The Beginning Farmer Resource Network of Maine Presentation to - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

The Beginning Farmer Resource Network of Maine

Presentation to Agricultural Committee March 2015

BFRN is a coalition of Maine agriculture agencies & organizations working together to connect aspiring, beginning, and transitioning farmers to resources for farm business success. We formed in the summer of 2012 in response to a SARE funded workshop called “Reading the Farm” that was organized by Ellen Mallory, UMCE and focused on two Beginning Farmer farms in Somerset County. We operate on our collective good will, availability and the support of our respective agencies and organizations. Our website is hosted and maintained by us with the generous technical assistance of UMCE.

BFRN includes 19 agencies and organizations, including:

Coastal Enterprises, Inc. * Cultivating Community * Farm Credit East * Land For Good * Maine AgrAbility * Maine Association of Conservation Districts * Maine Aquaculture Association * Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry * Maine Farm Bureau * Maine Farmland Trust * Maine Federation of Farmers' Markets * Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners * Maine Risk Management and Crop Insurance Education Program * Maine Sustainable Agriculture Society * Sea Grant – Maine * USDA Farm Service Agency * USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service * USDA Natural Resources Conservation Services * University of Maine Cooperative Extension

Today’s Presenters are:

Stephanie Gilbert, DACF; Gary Keough, USDA – NASS; Abby Sadauckas, MOFGA; Daniel Ungier, Cultivating Community

Topics to be covered

• Census Data: Typography of Farms Overview
• Farmers with less than 10 years experience:

Our New Farmers

• We Need MORE Successful Farmers:

Recommendations & Discussion

The Beginning Farmers

• f the 2012 Ag Census

Off-Farm Occupations, 3,121, 38% Retirement Farms, 2,283, 28% Small Family Farms with Gross Cash Farm Income <$150K, 2019, 25% Small Family Farms with Gross Cash Farm Income >$150-349K , 208, 2% Four Types assumed to have fewer "Beginning Farmers", 542, 7%

8,173 Farms in Maine – 8 Typologies

Large, Large $5M + 9 Large $M - $4,999,999 98 Mid-Sized >$350K- $1M 200 Non-Family 235 542

The Four Typologies that include most of Maine’s Beginning Farmers

• Retirement Farms - Small farms whose operators report they are

retired, although they continue to farm on a small scale.

• Off-Farm Occupation Farms - Small farms whose operators report

a primary occupation other than farming. The category also includes a small number of farms whose operators do not consider themselves in the labor force.

• Small Family Farms – Gross Cash Farm Income (GCFI) divided into

two subcategories based on gross cash farm income:

• GCFI < $150,000
• GCFI $150,000 to $350,000

2000 2128 1364 179 180 93 9 189 283 993 655 29 20 5 46

500 1,000 1,500 2,000 2,500 3,000 3,500 10 or more years on any farm less than 10 years experience

1,960 Beginning Farmers in the First Four Typologies

Beginning Farmers in 7 of 8 Typologies

These Four Typologies own/operate 70% of all Farmland

Off-Farm Occupation, 397,046, 27% Retirement Farm, 297,808, 21% Small Family Farm <$150K, 229,968, 16% Small Family Farm >$150-$349K , 87,804, 6% Four Types with fewer "Beginning Farmers", 441,478, 30% 1,454,104 Total Acres

These Four Typologies earn 23% of all Farm Income

Off-Farm Occupation, 36,853, 5% Retirement Farm, 36,884, 5% Small Family Farm <$150K, 54,666, 7% Small Family Farm >$150-$349K, 49,018, 6% Four Types with fewer "Beginning Farmers", 611,975, 77% $810,241,000 Total Gross Cash Farm Income

Retirement Off- Farm Small Family Farm < $150K Small Family Farm $150K – $349K Four other Typologies Sales ($000) $29,386 $28,989 $46,085 $46,627 $611,975 Government Payments ($000) $1,628 $1,330 $1,936 $1,117 $4,151 Farm Related Income ($000) $5,870 $6,534 $6,645 $1,274 $7,400 GCFI ($000) $36,884 $36,853 $54,666 $49,018 $623,526 GCFI includes: farm operator's sales of crops & livestock, fees for delivering commodities under production contracts, government payments & farm-related income Sales as % of GCFI 79.7% 78.7% 84.3% 95.1% 98.1%

Government Payments + Farm Related Income as % of GCFI

20.3% 21.3% 15.7% 4.9% 1.9% % of State GCFI 5% 5% 7% 6% 77%

These Four Typologies generate 23% of State GCFI

Sources of Gross Cash Farm Income (GCFI)

Retirem ent Off- Farm Small Family Farm < $150K Small Family Farm $150K – $349K Four other Typologies Hispanic 6 26 20 5 1 American Indian 6 4 6 1 Asian 2 13 Black or African American 3 11 53 1 White 2,264 3,080 1,929 208 233 More than One 8 13 31 3 “More than one” means the respondent reported they identify themselves as a mixed race, for example Asian-Caucasian.

