Farming in the U.S. has gone through an incredible transformation in the last century, from highly diversified to highly specialized. Over that period, we’ve gone from 6.4 million farms to 2.1 million farms. Meanwhile, average farm size in the U.S. has increased...
We are delighted to be part of the Maryland Collaborative for Beginning Farmer Success that received a grant from the USDA’s Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program. SMADC supports the effort with enhanced resources on the Maryland FarmLINK website and...
Why do we need small farms? The world-wide trend in agriculture has been to specialize and scale-up. Bigger operations can be more efficient and reduce the cost of agriculture products. So why have a whole conference about small-scale agriculture? Should we even be...
I have been associated with Extension folks for 40 years, but this week I was immersed! I was one of a half-dozen speakers participating in two workshops to provide Extension personnel and other ag professionals with resources for assisting beginning farmers. Training...
Nineteen of us traveled to Newburg, Md to participate in the START Farmer’s Network tour of Next Step Produce. Heinz Thomet and Gabrielle Lajoie purchased the farm in 1999 after carefully looking for the best place to grow organic produce for direct sale to...
