of truckloads of wood chips. from when she started. There are new techniques for
Blanketing the soil with wood chips and layering in scale to get quality and consistency in her vegetables
topsoil was her biggest expense. that the customers at market notice.
Once Amy was able to have the farm working to its To be successful, she says, “you need to have clarity of
potential and had a decent production base, she found purpose and mission.”
that other management aspects were challenging
without some help. After the third year of production,
she realized she needed to bring in outside labor to
help her market the products. She now partners with
two other urban farmers in a grower’s cooperative that
has combined businesses for marketing and labor.

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Looking Toward Your Future

By working through what you currently have on By actually writing down your goals, the ways you’ll
your farm, did you notice some areas in which you reach those goals, your opportunities, and limitations,
could capitalize? We often focus on what we need to you can start to see where you can actually move
fix, but it is just as important to think about what is forward during the next year. Complete tables for
working and how we could use those things to create one year ahead and five years ahead to ensure the
additional income. sustainability of your farm. Change your goals as
necessary but refer to them frequently so that you
What would you like to have for the next year? These
continue to feel like you are moving forward.
can be general needs, such as improving your farm’s
soil health (see the example below). After you think Complete the one- and five-year goals tables to
about two goals for the next year, identify specific the best of your ability. Don’t try to do too much.
paths to get there. For the soil health example, you Remember, you want to have something that is
might include: add compost to plots 1 and 2; sow in realistic for your time and resources. If you are unable
cover crops to plots 9 and 10; or get a soil sample for to complete your goals in the first year, then go back to
the different areas of the farm. them throughout the year and adjust them. We will talk
about how to actually move forward with action steps
to reach your goals and objectives in the next section.

Example: List One-year Goals

Goals Ways to Reach Goals Opportunities Limitations

(general) (specific)
Goal 1: 1. Add compost to plots 1 Increasing soil organic Unable to add compost
Improve Soil Health and 2 matter will increase because there is lack of it
in the Vegetable biological, chemical, and on the farm and I need to
Production System physical capacities of the purchase from an outside
soil source

2. Sow cover crops in plots Increasing cover in the Difficult to find cover crop
9 and 10 winter will improve soil seeds that grow well in my
health next season area

3. Soil sample testing of A better understanding Unsure how to take these

farm of what is lacking on my samples
farm will help me make
improvements

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Let’s Figure It Out

List One-year Goals
Complete the table below to help determine one-year goals for your farm.

Goals Ways to Reach Goals Opportunities Limitations

(general) (specific)
Goal 1:

Goal 2:

Goal 3:

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Let’s Figure It Out

List Five-year Goals
Complete the table below to help determine five-year goals for your farm.

Goals Ways to Reach Goals Opportunities Limitations

(general) (specific)
Goal 1:

Goal 2:

Goal 3:

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 A Beginning Farmer Workbook: How to Plan, Support, and Grow Your Farm or Ranch

Creating Feasible Action Plans:

How Do You Get What You Want?
So, you have some ideas of how you would like your
farm to look a year and five years from now. The next
step is to come up with a plan.
Based on your input in the List One-year Goals and
List Five-year Goals tables, what are some actual
projects you could undertake? List them in the spaces
below. But before you do, prioritize your projects
based on five criteria.
Projects should be:
1. Realistic — make sure you can accomplish the
project in the time allotted
2. Feasible — make sure you have the resources
to complete the project
3. Observable — make sure you can see how
the project will positively affect your farm’s
sustainability
4. Adaptable — make sure you can still have a
positive outcome if something happens in the
middle of a project
5. An improvement — make sure the project is
better than what you currently have

Create a plan and list projects you can complete to

help you reach your one- and five-year goals.

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A Beginning Farmer Workbook: How to Plan, Support, and Grow Your Farm or Ranch

Let’s Figure It Out

List First-year Projects to Complete
List first-year projects that you plan to complete to reach your One-year Goals. Be sure to use the five criteria
listed on page 39.

