“Whole Farm” Planning Sustainable Small Farming & Ranching Developing Your “Whole Farm” Goals.

“Whole Farm” Planning

Sustainable Small Farming & Ranching

Developing Your “Whole Farm”

Goals

Sustainable Small Acreage Farming & Ranching

“I was just wondering if you could help me find my way?”

-Alice


“Well, that depends onwhere you want to get to.”

Cheshire Cat responds…


Where do YOU want to go?

? ?


Goals

Provide direction and vision to help guide your decisions


Ask yourself these questions:

What do I really want in life?

What can I do that will be most productive and worthwhile?

What am I really trying to achieve through my use of time, effort, money, and

management skills?


Evaluating Farm Goals

Click on image to start video








Vision, Values and Beliefs

Your values and beliefs shape your vision

What you think is important

They drive your actions

Your vision is what you see in the future…for your farm, your quality of

life and how the landscape should look.


Goals help you achieveyour vision of the future

…like a map, they will help you get where you’re going


Without goals…

We react to what happens… leading us wherever the new path might lead

We often spend more time reacting and less time creating


Things to think about…

Farm operation (type, enterprise, etc.)

Financial

Quality of Life

Resource base

Family


Farm Operation

What size and type of farm?

What type of enterprises? (Animals, crops, integrated)

Product or service?


Financial -

What is your definition of financial success????

+ +



Quality of Life

The measure of shared value and satisfaction you and your family

attach to the various features of

place, the environment and

working


Resource Base

Land, water and air

People involved with the farm

Potential of the landscape base

Purchasing power

Your skills and knowledge


Family

The importance of family to farming can NOT be overlooked. Why?

Farming is a lifestyle You don’t leave home

to go off to a job The people who are

most important to you are often directly affected by the decisions you make

Microsoft clipart


Understanding your goals

Is the goal realistic?

Is it specific enough?

Can you see how to get there?

What are the action steps to achieve the goal?


Short Term

Gain knowledge aboutand experience

In farming

Transition threeacres to

organic garlic

Break your list of goals down into short term and long term

Long TermOwn and farm

20 acres in the Pacific Northwest

Supplemental farm income from production and direct marketing of

organic garlic


Continually Review and Monitor

Evaluate progress on a regular basis

Are these still your goals?

Steps to revise goals or get back

on track

How are you

doing?


Ron Macher, Ron Macher, Editor:Editor:

“ Clarify and prioritize your goals”

“Keep them uppermost in your mind”

“Plan enterprises with your goals in mind”


The Minnesota ProjectWhole Farm Planning at Work:

Success Stories of Ten Farms

www.mnproject.orgwww.mnproject.org



Seeing the Big Picture on a Small Farm:Ray and Sharon Johnson’s Goals

Stay on the farm Have more time together Take a vacation

Make a living with dairy Increase profits Manage the land holistically for future

generations Have a pleasant living and working

atmosphere


CreditsPresentation developed by Cultivating Success

TM : Sustainable Small Farms Education.

Photos provided by Cultivating Success

TM staff, unless otherwise noted.

Video segments taken from:“Affinity Farm: A Small-Acreage Farm Shares Strategies” produced by Ben Troka, University of Idaho College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. Copywrite 2005, University of Idaho.

“Meadowlark Farm: A Case Study of a Small-Acreage Farm” produced by Ben Troka, University of Idaho College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. Copywrite 2005, University of Idaho.

“Riley Creek Blueberry Farm: A Case Study of a Small-Acreage Farm” produced by Ben Troka, University of Idaho College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. Copywrite 2002, University of Idaho Extension.

“Whole Farm” Planning Sustainable Small Farming & Ranching Developing Your “Whole Farm” Goals.

Documents

type of farm

achieveyour vision

type of enterprises

use of time

actionsyour vision

aboutfarm operation

beliefsyour values

goal realistic