Helping California Grow the Next Generation of Farmers

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Roots of Change (ROC) believes that the best way to make the food system sustainable is to connect and support the people and parts within the system that have the knowledge, roles, relationships and commitments required to successfully manage a rapid transformation. Read more...

May 16, 2008
By Steve Schwartz, California Farmlink

There is a saying that goes “There are two ways to get into farming: marry in or inherit.” This reflects the low wages of farm owners and employees in relation to the high costs of agricultural property, equipment, and other inputs like seeds or livestock. The future of agricultural production is far too important to be left to a random process of “marry or inherit”.
California's agricultural lands are being developed at ever increasing rates, and young people interested in farming are facing increasingly difficult barriers to pursuing their dreams. A few facts to put this in perspective:

California farmers age 65 and over outnumber farmers under the age of 35 by approximately 8 to one. Those 65 and over outnumber farmers under the age of 25 by approximately 60 to one.
The number of California farmers under the age of 35 declined to 46% between 1992 and 2002.
California farmland acreage dropped by 1.2 million acres from 1997 to 2002, with over 200,000 acres of harvested cropland being lost.
California is facing a loss of more than one million acres of farmland over the next 25 years primarily due to development pressure.
Small farms of 1 to 9 acres are increasingly important, with 65% of farmers on these smaller acreage having more than 10 years of experience. Previously these experienced farmers were more likely to have large operations.

Aspiring farmers across the state face numerous obstacles to achieving their dreams, including a lack of information about financing options and other resources crucial to their success. Retiring farmers often lack information about proven, innovative ways to keep land in agricultural production while simultaneously meeting financial goals related to retirement and estate planning. The Roots of Change New Mainstream Campaign Strategy clearly identifies the cultivation of new, young farmers as a top priority over the next five years – one which must be enacted in order to reach the goal of a sustainable food system for the entire state. Our work at California FarmLink supports this goal in order to ensure the future of family farming in California.

California FarmLink provides a range of services to facilitate a transition from one farmer or landowner to the next generation of farmers. We facilitate transfers of farmland and businesses to the next generation of producers, helping grow new farmers for California’s future. This next generation includes new immigrants; farmers who were raised in the city, and people who were raised on family farms and are ready to take on an entrepreneurial role in partnership with their parents or independently. The next generation of California farmers will come from all of these- and other- diverse communities across the state.

In many places, negotiations on how farmland changes hands takes place informally at coffee shops between members of an “old boys network”. Consider, for example, how this traditional network shuts out an aspiring farmer who relocated to California to do a farm apprenticeship, and now wants to find land for her own operation. In order to help beginning farmers find land, we have built a growing list of over 180 land opportunities in California, which are shared with more than 600 beginning farmers on the organization’s list that are looking for a “link”.

Consider an immigrant farmer who is offered a ten-page lease but is uncomfortable in signing a document that is filled with “legalese”. In order to help new, immigrant farmers get on their feet, we have brought together staff and consultants to provide interpretation, as well as negotiation assistance and review by qualified attorneys. One of our resources for new farmers includes a book with an attached CD holding 200 pages of sample tenure agreements to assist farmers with tenure challenges. The majority of the work we do is to help farmers secure leases. However, we also promote the use of conservation easements as a tool to make farm purchases a viable option.

We also assist new farmers with financing challenges. For example, a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) operator in the Central Valley who was told by their first loan officer, “Don’t mention the CSA marketing idea, the reviewers will get too confused.” Another new farmer, with limited English proficiency, was trying to turn three years of receipts into 12 pages of information for a commercial loan application. We have created new ways to assist such farming operations with financing - including our recently created $1,000,000 loan fund for operating and infrastructure loans. This new loan fund program was accomplished with help from the Columbia Foundation and others.

We have launched the nation’s first Individual Development Account matched savings programs for farmers. The partnership with private banks helps farmers with limited assets build a $9,600 nest egg that can be used towards equipment purchases or a down payment on land. Participants position themselves over two years to secure additional financing if needed. The money has been leveraged to buy several California family farms as well as tractors, dairy equipment and various farm implements. We’re proud that this program became a model for a program approved as part of the 2008 Farm Bill.

Finally, we aim to help families transition their land from one generation to the next. We have created solutions that include providing training and technical assistance to facilitate transfers that keep family members talking to each other and the land in production. In 2007 the organization, along with UC Cooperative Extension, organized a statewide Farm Succession Conference attended by over 100 people committed to learning about innovative ways to save their family farm.

Learning to produce a crop is only one of the challenges faced by a successful farmer; California’s farmers also need business skills and a commitment to financial management and marketing. Since California FarmLink’s first workshop in 1999 the organization has provided several thousand sessions of one-on-one technical assistance to help farmers sort out their options in terms of financing, securing land, forming partnerships or protecting farmland.

The connections between California FarmLink’s work and the Roots of Change goals are numerous. FarmLink is working with new and old farmers to facilitate entry for beginning farmers, coordinate farm transitions, help spawn locally owned businesses, focus community capital investment and encourage entrepreneurship. Approximately 30% of California farmers are at or past traditional retirement age. This means we are at a crucial period in terms of transitioning the producer base. More than 80% of California FarmLink’s registered beginning farmers indicate that they are committed to sustainable agriculture. As a result, our work helps convert conventional farms to regionally sustainable farming operations across the state.

As we look long-term, particularly California’s Central Valley, helping experienced Latinos employed as farm managers transition to becoming owners is essential to avoid losing a huge number of family farms. We’ve proven this type of transition can be done, but we need to step up this work over the next 10 years. This includes efforts to influence the federal Farm Bill and other areas of policy.

California FarmLink has offices in Sebastopol, Davis and Santa Cruz which serve farmers and landowners all over California. Our trainings have been presented in 30 counties. Learn more about California FarmLink at www.californiafarmlink.org .

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