Project Name Description

List Five-year Projects to Complete

Now, list the long-term projects for your farm, taking into consideration that you may end up modifying these as
you go along or adjust them based on new information (such as a change in purchases at the farmers market).
Remember that you may not end up doing all of these projects. It is important to brainstorm and prioritize your
projects based on the five criteria provided on page 39.

Project Name Description

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 A Beginning Farmer Workbook: How to Plan, Support, and Grow Your Farm or Ranch

Where Will You Begin?

Choose two projects from your First-year Projects to Complete list and two from your Five-year Projects to
Complete list. What steps must you follow to accomplish each project? Think about this as a step-by-step
process (like a recipe or instruction manual) as outlined in this example.

Example: Plan Your Farm Project and Steps to Success

Project Title: Increase compost use

Step 1 Sample soil from each plot being considered

Step 2 Have samples analyzed to determine which plots should be amended with compost
(must do #1 to get to #2, and must do #2 if you do #1)

Step 3 Define areas that need compost enrichment

• If you don’t have compost, call the local compost dealer to determine how much it will cost to purchase
and haul it to your property
• If you have compost, determine if you have the equipment to move the compost to the plots where it is
needed
• Calculate the labor needed to incorporate the compost; if you don't have the time, you will need to hire
workers
• Apply compost at the appropriate time based on weather, planting dates, and any other
recommendations

Once you have long-

term projects, it is not
enough to dream. Write
out the steps you will
follow to make your
goals a reality.

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A Beginning Farmer Workbook: How to Plan, Support, and Grow Your Farm or Ranch

Let’s Figure It Out

Plan Your Farm Project and Steps to Success
Now it’s your turn. Complete this table with the steps necessary to accomplish your desired project. (You may
add more rows to the steps if necessary.) Complete at least four of these tables for your operation — two for the
First-year projects and two for the Five-year projects. You can always do more, but sometimes planning to do
more ends with nothing getting done. Start small with a couple of manageable projects where you can see some
positive changes on your farm.

Project Title:

Step 1

Step 2

Step 3

Step 4

Step 5

Step 6

Step 7

Step 8

Step 9

Step 10

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Let’s Figure It Out

List Your Project Details

In the table below, describe the project (such as accomplish the job? Do you have the knowledge and
increase compost additions on the farm) in detail. the training to finish the project? Will you have any
Explain where the project will occur and what you extra income if you complete the project?
will do. Fill in as much information as you can or find
the information so that you can make an informed Don’t forget to include important information such
decision about whether the project is attainable. as phone numbers of equipment operators, websites
of where to find inputs or materials, and any costs.
Will you do the job yourself? Do you have all the Make multiple copies of this table to determine which
materials? Where will you get the equipment to projects might be more feasible. Start with two First-
year Projects and two Five-year Projects. Compare
them to determine where you want to start.

Project 1 (describe the project):

Estimated cost if contractor used

Equipment available, cost if rented

Labor available, cost if workers

hired

Materials needed and their cost

Expected revenue, if any

Relevance of non-market benefits

Training needed for the project

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Let’s Figure It Out

Action Plan for Your Project

After considering your entire plan and reviewing it with your family for the feasibility of the project, the next step is
to determine if every step is critical/desired/optional for the success of the project. You also need to figure out how
affordable the step will be, when it will be accomplished, and who will take responsibility for getting the step done.
This will help to keep you on task and ensure that the overall project gets completed.

Critical, Desired, or Assessment of Timeline: Est. Start/ Who Will Complete the
Project 1:
Optional? Affordability Complete Dates Step/Contract
Step 1:

Step 2:

Step 3:

Step 4:

Step 5:

Step 6:

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 A Beginning Farmer Workbook: How to Plan, Support, and Grow Your Farm or Ranch

Congratulations!
If you have reached the end of this workbook and
completed the questions and tables, you should be
well on your way to being a successful farmer or
rancher.