The Race and Ethnicity of the Operators

At the state level, the number of African-American farm operators since 2002:

• 1 in 2002
• 17 in 2007
• 68 in 2012

Retirement Off- Farm Small Family Farm < $150K Small Family Farm $150K – $349K Four other Typologies Male 1,805 2,223 1,114 185 465 Female 478 898 905 23 77

The Gender of the Operators

At the state level, the percent of female principal farm operators since 2002:

• 22% in 2002
• 25% in 2007
• 29% in 2012

70% of Maine’s Farmland These 7,631 farms manage 1,012,626 acres of farmland… … to produce less than ¼ of Maine’s Gross Farm Income 23% of Maine’s State Gross Farm Income

Topics to be covered

• Census Data: Typography of Farms Overview
• Farmers with less than 10 years experience:

Our New Farmers

• We Need MORE Successful Farmers:

Recommendations & Discussion

All Typologies Years Present on Farm of Principal Operator

All Farms All Typologies 5 years or less 6-10 years 11 years or more Farms (number) 8,173 1,286 1,374 5,513 Farms (percent) 100% 15.7% 16.8% 67.5% Land in Farms (acres) 1,454,104 ac 118,609 ac 201,943 ac 1,133,552 Average Size of Farm (acres) 178ac 92ac 147 206

Demographics of Operators

All Farms All Typologies 5 years or less 6-10 years 11 years or more Farms # 8,173 1,286 1,374 5,513 % of Farms with off- farm income 94% 93% 91% 95% % Male 71% 64% 60% 75% % Female 29% 36% 40% 25% Average Age 57.0 45.5 50.7 61.3

All Typologies - Net Cash Farm Income of Operators

All Farms All Typologies 5 years or less 6-10 years 11 years or more Farms # 8,173 1,286 1,374 5,513 $ dollars $163,075,000 $1,008,000 $26,189,000 $135,878,000 Average per Farm $ dollars $19,953 $784 $19,060 $24,647

Keep people farming!

Using the U.S. Census Bureau’s Business Dynamics Statistics database, researcher Scott Shane plotted five-year survival rates by industry for firms founded in 2005. His analysis revealed that mortality rates vary considerably by industry and are reported as follows:

Industry 5-Year Survival Rate (%) Mining 51.3 Manufacturing 48.4 Services 47.6 Wholesaling 47.4 Agriculture 47.4 Retailing 41.1 Finance/Insurance/Real Estate 39.6 Transportation 39.4 Communications/Utilities 39.4 Construction 36.4

Source: Smallbiztrends.com http://smallbiztrends.com/2012/09/failure-rates-by-sector-the-real-numbers.html

Decline in farm operators farming 5-9 years:

2007 2012 Net Change 1 – 4 years 934 993 + 59 5 – 9 years 1,480 1,432

• 48

10 + years 5,722 5,748 + 26 All farmers 8,136 8,173 + 38

Land Tenure

Full Owners 71% Part Owners 14% Tenants 15%

5 years or less 1,286 farms

Full Owners 78% Part Owners 15% Tenants 7%

6-10 Years 1,374 farms

Full Owners 75% Part Owners 22% Tenants 3%

11+ Years 5,513 farms

Topics to be covered

• Census Data: Typography of Farms Overview
• Farmers with less than 10 years experience:

Our New Farmers

• We Need MORE Successful Farmers:

Recommendations & Discussion

Recommendations

Jasper Mefferd, One Drop Farm, Cornville MOFGA Farm Training Project, Ararat Farms, Lincolnville

Recommendations

TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE

• Target business planning & training opportunities for each typologies
• Develop more hands-on, on-farm training opportunities for all typologies
• And professional services – legal, financial, information technology

RECRUITMENT – Net Gain 38 from 2007 to 2012

Figure out how many new farmers per year:

• To keep farmland acres in agriculture?
• To diversify Maine’s ag economy across typologies?
• To grow Maine’s ag cash receipts?

Recommendations

LAND ACCESS

• Increase for all farm types & scales of operations
• Rented land is the primary entry level

MARKET DEVELOPMENT

• Aggregation, Distribution Systems
• Balancing Wholesale / Retail
• Increase Out-of-State export

SURVIVABILITY & SUSTAINABILITY

• Balancing Work Life/Family
• Labor needs
• Be aware of changes in the demographics
• Change thinking & label from “Hobby Farm” to “Part-Time Farm”
• Measure baseline and then increase Maine’s Farm Survival Rate

Thank you!