MSU Extension and USDA need your feedback on a new resource for farm producers

Jonathan LaPorte<laportej@msu.edu>, Michigan State University Extension - January 14, 2025

The Beginning Farmer Resource and Decision Making Guide is a jointly created resource in the works for new farm managers and beginning farmers.

for decoration — Starting with production in mind, resources will include direction to education and decision-making tools and how to connect with agricultural partners. Photo by Holger Grybsch from Pixabay

Michigan State University Extension and USDA are looking for input on the Beginning Farmer Resource and Decision Making Guide. The Guide is a joint resource being created to provide a pathway to all the resources a new farmer or decision-maker may need to get started and support their production journey. Starting with production in mind, resources will include direction to education and decision-making tools and how to connect with agricultural partners.

The target audience is beginning producers, new farming decision makers, and anyone interested in learning more about managing a farm business. The content of the guide is being provided by experts from all production areas with contributions from industry partners.

Each section of the guide will provide an introduction, primary considerations and the process for getting started for the topic area. Each section will also include common questions routinely asked by beginning farmers. Resources and recommendations to educational opportunities, publications, decision-tools and industry partners available to offer assistance will round out the content.

The guide will be housed and accessible online via the MSU Extension Beginning Farmer website. Print copies will be provided by USDA at in-person outreach events. Each year, the content will be reviewed by the resource organizers to update information, links and add additional content to ensure beginning farmers continually have the best resources available.

How Can You Provide Input?

The resource guide organizers have created examples of the types of content that will be included in the guide. These examples can be accessed via the Beginning Farmer Resource and Decision-Making Guide Example Page. The example page also contains access to a presentation handout that outlines the purpose and expected design of the guide.

After reviewing the content, producers can take part in a feedback survey. The purpose of the survey is to:

Collect feedback directly from producers on knowledge needs
Better understand our Beginning Farmer/Rancher population – who are you, what are you doing, what do you need?

There are 14 comprehensive questions in the survey designed to capture information on:

Demographics
Production types
Operational management
Production information important to your operation
Open-ended feedback and questions that may not have been captured.

A link to the survey is available on the example page or can be accessed directly at: https://msu.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_8pOP0PEFhdZ7i1E

This article was published by Michigan State University Extension. For more information, visit https://extension.msu.edu. To have a digest of information delivered straight to your email inbox, visit https://extension.msu.edu/newsletters. To contact an expert in your area, visit https://extension.msu.edu/experts, or call 888-MSUE4MI (888-678-3464).