It is always helpful to review your plan each year, then

modify and update your plan to account for changes
on your farm, in your family life, or within your goals
or objectives. Reviewing this workbook each year will
also help you to envision where you hope to go with
your long-term plan and how you will be able to get
there through the yearly adjustments.

Remember that there are people in your county who

can help and support you — your Purdue Extension
(or other state Extension) office, USDA-Natural
Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) office, or
Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD). These
same organizations, and others, also provide great
information online.

We also encourage you to get involved with farmer

organizations in your state and attend conferences
and workshops (like the annual Indiana Small Farm
Conference). These activities keep you connected and
give you the opportunity to network and learn from
others.
Good luck to you as you provide food and fiber for the
people of your community!

For the latest online resources to assist

beginning farmers, remember to visit:
www.purdue.edu/dffs/beginningfarmers/

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Resources for Beginning New Farmer Resource Guide

extension.purdue.edu/Marion
Farmers Purdue Extension-Marion County publishes the New
Starting a Farm: What Are Your Realities? Farmer Resource Guide, which provides resources and
tools for beginning farmers and gardeners. The guide
Getting Started in Farming covers a wide range of topics, including soil health,
northcarolina.ncat.org integrated pest management, organic production,
farm business and management, and restoration
This is a great, free online course from North Carolina agriculture. Search for the title on the website.
State University. It is a tremendous resource for
thinking about some of the realities of starting a farm Cornell University Small Farms Program
or ranch. Taking the entire course will prepare you http://smallfarms.cornell.edu/projects/farm-ops/
for many of the topics we cover in this workbook,
including farm business planning and marketing. Cornell University operates the Northeast Beginning
Farmer Project, which delivers mentoring, information
ATTRA Beginning Farmer website resources, and training to beginning farmers and
attra.ncat.org/attra-pub/local_food/startup.html service providers (including veterans) who support
new farm viability.
This website for beginning farmers and ranchers offers
a plethora of information, but you are best advised to eXtension
search for specific tips rather than a broad overview of eXtension.org
what you need to start your farm.
This site can be fairly complex because it contains
Getting Into Farming: A Workbook for so much information. It was set up to quickly provide
Beginning Farmers in North Carolina access to information for Extension educators across
attra.ncat.org/attra-pub/summaries/summary. the country. The search tool is your friend on this
php?pub=455 site. Their Resource Areas section has information
separated out in a number of topics to help farmers
This workbook (also from ATTRA) walks you through get started, whether it is in bees, poultry, vegetables,
the visioning process of starting a farm or ranch. There or other.
is a fee for this book.
Farm Answers
What Can I Do with My Small Farm?: farmanswers.org
Selecting an Enterprise for Small Acreages
catalog.extension.oregonstate.edu Considered “the largest source of information for
beginning farmers,” this site is the clearinghouse
Oregon State University Extension has numerous of information from USDA-NIFA and the Beginning
publications that support beginning farmers. This Farmer Rancher Development Program (BFRDP).
one (publication EC 1529) is a short piece that gives a The site contains a library with links to thousands of
more generalized overview of some of the challenges documents, descriptions of producer programs, and
beginning farmers and ranchers will face. Search for a searchable database for past BFRDP projects. This
the publication title or publication number. site has a treasure of information, but you should
anticipate additional time to find just what you need.
Beginning Farmers website
www.beginningfarmers.org USDA Start Farming website
This website provides some key topics to consider newfarmers.usda.gov
when starting a farm or ranch. This site also has links This is the USDA’s site for helping beginning farmers
to numerous other resources. get started in farming. The step-by-step program,
Start Farming, walks a new farmer through starting
a farm, making a plan, finding resources, and getting
connected. There are also resources for women in
agriculture, military veterans, and youth in farming.

