Farmland Advisors New Jersey: A Training Program for Professionals Working with Farmers to Access and Transfer Farmland

Completed by June 30, 2018 because of schedule adjustments, AFT coordinated direct outreach among the 15 Farmland Advisors New Jersey Advisory Committee members to reach professionals across the state, including contacts within the land trust, cooperative extension, and Farm Bureau networks. 

AFT received 18 applications for the Farmland Advisors New Jersey program, including one from a beginning farmer. Professionals that applied included staff from county Rutgers Cooperative Extension teams, food and agricultural nonprofits, state and local land trusts, and state and federal agencies. This was completed by June 30, 2018 because of schedule adjustments.

Thanks to the outreach conducted by the Farmland Advisors New Jersey Advisory committee, AFT accepted 15 participants into the program in September 2018 and included a public announcement via press release (https://www.farmland.org/press-releases/american-farmland-trust-selects-farmland-advisors-for-advanced-training-in-new-jersey). Participants were accepted by September 7, 2018 and the survey was completed December 16, 2018. The Farmland Advisors New Jersey participants are:

• Cali Alexander, M.A., H.O.
• Gillian Armstrong, Agricultural Resource Specialist, New Jersey State Agriculture Development Committee
• Amanda Brockwell, Director of Programs and Outreach, Monmouth Conservation Foundation
• Kendrya Close, Executive Director, Foodshed Alliance
• Katherine Coyle, Director, Morris County Agriculture Development Board
• Gabi Grunstein, Agricultural Service Provider
  • Applied as an individual, but currently serving as County Executive Director for Monmouth, Mercer and
• Middlesex Counties State Communication Coordinator for USDA Farm Service Agency
• Adrian Hyde, Executive Director, NOFA-NJ
• Tara Kenyon, Principal, Kenyon Planning, LLC
• David Kimmel, Agricultural Resource Specialist, New Jersey State Agriculture Development Committee
• Melanie Mason, Land Steward, New Jersey Conservation Foundation
• Jennifer Matthews, program associate I, Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Cumberland and Cape May County
• Meredith Melendez, Agricultural Agent, Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Mercer County
• Rebecca Szotak, Program Associate II, Agriculture, Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Camden County
• Laura Tessieri, Associate Director, North Jersey Resource Conservation & Development Council
• Edward Wengryn, Research Associate, New Jersey Farm Bureau

These professionals were invited to participate in the Farmland Advisors New Jersey training program based on the following criteria:
- Commitment to participating in all aspects of the training over the three-year period
- Experience working with different communities of farmers and farmland owners
- Geographic diversity within the state
- Organizational diversity

The pre-survey was delayed in order to correspond with the two additional webinars and closed on December 16, 2018. Participants were asked to rate their knowledge and experience within certain topics, and expressed the most need in learning more about:
• Aiding farmers in assessing financial readiness in finding farmland (69%)
• Communications and negotiation between farmers and landowners (54%)
• Working with farmland investors (85%)
• Estate planning for farm transfer (77%)

NE-SARE-NJ-Morning-Ag-Press

FA-NJ-Learning-Action-Plan_November-2018

The introduction of personal LAPs was adjusted to coincide with the first webinar on November 29, 2018. The second half of the webinar presented the LAP tool to the Farmland Advisors. First drafts were due to AFT in advance of the second webinar on January 9, 2019 and will be used to further refine the subsequent webinars and workshops. In total, 12 out of 15 trainees participated in the first webinar. The proposed completion date has been changed to January 9, 2019.

During the second introductory webinar on January 9 participants discussed questions and reflections about the process of creating their LAPs. AFT received about half of LAPs prior to the first in-person training on April 8, 2019 and gave time for Farmland Advisors to work on LAPs at the training on April 8. At each of the following workshops, Farmland Advisors were asked to reflect on their LAPs and update them with any new ideas or plans to support farmers and farmland owners, and received final versions from 12 Farmland Advisors by December 4, 2019. LAPs were collected for all Farmland Advisors who received Implementation Stipends – the two participants who did not submit LAPs were unable to accept the stipend.

