Question - What do ‘wannabe’ farmers, organic tomatoes, computer business software and grass-based livestock have in common?

Answer - They are all components of a vision for innovative agriculture, supported by UNH Cooperative Extension Agricultural Resources staff in their efforts to make New Hampshire farmers more profitable. Now that vision moves closer to reality.

UNH Cooperative Extension Agricultural Resources program staff are partnering with North Country Resource Conservation & Development (RC&D), NH Department of Agriculture, Marketing and Foods, NH Farm Bureau and others on a two-year, $156,000 USDA Rural Development grant. The grant, coordinated through North Country RC&D, provides funds to offer technical and business assistance for up to 20 New Hampshire farm families who want to develop and grow their businesses.

Farmers’ enterprise ideas can translate into innovative new farm businesses, which in turn support local economies as well as New Hampshire’s agritourism opportunities. This means that a farmer’s dream of a farm-based commercial kitchen turning out fruit pies and jams will now have the chance to become reality with the help of a personal BAT (Business Assistance Team.)

Experts in different areas of production, marketing and business management will comprise the BATs. Not surprisingly, Extension’s agricultural resources staff will play a large role. Several Extension staff, particularly John Porter and Mike Sciabarrasi, already have shared significant time and expertise by serving on the grant project’s steering committee. They will continue to do so as well as being part of the individual BATs working with selected farmers. Participating farmers, chosen through a competitive application process this spring, will have the opportunity to share their experiences with each other and other farmers through workshops and case studies during the next two years. The hope is this sharing leads to a ripple effect, multiplying the impact of the new and expanding agricultural businesses far beyond their local communities.

Like most other states, opportunities to let agricultural entrepreneurship shine often lag behind other business concepts in New Hampshire. This grant project provides an infrastructure to grow those innovative ideas into solid businesses. By showcasing these farm-based enterprises, UNH Cooperative Extension can demonstrate the importance of innovative agriculture to New Hampshire’s economic development. So keep your eye on the sky! That next flying pie may be coming home to roost in your own community.

For more information about the New Hampshire Ag Innovations Program, contact the project coordinator, Charlene Andersen of Kamigo Marketing, at 942-7160 or email her at info@kamigomarketing.com