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 A Beginning Farmer Workbook: How to Plan, Support, and Grow Your Farm or Ranch

National Farmers Union Purdue Extension Newsletters

www.nfu.org Many Purdue Extension departments publish
The National Farmers Union helps family farms and newsletters and publications that offer pertinent and
ranches address profitability issues and monopolistic up-to-date information for your farm.
practices. Its goal is to protect and enhance the quality • Purdue Extension Horticulture: ag.purdue.edu/hla/
of life and economic well-being of family farmers, Extension/Pages/Publications-and-Newsletters.aspx
ranchers, and rural communities through advocating
• Purdue Extension Animal Sciences: ag.purdue.edu/
grassroots-driven policy positions adopted by its
ansc/pages/exthome.aspx
membership.
• Purdue Extension Entomology: extension.entm.
purdue.edu/publications/pubs/publications.html
Mapping Assets: What Do You Have? • Purdue Extension Botany & Plant Pathology:
Biophysical Assets ag.purdue.edu/btny/Extension/Pages/default.aspx

SARE Learning Center Economic and Financial Assets

www.sare.org/Learning-Center
Read more about soil health, plant health, crop The Lean Farm: How to Minimize Waste, Increase
production, and other topics to become a more Efficiency, and Maximize Value and Profits with Less
proficient farmer. The USDA’s Sustainable Agriculture Work
& Research Education (SARE) program offers some www.chelseagreen.com/the-lean-farm
excellent free downloads and inexpensive books.
Indiana farmer Ben Hartman wrote this book to help
SARE provides grants and education to farmers,
beginning farmers more efficiently produce on their
practitioners, and educators for sustainable practices
farm. He incorporates business ideas to increase
in agriculture.
farm profitability while also improving environmental
sustainability.
Purdue Extension Education Store
www.edustore.purdue.edu
Purdue Extension provides many publications for free The Organic Farmers Business Handbook: A
or at a low cost through their Education Store. Every Complete Guide to Managing Finances, Crops, and
state has an Extension service that provides expert- Staff - and Making a Profit
reviewed information that can offer you support. www.chelseagreen.com/product/the-organic-farmers-
There is extra value in seeking information specific business-handbook/
to your region. Most of these publications consider This book by Richard Wiswall (Chelsea Green
specific details for Indiana (planting dates, regulatory Publishing) is especially helpful for enterprise
frameworks). Exercise caution using guides published budgeting. It comes with spreadsheet templates on a
in other regions. companion CD.

Fearless Farm Finances: Farm Management

Demystified
mosesorganic.org
Published by the Midwest Organic and Sustainable
Education Service (MOSES). This book will help you
understand basic financial management for your farm.
Available from the MOSES website.

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The Carrot Project Making a Plan

www.thecarrotproject.org
With more reading, you will learn about the best
This program has helped farm and food businesses resources for working on your farm business plan and
in New England and the Hudson Valley survive and the steps you need to take in the short-, medium-, and
thrive. This site contains many resources about farm long-term. Here are a few books that are particularly
business planning that Extension educators and helpful because they detail out how to get started on a
beginning farmers can use. business plan and starting a farm.
Building a Sustainable Business: A Guide to
In addition to these websites, there are numerous Developing a Business Plan for Farms and
publications about setting prices. You should take Rural Businesses
time to study them and make sure your prices are www.sare.org/Learning-Center
reasonable without losing money on the endeavor.
This SARE publication helps small farmers develop a
Examples include:
business plan. It is available as a printed copy or as a
free download from the USDA SARE Learning Center
•S
 elling Farm Products at Farmers Markets (University
website.
of Kentucky Extension),
www.uky.edu/ccd/sites/www.uky.edu.ccd/files/ The Market Gardener: A Successful Grower’s
farmmarket.pdf Handbook for Small-Scale Organic Farming
www.themarketgardener.com/book
• “ Pricing for Profit” (Agricultural Marketing Resource
This book by Jean-Martin Fortier is a great example of
Center by Iowa State University and the USDA),
gathering detailed information on how to set up and
www.agmrc.org/business-development/operating-a-
manage a small-scale organic farm. Finding books
business/direct-marketing/articles/pricing-for-profit
with this sort of information is key to putting together
a step-by-step farm plan.
•S
 elling Direct to the Wholesale Marketplace (USDA-
Risk Management Agency [RMA])
Sustainable Market Farming: Intensive
Vegetable Production on a Few Acres
Social and Cultural Assets www.newsociety.com

