In May of 2024, I had the privilege of attending and co-presenting at the National Farm Viability Conference in Charleston, West Virginia. With a team of four other amazing humans – Heidi Exline, American Farmland Trust; Molly Johnston-Heck, American Farmland Trust; Laura Poliné González, California FarmLink; Amanda Shaw, O’ahu Agriculture and Conservation Association – we presented a session entitled, A conversation with (and for) service providers: Addressing power in farmland access, tenure, and transfer.
Our goal was to provide a structured space for service providers to discuss the ways their organizations have been grappling with questions of power and race in their farmland access, tenure, and transfer work – specifically the concentration of land, farmland, and wealth in white communities.
This topic was particularly relevant given that farmland is at risk of being lost – senior generation farmers are aging, many without transition plans, and non-operating landowners control growing portions of farmland across the United States. Meanwhile, new and beginning farmers have long identified land access as their greatest barrier to entry, with these barriers being even greater for historically underserved farmers. White landowners, who control 98% of farmland nationally, hold a tremendous amount of power, but also the opportunity to ensure that land is available for the next generation. Many want to see their land stay in farming, but need support to find resources and plan for the future. To ensure that a diverse new generation of farm seekers has access to land, we as service providers have identified a pressing need to support
and educate landowners. This work is crucial to our collective goals of creating a thriving and just food system.
In small groups, service providers shared their thoughts on and questions about multiple topics, including:
- What does your work with landowners look like?
- Who are your communities (however you define them) and who are you working with now?
- Who owns land where you are? Where/how have you wrestled with power dynamics in your work with landowners? How have you navigated or addressed these issues?
- Where has your organizations felt successful? What resources, tools, and information do you still need?
Approximately 40 people attended this session. Participant comments included:
“One of the most impactful sessions I attended. Great job!”
“Challenging topic… Always appreciate more focused approaches. Useful breakout discussions.”
I hope that as a service provider community, we’re able to keep moving forward into problem-solving that gets results. Our food and farming systems only work if they work for everyone. As service providers, land access professionals, and advocates, we are called to do our utmost to break down systemic barriers to farmland access. I am pleased to have had this opportunity to be part of the conversation. Three other folks from Land For Good attended the conference: Shemariah Blum-Evitts (FarmLinking roundtable discussion), Mike Ghia (But, I Don’t Plan to EVER Retire: Working with Young Farmers on Retirement Saving, and Senior Farmers on Retirement Planning and Implementation to Support Farm Succession; Emerging Farm Transfer Planning Models – A Discussion of Successes and Challenges; Leveraging Conservation: Agricultural Conservation Easements as a Business, Succession and Access Strategy), and Kali Lucey (tabling and networking).
We also shared our newly released guide Toward Land Justice: Actions white farmland owners can take. If you are interested in learning more about the topic or the context for this guide, see our blog: New guide supports farmland owners in advancing land justice.
To see more valuable tools and resources we have available to service providers, visit our resources for advising and supporting farmers.
Our food and farming systems only work if they work for everyone.
