The Kentucky Department of Agriculture sponsored what they called a Beginning Farmer Summit Friday in Louisville.
Madison County Extension Agent in Agriculture Brandon Sears says about half of the people with an interest in farming are new to Agriculture. He says the other half often see farming passed down from generation to generation.
Sears says, for first-timers, he talks about time commitment, “Just trying to look ahead about ‘are you gonna have time to do this? Typically a lot of beginning farmers have off-farm employment, so the availability of time is certainly one we talk about,” noted Sears.
Beginning Farmer Regional Coordinator Amanda Robertson says the overall goal of the Louisville event was to increase farming numbers. She says farm financing is readily available through the U.S. Department of Agriculture.?