In their Learning Action Plans, participants expressed a desire to develop a network of experts and strengthen relationships with one another in order to share resources going forward. Participants also wanted to learn more about issues related to land access – like financial and personal readiness, education opportunities for new and experienced farmers in New Jersey, deed and land use restrictions, farm transfer and succession planning, land assessment, and leasing options – in order to better support farmers throughout the state. Several participants indicated that hosting a workshop or a series of workshops on land access is a primary goal in the coming years.

FA-NJ-Training-Outline_updated-01.19

This milestone completion date was changed to February 28, 2019 due to schedule adjustments.

The first webinar on fundamentals of farmland access for beginning farmers was held on January 23 and featured presentations on financial readiness from Keith Dickinson at Farm Credit East and personal readiness from Suzanna Denison at American Farmland Trust’s national Farms for the Next Generation program. After the webinar and before the in-person training Farmland Advisors were asked to review and simulate completing two worksheets related to assessing personal readiness (see attached) using knowledge from a farmer they were currently working with or another possible scenario. Participants were also asked to review sample financial statements (see attached) and develop their own personal balance sheet and monthly budget for February as homework related to assessing financial readiness. The in-person training was initially scheduled for February but was cancelled due to snow and rescheduled for May 22 at Rutgers Cooperative Extension of Mercer County in Ewing, NJ. At this training Keith Dickinson and Suzanna Denison expanded upon their previous webinar presentations in a day-long meeting focused on personal and financial readiness. Both the webinar and workshop were attended by 12 Farmland Advisors.

Evaluation results from the in-person session on May 22 showed that the training met the expectations of all but one participant who responded. That person responded that the content was too basic, whereas several others reported learning a lot and thought the information was “very valuable.” This highlights a challenge that we have seen throughout this project. There is a wide range of knowledge and skill level among Farmland Advisors – some have been working with farmers to access land for many years and came in feeling confident about their ability to support farmers and landowners, whereas others came in with very limited experience. It has been a challenge, therefore, to design the webinars and trainings to fit the needs of all participants and share useful knowledge and resources to those at all points on this spectrum.

Participants also found small-group breakout sessions and hands-on examples to be useful, as well as the financial information provided by Keith Dickinson.

Personal and Business Goals Worksheet

Land Tenure Readiness Self Assessment

Three Year Financial History

Three Year Production History

Property Owned and Leased

Farm Business Plan Worksheet

Projected Actual Income Expense Worksheet

This milestone completion date was changed to April 30, 2019 due to schedule adjustments.

The second webinar on techniques for assessing farmland was held on March 13 and the in-person training was held on April 8 at Duke Farms in Hillsborough, NJ. There were 14 attendees for the webinar and 13 attendees for the in-person training. In preparation for the in-person training, attendees were asked to review resources available on the NJ State Agriculture Development Committee’s (SADC) Leasing Farmland webpage. Charles Roohr and Cindy Roberts from SADC presented a session in the morning entitled “Preparing Farmers to Secure Land Through Leasing or Purchase” using materials from AFT’s Land Access Training curriculum (see attached). Charles and Cindy were trained and certified by AFT as Land Access Trainers, developed through support from the USDA Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program, to deliver this curriculum designed to increase the proficiency of service providers in supporting beginning farmers seeking secure land tenure.  In the afternoon, Dave Clapp, also from SADC, led a session entitled “Assessing Land Suitability” which included classroom instruction (see attached) and an on-farm assessment activity (see attached) at Duke Farms.

In their evaluations, respondents reported that the in-person session met their expectations. Participants particularly appreciated the opportunity to work together in small groups and learn from one another, as well as many of the online and printed resources shared at the training from the Land Access Training curriculum.

The curriculum was minimally adapted to use in training with program participants. The full curriculum is too large to attach as a media file but can be found on the Farmland Information Center here.

Contract Components Activity

SADC Land Assessment class

Sample_Purchase_and_Sale_Agreement

SADC Land Assessment

This milestone completion date was changed to June 30, 2019 due to schedule adjustments.

The third webinar on farmland transfer was held on May 15 with 10 participants and the in-person training was held on June 11 at Farm Credit East in Bridgeton, NY with 7 participants.

In the morning Jerry Cosgrove from American Farmland Trust discussed the importance of communication and assessing farmers’ goals and values, and Keith Dickinson described the different types of farm transfer and the key traits of a farm transfer team. In the afternoon Keith addressed the critical tools that can be used for farm transfer and Jerry finished out the day by addressing the role of conservation options in a successful farm transfer. Please see attached materials regarding farm transfer.

AFT planned each in-person training in a different region of New Jersey to make them accessible to all participants, given that participants are scattered throughout the state. This final workshop took place in southern NJ and proved to be more difficult to get to for most of the Farmland Advisors, hence the lower attendance rate than anticipated. Several Farmland Advisors were able to join remotely.  

The in-person session met the expectations of all evaluation respondents. Participants noted, again, that walking though examples together was very helpful, as was learning specifics about conservation options.

Glossary of Land Transfer Terms

Understanding Perspectives Worksheet

Selling an Agricultural Conservation Easement

This milestone completion date has been changed to February 28, 2020 due to schedule adjustments.

In August 2019, AFT held check-in calls with each of the 14 Farmland Advisors to discuss their Learning Action Plans and provide support towards their goals.

The interim survey was distributed in February 2020. Responses from the survey show that the vast majority of participants increased their knowledge and experience related to farmland access and transfer.

• 92% of respondents increased their knowledge and experience assisting farmers in securing access to farmland in areas like helping beginning farmers develop personal and business goals, assessing financial readiness, finding available farmland, evaluating farmland, and communications between farmers and landowners.
• 69% increased their knowledge and experience with tools to support farmland access like farmland leasing, fee purchases, working with non-farming landowners, working with farmland investors, and agricultural conservation easements including affordability provisions.
• 85% increased their knowledge of tools pertaining to farmland access like organizations and programs, print and online materials, and community partners.
• 75% increased their knowledge and experience related to farm transfer planning in areas like estate planning, retirement and farm management transfer planning, coordinating a team of service providers, land conservation options, and soft skills like communications, goal setting, and value assessment.
• 58% increased their knowledge of tools pertaining to farmland transfer like organizations and programs, print and online materials, and community partners.

Farmland advisors have participated in one networking call on September 19, 2019 with more to come in 2020. On September 19 Farmland Advisors updated the group on what they were currently working on related to farmland access and transition, and shared events and resources that might be of interest to others on the call. AFT staff also walked through the updated Verification Support Tool (see attached) that Farmland Advisors will use to track their progress toward the goals in their Learning Action Plans. This led into a broader discussion about the process that Farmland Advisors take when a farmer walks into their office. Participants shared strategies, tools, and resources that they use when engaging with farmers and farmland owners around land access and transfer. They were also able to ask questions of their fellow Farmland Advisors about tracking and intake. Most are currently using simple systems involving email and Excel spreadsheets to keep track of inquiries and follow-up.  

Several Farmland Advisors participated in the webinar “Where Does New Jersey Stand?” on June 10, 2020, which explored the findings of Farms Under Threat: State of the States report in New Jersey.  This extensive new research from American Farmland Trust provided groundbreaking new data that answer the questions: How threatened is New Jersey's agricultural land? What is the state doing to protect it? What can New Jersey learn from other states? The webinar looked at the finings and gave an overview of the tools now available to help planners, land protection practitioners, policymakers and advocates strengthen and expand agricultural land retention and protection efforts in New Jersey.

In June 2020, after the pandemic had begun, AFT staff held one-on-one calls with Farmland Advisors. Farmland Advisors shared details about their work with farmland owners and seekers, as well as changes they were seeing in agriculture in New Jersey. For example, some Advisors’ focus had shifted somewhat from land access to testing workers and addressing fears of a labor shortage if migrant workers were prevented from traveling due to COVID-19.

AFT held a networking call on August 20, 2020 to provide an opportunity for Farmland Advisors to reconnect and discuss their work. The call allowed the group to discuss how their work has shifted due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the kinds of new challenges they are seeing in land access and transfer. Erica Goodman also led a review of the Farms Under Threat: State of the States report and a discussion about new or amplified threats the participants are seeing in New Jersey. For example, events that had been canceled in the early spring were moving to online platforms or being rescheduled for the fall and winter. Advisors talked about the work they are doing with farmers to create written leases, noting the challenges that hand-shake leases present to both farmland access and implementation of conservation practices. This is especially important given the increase in demand for farmland seen as folks living in cities look to more rural areas during the pandemic. They also talked more broadly about agriculture in New Jersey, noting the increased demand for local products, especially meat and vegetables. Several advisors also discussed the challenges of working with farmland owners to find farmers to grow on their land.

