I’m Gonna Make Him An Offer He Can’t Refuse
From Modern Farmer Francesco Galante works for a network of organic farmers called Libera Terra. Get him talking, and he’ll go on and on about their delicious pastas and oils and the depth and complexity of their wines. It almost slips his mind: Everything was produced on confiscated Mafia property. Way back in 2001, the […]
Land Contracts: Owner Financing with a Twist
by Ben Waterman from New Farmer Project Blog In the spirit of examining ways to acquire land through seller-financing, it is time to take a look at land contracts. The land contract is a variation of the owner-financed sale, with both mechanisms being a way for a farmer-buyer to come to terms with an owner-seller, […]
Farm Tenancy in Kansas 1917-Now
by fourth generation Kansas farmer Tom Giessel The Twentieth Biennial Report of the Kansas State Board of Agriculture was published in 1917. The very first chapter was dedicated to the topic of Rural Welfare and began with an article by George E. Putnam, Associate Professor of Economics in Lawrence, Kansas. He devoted the first twenty […]
Wall Street Banks Eye American Farmland
From the Oakland Institute: The wolves of Wall Street are eyeing millions of acres of U.S. farmland that will soon come up for sale, much of which has been in the hands of family farmers for generations, according to Down on the Farm, a new study from the Oakland Institute. “Institutional investors”–including hedge funds, private equity, […]
News in Farm Justice from Agrarian Trust Advisor Elizabeth Henderson
Farmworker Organizations Give Strong Support to the Agricultural Justice Project By Elizabeth Henderson Unique among domestic fair trade claims, farmworkers and farmers negotiated directly with one another to hammer out the standards of the Agricultural Justice Project (AJP). The goal of these standards, which are the basis of AJP’s Food Justice Certified label, is to […]
Urban Shepherds Graze in the Commons
Another bold group has taken to public spaces, aiming to revitalize urban centers through agriculture. French group Clinamen is working in partnership with the city of Saint-Denis, Stade de France, the Ile-de-France and Cofely to redefine the public concept of urban spaces. (Clinamen is the word that 2nd century philosopher Lucretius used to describe the […]
At Long Last . . . Legislation
For those of you following the Illiad of the 2014 Farm Bill (once called the 2012 Farm Bill . . .), the final passing gives us 5 years of regulation surrounding Agriculture and other national food concerns. This graphic from the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition helps show the ups and downs of the version passed […]
Farm Profile: Broadfork Farm
Shannon Jones and Bryan Dyck farm 15 acres of veggies, herbs, fruits, cut flowers, vegetable transplants, and cover crop in River Hebert, a small town in Nova Scotia, Canada. They started Broadfork Farm in 2011 on leased land, and then purchased their own property the following year. I spoke with Shannon about their move, and […]
Farm Profile: Frith Farm
When Daniel Mays started his search for farmland in 2010, he knew it wouldn’t be easy. A Pennsylvania native with Quaker roots, Mays knew he wanted land in the Northeast. He went to school in New England and felt at home in the region and its seasonal climate. He confirmed his love for farming and […]
New Farm Finance Options Guide: Affording Our Land
In April of 2013, Kendra Johnson, Severine Fleming, and Kristen Loria completed the guidebook “Affording our land: a farmers guide to farm finance options.” It has been at the head of our growing Resource List and is available for free to download. This guidebook is meant as a compilatory resource for farmers looking for land, […]