Farm Aid This book by Pam Dawling is a resource for planning

www.farmaid.org out your farm to increase production. It’s available
from New Society Publishers. Search for the title on
The Our Work section of this guide lists resources for the website.
farmers, including learning opportunities, internships,
apprenticeships, and other training opportunities. Small Farm Handbook
sfp.ucdavis.edu/pubs/publications/6
Hoosier Young Farmer Coalition
www.hoosieryfc.org This great resource from the University of California,
Davis details the information needed to plan a
This site is based on the principle that finding other successful small farm. Some of the information is
farmers and networking is an important part of specific for that region of the country, but much of the
building your social and cultural assets. This is a great book is applicable to the Midwest.
place to learn about activities going on around the
state to build your network. The Spruce
www.thespruce.com
This site provides information about small-farm
designs and plans. Other sites that do this are not
vetted, but The Spruce pairs its information with
publications from universities or governmental
organizations, such as USDA or SARE.

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 A Beginning Farmer Workbook: How to Plan, Support, and Grow Your Farm or Ranch

Resources for U.S. Military Veterans Veterans to Farmers

veteranstofarmers.org
The 2014 Farm Bill identified military veterans as
a socially disadvantaged population that should Growing Veterans
receive special considerations from the USDA. growingveterans.org
Anecdotal evidence also has determined that farming These programs provide veterans (mainly from the Iraq
is therapeutic for those with disabilities. There are and Afghanistan conflicts) with pride, education, and
many resources for beginning farmers that specifically fulfillment through a permanent source of sustainable
address military veterans. Here are some resources for income, community, and contribution.
both beginning farmers and military veterans.
National AgrAbility Project Veteran Farmers Project–Center for Rural Affairs
www.agrability.org www.cfra.org/veteran_farmers_project
AgrAbility is a USDA-sponsored program that assists This program offers resources for veterans, such
farmers, ranchers, and other agricultural workers with as a helpline and individual consultations with
disabilities. AgrAbility helps to minimize obstacles that professionals, to help them learn more about finances
inhibit success in agriculture-related occupations. and production in the agricultural field.
The website contains specific videos and resources for
veterans. National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition
sustainableagriculture.net
Farmer Veteran Coalition This alliance of grassroots organizations advocates for
www.farmvetco.org federal policy reform to advance the sustainability of
This national program helps mobilize veterans to agriculture, food systems, natural resources, and rural
increase their awareness of agriculture and help them communities. They have groups all over the country
break into the agricultural industry. It also prepares the and have direct representation in Washington, D.C.
next generation of agriculturalists through interactions
between communities and veterans. VA Chapter 31 and DTAP
www.benefits.va.gov/vocrehab
Veterans Urban Farming Project The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs operates this
veteransurbanfarming.com vocational rehabilitation and employment service
This group is dedicated to helping veterans derive the program. It helps with job training, employment
full range of financial benefits from self-sufficiency and accommodations, resume development, and job
overcome the emotional, mental, and physical scars of searching skills. Chapter 31 also helps veterans with
war while transitioning back to civilian life. independent living arrangements and those who are
severely disabled and unable to work in a traditional
Veterans Farm workplace.
veteransfarm.com
This national program helps veterans re-establish
themselves in civilian life through the Beginner Farmer
Fellowship Program. Veterans work as a team in a
relaxed, open environment to overcome mental and
physical barriers.

49 PURDUE EXTENSION
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THE EDUCATION STORE
edustore.purdue.edu

An Equal Access/Equal Opportunity University December 2020

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