Litchfield County Farmers Livestock Market

View the project final report

Commodities

• Animals: goats, rabbits, sheep

Practices

• Animal Production: animal protection and health, manure management, pasture renovation, grazing - rotational, vaccines, watering systems
• Education and Training: demonstration, extension, farmer to farmer, networking
• Farm Business Management: budgets/cost and returns, marketing management, value added
• Soil Management: composting
• Sustainable Communities: community services, employment opportunities

Right now, there is no single place in Litchfield County where customers can see, select, and buy live animals and arrange for custom cuts. Nor is there an outlet where farmers can get premium prices for organic, milk-fed, pasture-raised, or local meat. The farmer will recruit farmers and develop the capacity to offer these things in one convenient place, allowing farmers to increase their customer base, offer greater variety to consumers, and minimize their advertising costs. There will be direct outreach to the public as well as networking with producers; the outreach calendar will include farm tours, coordination with extension, and newsletters.