Increasing Sustainable Agriculture and Economic Viability of Farms in Tennessee Through Education

Commodities

Practices

Tennessee Local Food aims to
increase sustainable agriculture and economic viability of farms
in Tennessee and the Southeast region by hosting educational
events and opportunities for farmers and also networking events
that connect farmers to their consumers. This project will
enhance and expand the work being done by Tennessee Local Food by
allowing them to address the issue of sustainable agriculture,
food sheds and food circles, direct marketing, slow food, chef
collaborations, urban ag systems and food policy in the state of
Tennessee and throughout the region through educational
activities and opportunities for farmers, technical assistance
providers and consumers to engage in, such as hands-on workshops,
panel discussions, demonstrations, screenings, field days, and
annual conferences. This project’s educational activities will
focus on helping farmers to increase productivity to meet the
food and fiber needs of the region through education, enhancing
the quality of land, water, and air by helping farmers to learn
and implement better stewardship practices, improving the
economic viability of farms, and promoting the resilience and
well-being of producers, their families, and society as a
whole. 

This funding will help us grow
beyond an annual conference that has been a considerable catalyst
in the local food movement in the southeast, into a multi-event
series of opportunities for education and networking through a
formal and supported collaboration across several organizations
which will bring multiple significant benefits to farmers and
consumers in the region. This project builds upon the existing
work of TN Local Food by adding organizational capacity in the
form of a Communication Specialist and increases the time of our
single, part-time staff person in addition to funding
peer-to-peer learning opportunities, workshops and more.

1. Educate farmers so that they
   can grow ample food and fiber for the southeast by hosting
   events that will reach a minimum of 1,000 attendees
2. Educate farmers in sustainable
   stewardship so that they can enhance the quality of air, water,
   and soil through their farming practices which will be measured
   by the increase in positive stewardship practices in surveys
   post-season
3. Increase the economic viability
   of farms by educating farmers on business and marketing and by
   connecting them directly to consumers which will be measured in
   post-season survey on economic viability and growth, new
   markets reached, etc.
4. Increase the quality of life of
   producers and their families and society as a whole through
   specific workshops offered and by providing space for building
   connections and relationships.