To sustain New England agriculture, over 10,000 senior farmers must successfully transition their farms to a successor in the next decade—whether family or unrelated.
Most farmers want help to pass on their farms and exit securely from active farming. Together, we can connect transitioning farmers with successors and help them navigate the transfer process one farm at a time—reducing a major threat to the loss of working farms and our regional food system.
As a regional leader on succession planning assistance, we believe that educating farmers is not enough,” said Shemariah Blum-Evitts, Program Director.
Professionals can extend their services and expertise to farmers by listing themselves at the Farm Transfer Network of New England website, where they can also find resources for working with farmers.
Our professional training reflects a field-based understanding of what farmers and service providers need. Without adequate information and support, many farms will cease to operate, further reducing opportunities for next-generation farmers to acquire farmland or viable farm businesses.
Farmers need skilled and knowledgeable professionals such as attorneys, financial experts, educators, consultants, mediators, conservation, farm link and farm organization staff, and lenders to help them complete succession plans,” explained Shemariah.
A new, two-year professional development grant from Northeast Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (NE SARE) will allow us to organize, train and network 80 service providers to deliver effective succession planning support to approximately 320 transitioning farmers in New England.
