Assessing BF Skills and Competencies

Farming successfully requires a comprehensive set of skills from production to marketing and financial management. Assessing a new farmer’s strengths and training needs can be tricky. Many organizations use a checklist internally, or on a one-on-one basis with new farmers, to determine that person’s status on the spectrum of skills and aptitudes necessary to run a successful farm business.

Background Information 

• DACUM (Develop a Curriculum) Chart – see results of a group of small-scale sustainable Northeast farmers documenting all the tasks and abilities necessary to do their job
• Dreyfus Table of Skills Acquisition (DOC) – used by the Land Stewardship Project to classify levels of skill
• Land Stewardship Project’s (LSP) Roadmap for New Farmer Training (PDF) – This document shows how the LSP guides new farmers from novice to competent farm in a logical training sequence

Skills and Competencies Assessments

Listed below are all documents shared at the 2011 BF Learning Network meeting. The organizations may have since changed the document they use, so please contact them if you have questions. All documents are in PDF format unless otherwise noted:

• Land Stewardship Project (Midwest)
• New England Small Farms Institute (MA)
• Groundswell Center for Local Food and Farming (NY) (DOC)
• SEED Farm (PA) (DOC)
• New Farmer Development Project (NYC)

The following presentation was given at the BFSO Professional Development Training (Oct 28-30, 2013 in Albany, NY). Over 50 beginning farmer service providers representing extension services, organizations, and government agencies across 8 states joined invited speakers to focus on improving training skills in Organic Vegetable Production and Farm Financial and Business Management. Conference workshops brought creative teaching methods that will translate into new knowledge and skills for beginning farmers as they build their farm enterprise. This presentation was a part of the Farm Financial and Business Management Tract.

• Matching the Farm Business Approach to Farm Maturity- Christie Young, FarmStart [Download Slides]