Do you have questions about starting or expanding your land-based business? Are you interested in hearing from local farmers and ranchers who have experience with some of the same issues you’re facing?
If either of these scenarios sound familiar, try The Toolshed, the NMFMA’s new interactive knowledge center. Designed to help both experienced and beginning producers access business resources on a variety of topics, The Toolshed covers topics ranging from the basics of getting started, to the nitty gritty of insurance, management, lease agreements, and planning for farm enterprises, and much more!
In addition to valuable links, we’re currently featuring the voices of eight all-star producers from around the state that you can either read from start to finish, or in bite-size chunks connected to relevant articles. We hope you enjoy their interviews.
- Becca Marshall, Yappy Dog Farm
- Carson Stark, Bluffs Farm
- Casey Holland, Grow the Growers & formerly Chispas Farm
- Dr. Manny Encinias, Trilogy Beef
- Jeremy Gathings, Gathings Gardens
- Lisa Anderson, Melandro Farm
- Mary Ben, Bidii Baby Foods & The Ben Initiative
- Matt Ladegaard, Groundstone Farm
We would also like to thank the farmers who provided feedback on the early version of this platform —Ian Colburn, Kristen Davenport, Zoey Fink, and Pauline Pao.
How to Use This Knowledge Center
The Toolshed is organized into a list of topics, each of which features a big picture overview, links to more in-depth resources, and stories from producers about how they’ve dealt with a particular challenge.
Readers in the early stages of their farm or ranch business may want to scroll down the topic list looking for ideas, while others may want to use the search function to skip to the topic that is most relevant to their needs.
Help Us Evolve!
Have an opinion or idea about something you’re reading? Add your voice to the “Help Us Improve this Article” box at the end of each article.
Know a producer you think we should reach out to for an interview? In addition to the current content, we’re hoping to cultivate an evolving interactive platform with new interviews and by having producers contribute their own questions, problems, and solutions.
Take a look at The Toolshed site today and help us share this free resource with other producers and local food supporters in your life.
