Rogue Farm Corps is training the next generation of Oregon farmers and ranchers. But how can we ensure that our graduates and other beginning farmers can access land and business opportunities when they are ready?

The Future Farms Program addresses systemic barriers to accessing land, capital, and other resources by providing the education and support that beginning farmers and ranchers need to build successful and sustainable agricultural businesses. We believe that keeping farmers on the land with successful businesses is the most effective and secure way to preserve farmland. 

RFC’s Future Farms Program consists of four branches of work: Changing Hands Workshops, Farm Launch, Collaborative Farming Initiative, and Technical Assistance:

  • Every year from October-March, Farm Launch assists 12-15 beginning farmers in taking the next steps toward establishing or growing their businesses and writing business plans through cohort learning and one-on-one coaching. 

  • RFC’s annual Changing Hands Workshops provide education and facilitated networking to farmers and ranchers who are seeking land and business support and farmers and ranchers who are seeking to pass on their land and/or business.

  • The Collaborative Farming Initiative provides education, networking, and technical assistance to farmers wishing to collaborate with each other to meet their needs and overcome barriers.

  • The Future Farms Program provides additional one-on-one business Technical Assistance to graduates of RFC’s training programs and aspiring and beginning farmers across Oregon

RFC’s Future Farms Program, previously called the Changing Hands Program, and originally called the Farm Preservation Program, was established in 2015 to address the threats facing Oregon’s agricultural land and the many interrelated barriers that beginning farmers and ranchers face in building successful and sustainable careers in agriculture.

For more information about this program and to get involved, contact Geoffrey Van at geoffrey@roguefarmcorps.org

This work is supported by the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture.