Progress report for OW23-381
Project Information
The domestic cut flower industry is growing, yet we lack key financial and profitability metrics. With few references of profitability to aspire to, new flower farmers have no sense of potential yield for individual crops, or sales and net margin goals.. Without this information, flower farmers are making business decisions based on trends and market pull, rather than knowledge of the profitability of their production and marketing systems.
This project will expand and improve upon my work done in 2022 as a F+R grant to address these problems. Through this proposed Phase 2 as a P+P grant, I’ll work with a cohort of 12 established sustainable flower farms over two years to 1) track cost of production per crop, and 2) compile and analyze key financial metrics. These farmers will learn to make smart decisions for their businesses by identifying their more profitable crops, and will be able to compare their larger financial pictures to that of the other farmers in the study.
We will produce subsequent case studies and benchmarks and share them widely via conference sessions, journal articles, and a webinar, with the goal of encouraging cost of production studies as well as financial literacy and goal-setting on more farms. We hope that flower farmers at large will be better equipped to undertake sound production and financial planning, and build sustainable farms that improve their quality of life. This will allow the sustainable cut flower industry to strengthen and grow.
Part 1: Support a cohort of 12 flower farmers in a two-year cost analysis project, for three distinct flower crops per farm, using the Know Your Cost To Grow (KYCTG) program (developed by Oregon State University’s Center for Small Farms and Community Food Systems in partnership with Oregon Tilth). Through the process, train the farms to analyze their data and chart pathways to financial sustainability based on refinement of studied production processes and crop choices. This helps farms to prioritize the goals of sound ecological stewardship, quality of life for both the farm owners and their employees, and positive contributions to their local agricultural communities. This will build on the work I began in my 2022 F&R grant, and implement improvements I’ve found through conducting this year’s research as we worked to tailor the KYCTG program - originally created for vegetable farmers - to flower farmers.
Part 2: Create a financial benchmarking survey for small cut flower farms (1 - 8 acres), focusing on key metrics such as gross sales per acre, labor hours per acre, and overall net profit, and guide the 12 farms participating in the grant through filling out the survey using their financial records. This will build on the benchmarking we began in the 2022 F&R grant, but will be more extensive and complex. To this end, John Hendrickson from UWISC will act as technical advisor in the construction of the survey and in ensuing reports. The results will help to build a body of knowledge for cut flower farmers on what is attainable from a financial standpoint, which will help to strengthen and grow the domestic, sustainable and regenerative flower farm industry.
Part 3: Use the results from parts 1 & 2 to compile a research report for both crop costs of production and whole farm financial metrics. These will serve as the basis for the educational materials.
Cooperators
- - Producer
- - Producer
- - Producer
- - Technical Advisor
- - Producer
- - Producer
- - Producer
- - Producer
- - Technical Advisor
- - Producer
- - Producer
- - Producer
- - Producer
Research
Objective 1: By March of 2025, support the completion of two season’s worth of data collection, interpretation and analysis of the cost of production on three crops for each of twelve farms, conducted between April 2023 and March 2025.
Methods:
We will do this by working together as a (virtual) cohort, facilitated by Lennie Larkin as the PI, using the Know Your Cost To Grow (KYCTG) program (developed by Oregon State University’s Center for Small Farms and Community Food Systems in partnership with Oregon Tilth).
Summary of Methods:
Each farm has chosen two to three crops that they’ll track throughout the season. These were off an approved list of commonly-grown annual crops, with the goal of having each crop in the study chosen by at least 5 farms. We discussed as a group over the first meeting to encourage farms to ‘group up’ on certain crops, and to choose an alternate if their first choice is a crop no one else has chosen. (To further explain this, the entire study will cover between 3 - 7 crops. In 2022, the crops covered were dahlias, ranunculus, and sunflowers.)
They followed up with one zoom meeting with the PI to address individual concerns and questions, and to make individual plans for data tracking. Each farm has worked with Lennie to determine the most practical means of tracking data over the year, whether on paper and clipboards placed in strategic locations on the farm, or on smartphone-based spreadsheets that are easily accessible.
Farmers are continuing to input all their information and task lists for the year to the KYCTG tool. This acts as a list of all the activities on their farm, that they later conduct 'time studies' on. For example, they may list “Plow Field With John Deere Tractor”, or “Transplant Sunflowers”, which then creates a task for them to time that activity 2-3 times throughout the growing season. This will cover each aspect of pre-harvest, harvest, and post-harvest labor and inputs for the three crops they choose to study.
(These methods have been thoroughly planned based on shortcomings of the PI's 2022 grant phase 1. More time is allocated for check-ins between the PI and each farmer, including weekly meetings. The timeline corresponds to specific sections of the KYCTG tool and therefore is an attempt to both incorporate the actual section names but to also translate the methods to the grant board. )
Detailed Timeline For Above Methods:
April 2023:
- Group orientation meeting with PI and farmers (specifically, on ‘Record It’ Module of KYCTG tool). They got to know the tool, and began to input their farm data.
- Longer (1-hr +) One-on-one initiation meetings between PI and each farmer for this module
- This month began the weekly one-on-one check-ins between each farmer and the PI, where each farmer chose a consistent 30 minute time slot to touch base with the PI either by phone or zoom (more time as needed). PI updates notes and records for each farm on her end, which each farm is responsible for tracking their own data.
May 2023:
- Farmers finished gathering and inputting all their information and task lists for the year to the KYCTG tool.
May - November 2023:
- Farmers conducted time studies
- Farmers continued weekly check ins with PI each week to stay on track and troubleshoot issues
December 2023:
- Farmers continued weekly check ins with PI each week to stay on track and troubleshoot issues
- Farmers had longer one-on-one meetings with PI to troubleshoot and wrap up the year (specifically focused on ‘Calculate It’ module in KYCTG)
- End-of-year meeting with PI and farmers to interpret and share results (of ‘Calculate It’ module). During this meeting, we accomplished three main goals.
- 1) Lennie Larkin and Tanya Murray answered any outstanding questions farmers had that prevented them from obtaining complete cost of production numbers for their chosen crops during the 2023 growing season. These outstanding questions related mostly to machinery costs as well as estimates of activities that they failed to track. We also touched on how to arrive at appropriate estimates in the case of outstanding circumstances (i.e. one farmer's phone was stolen during the season, and she lost most of her data).
- 2) Tanya Murray walked the farmers though two complete crop cost examples, using data collected from Killing Frost Farm on two different crops, sunflowers and sweet peas. The group discussed the different outcomes and reasoning.
- 3) Farmers were able to compare and contrast different methods for collecting data in the first year of the study, to best prepare for year 2.
January 2024:
- Farmers continued weekly check ins with PI each week to stay on track and troubleshoot issues
- Farmers had longer one-on-one meetings with PI to troubleshoot and wrap up the year (specifically focused on Analyze It’ module in KYCTG)
- End-of-season meeting with PI and farmers to interpret and share results (of Analyze It’ module)
- PI met with Tanya Murray to compile and interpret information.
March - December 2024:
- Process repeating for a second season.
January - February 2025:
- PI meets with Tanya Murray to compile and interpret information to finish case studies and a summary of the whole farm financials for flower farmers. This will be based on both 2023 and 2024 results.
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Objective 2: By March of 2025, conduct two seasons/rounds of a financial benchmarking survey for the 12 flower farms, and compile results into a report.
Note: Objectives 1 and 2 are two related but different projects, each run concurrently by the PI with the same group of 12 farms, each with its own technical advisor. Objective 2 is a much more finite project for the farms, consisting of just completing the 5 -7 page survey, one time for each of 2 seasons.
(The benchmarking study was begun in 2022 by the PI but is a far more complex project than the PI can undertake without an expert. To expand and improve, technical advisor John Hendrickson was brought on to advise and to create a highly advanced, specific survey).
Methods:
May - June 2023:
- PI and technical advisor John Hendrickson created financial benchmark survey, based on PI’s draft survey created in 2022, and John Hendrickson’s vast knowledge of farm financial benchmarking. While a few financial benchmarking surveys exist for small farms, ours will be improved in addition to being tailored to flower farms.
March 2024:
- Survey is shared with farmers to complete (2022 EOY numbers)
- PI conducts one-on-one meetings with farmers to troubleshoot, bringing in technical advisor John Hendrickson as needed
April 2024:
- PI and technical advisor compile and interpret results
June - August 2024:
- Survey is shared with farmers to complete (2023 EOY numbers)
- PI conducts one-on-one meetings with farmers to troubleshoot, bringing in technical advisor as needed
November 2024:
- PI and technical advisor compile and interpret results
December 2024 - January 2025:
- PI creates reports with survey results of whole farm financials for flower farmers.
Resulting reports from both objectives 1 and 2 are covered in the Education Plan.
Objective 1: By March of 2025, support the completion of two season’s worth of data collection, interpretation and analysis of the cost of production on two to three crops for each of twelve farms, conducted between April 2023 and March 2025.
At the end of year 1, the group of farmers is on track with their data collection. They have gained a comprehensive understanding of their own cost of production and the Know Your Cost To Grow tool. The have met with both the PI and technical advisor throughout the year to troubleshoot, and have participated in multiple group meetings to discuss barriers and findings.
At the completion of year 1, the group convened to compare, analyze and interpret results from the first year of data collection. They are on their way to a second year of data collection.
Objective 2: By March of 2025, conduct two seasons/rounds of a financial benchmarking survey for the 12 flower farms, and compile results into a report.
The PI and technical advisor (John Hendrickson) have met multiple times and refined the benchmarking survey. They met with the farmers to break down the process and answer any questions. At the one year mark, the farmers have just completed the survey for their 2022 EOY numbers and the PI and technical advisor are meeting in April to interpret results. We are on track to send out the survey to get 2023 EOY numbers.
Research Outcomes
Education and Outreach
Participation Summary:
Our educational and outreach activities are planned for the end of year two. Therefore, no education and outreach activities have been completed to date.
Our educational and outreach activities are planned for the end of year two. Therefore, no education and outreach activities have been completed to date.