Welcome to the 18th Annual Michigan Family Farms Conference. This conference offers beginning, small-scale and culturally diverse farmers a chance to network, learn, and build sustainable family farms. Thanks for joining us today!

The North Central Region-Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (NCR-SARE) Farmers Forum is a traveling annual event giving farmers, ranchers, researchers, and others the chance to share information about sustainable agriculture practices with a national audience.
These presentations focus on research, demonstration, and education projects that promote profitable practices that are good for the environment and community. The projects highlighted in these presentations and the Farmers Forum are funded by grants from NCR-SARE, a USDA funded program that supports and promotes sustainable farming and ranching by offering competitive grants and educational opportunities.
For more information about NCR-SARE, see: www.northcentral.sare.org or contact NCR-SARE by email: ncrsare@umn.edu, or phone 612-626-3113

In this project we explored a proof of concept and feasibility study of growing chestnuts in North East Michigan. Included in the project was the evaluation of specific cultivars and intercropping of forage to ease the loss of opportunity cost associated with establishing a chestnut orchard.

Learn about how digital technologies may be able to help small farms better utilize their manure to improve returns and protect the environment.

The Map of Beginning Farmer Resources in Michigan is an interactive tool showing over 90 programs for beginning and aspiring farmers in Michigan. Listings feature short videos, a website link, a program description, a list of programs offered for beginning and aspiring farmers and contact information. Color-coded resource icons can help beginning farmers target the resources they need, whether they are seeking land, funding, farm skills, marketing opportunities, conferences, advocacy organizations or other resources. The map, webpage and video guide to the map were created with funding from North Central SARE.

This panel of previous SARE grant recipients will be on live to answer questions that you have about the sessions and SARE grants. Enter questions in the chat box under the live stream at miffs.org

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SARE Farmer/Rancher Grant Project: Mr. Antonino García has vast experience in the production of traditional agricultural products using organic practices, which he gained working at his family farm in Mexico. After working for many years as a migrant farmworker, a few years ago he bought a small farm in Van Buren County, Michigan where he is using his experience in the production of organic agricultural products. Due to the increased demand of tomatillo criollo, Kusa squash, garlic, beans (yellow, green, and purple), and hot peppers, Mr. Antonino Garcia is planning to expand his current production of traditional agricultural products to sell at local markets and to expand the marketing of his products to new markets. This project is Ecologically Sound since it does not use any type of chemicals in the production process, is economically viable since it will increase his farm revenues and profits in the end. Finally, the project is Socially Responsible because it will improve his quality of life, as well as that of other underserved farmers. In addition, he plans to share his experience and knowledge with other farmers in the community.

Writing grant proposals is a lot of work. Learn where to find grants and what to do before, during and after writing a proposal that can improve your chances for successful submission.

Shea Phire Cobb lives and works in Flint, Michigan, where she was also born and raised. She is an artist, mother, author, musician, and founder of The Sister Tour, a platform that promotes female artistry. She began her artistic career by performing poetry during children’s summer programs and organizing poetry showcases in her community. Her books of poetry include Travels in my Car: Dedicated to the Writers Freedom (2018), Honey Tea and Hibiscus: Reflective Heart Poetry (2018), and Ruby in The Rough: A Dedication to LaToya Ruby Frazier (2020), which she co-authored with Amber Hasan. She studied communications at the University of Michigan–Flint and Mott Community College. In 2014, she began an ongoing collaboration with LaToya Ruby Frazier focused on the Flint Water Crisis. With Frazier and The Sister Tour, Cobb has traveled across the country telling the story of her community and the Flint Water Crisis. She has led programs at, among others, Gavin Brown’s Enterprise in New York, and the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, where she also performed an original play, Surviving Womanhood.