On January 11 Laura Barley and Cris Coffin joined Farmland Advisors to discuss the Agricultural Viability Index (AVI) and the National Agricultural Lands Network (NALN).  

The AVI, developed by Laura and other staff at American Farmland Trust, is a pioneering attempt to evaluate and compare agricultural viability across New England, New York, and New Jersey, ultimately assessing whether community can sustain profitable farm enterprises, support local wealth creation through agriculture, and keep land in farming for future generations. Laura Barley walked through the AVI website with Farmland Advisors and answered questions about how the site may be useful for their work in New Jersey.  

NALN is a learning and knowledge exchange network for individuals and organizations focused on agricultural land protection; it will offer policy education and updates but will not promote or take positions on specific legislation. NALN Director Cris Coffin discussed the future of the network in New Jersey, opportunities to connect, and answered questions about the network’s work.  

Farmland Advisors met for the final time on February 24. For the first half of the call participants shared their accomplishments throughout the program. Some of these accomplishments and themes are outlined below in Milestone #11.  

For the second half participants heard from Leah Osborn, the consultant to helped AFT create the Land Access Training (LAT) curriculum, about how to adapt the curriculum, which was the foundation of the early Farmland Advisors training session, for their individual and programmatic needs. All respondents to the final survey plan to use the LAT curriculum in their future work. Respondents mentioned resources and modules in the curriculum about succession planning, readiness assessment, goal setting, farm transfer, and long-term leases as elements they plan to use.  

NJ Verification Support Tool FINAL

In August, AFT held check-in calls with all Farmland Advisors to discuss their Learning Action Plans, their goals for the coming months and years, and to find out what, if any, additional support they needed to accomplish those goals. Since then, AFT staff have followed up with Farmland Advisors as necessary to provide support, resources, and connections with other experts, and will continue to do so as needed.

In addition, AFT offered Implementation Stipends of $900 to all Farmland Advisors to support the goals in their Learning Action Plans. Eight Farmland Advisors accepted an Implementation Stipend. The first installment of $450 was distributed at the end of 2019 and the second installment of $450 was distributed to those 8 Farmland Advisors by July 2020.

As an example, the State Agriculture Development Committee plans to make improvements to the New Jersey Land Link website using their stipend. They will add a list of Farmland Advisors to the site as a resource so that farm seekers and landowners can connect with service providers across the state, make the Resources page easier to use on desktops and mobile devices, and improve the intake process to get more information from users as they engage with the site in order to better support them in their search for land or for a farmer for their land.

There were 13 responses to the interim survey. 

14 agricultural service providers participated in personal coaching and 8 received implementation stipends. Implementation stipends were offered to all participants, but only 8 ASPs pursued the opportunity.

The final survey was distributed in February 2021. Responses from the survey show that the vast majority of participants increased their knowledge and experience related to farmland access and transfer. Eight responses were received.  

• 88% of respondents increased their knowledge and experience assisting farmers in securing access to farmland in areas like helping beginning farmers develop personal and business goals, assessing financial readiness, finding available farmland, evaluating farmland, and communications between farmers and landowners.  
• 100% increased their knowledge of tools pertaining to farmland access like organizations and programs, print and online materials, and community partners.  

• 88% increased their knowledge and experience related to farm transfer planning in areas like estate planning, retirement and farm management transfer planning, coordinating a team of service providers, land conservation options, and soft skills like communications, goal setting, and value assessment.  
• 75% increased their knowledge of tools pertaining to farmland transfer like organizations and programs, print and online materials, and community partners. 
• 100% plan to use the Land Access Training Curriculum in their future work with farmers and landowners.  

Participants noted in the survey that the most important element of the program was the structure that allowed them to meet one another and get to know each others’ strengths and experience. Several people noted that the network built is valuable for their work connecting farm seekers with land and helping senior farmers transfer their farms to a new generation. Several participants also highlighted the NJ Land Link and associated resources, which many learned about through this program, and which was improved through an LAP stipend, as important tools in their work. In particular, participants found resources regarding financial planning and readiness very helpful.