Farm Business Planning Course Outline
Farm Business Planning Course – 2008/2009 Tentative Schedule
Here are the core course components of the FGF farm business planning course for 2008/2009. The course is designed to facilitate the writing and planning necessary to create a useful and effective business plan for farm based enterprises.
Session 1 - Introductions, New Farmer Panel and Farm Visioning
Date: Saturday Oct 25th 2008
Presenters: TBA
Location: Everdale Environmental Learning Centre, Hillsburgh, ON
Time: 9:30 am – 4:30 pm
During this first session we will introduce the course, the Farmers Growing Farmers program and Heifer International. Participants will meet each other and to hear about the experiences of new farmers that have recently started their own businesses. In the afternoon we will develop farm vision and mission statements.
Optional : Farm Tours
Date: Saturday November 1st 2008
Farms: TBA
Details available mid October
Session 2 – Analyzing your Current Situation
Date: Saturday November 8th
Presenters: TBA
Location: Toronto
Time: 9:30 am – 4:30 pm
In this session we will bring together some of the information you’ve gathered with regards to your skills, access to resources and farming history. . We will share and workshop your vision and mission statements and begin to develop short term goals. We will present CASS (the Canadian Agricultural Skills Service) and highlight the program’s value in helping you acquire news skills and training. We will also begin developing a marketing strategy.
Optional : Farm Tours
Date: Saturday November 15th 2008
Farms: TBA
Details available mid October
Session 3 – Marketing is Everything - Developing a Marketing Strategy
Date: Saturday December 6th 2008
Presenters: TBA
Location: Toronto
Time: 9:30 am – 4:30 pm
In this session we will be introduced to the marketing approaches of experienced farmers and the perspectives of other food specialists through the format of a panel. They will share their experience around issues of product selection, pricing and promotion, as well as providing new ideas and advice for you to consider as you begin to develop a marketing strategy. The FGF mentorship program will also be introduced during this session.
Session 4 – Being Efficient - Developing Production & Human Resource Strategies
Date: Thursday December 18th 2008
Presenters: TBA
Location: Toronto
Time: 9:30 am – 4:30 pm
We will explore key considerations to make your farm business effective and efficient. These include questions of size/capacity, distribution, storage and human resource needs. What will you need and what will it all cost is a question we will begin to address. We will revisit and continue to develop your learning action plan and match your questions to mentors you can approach for answers.
Session 5 – Farm Financials – How to GROW the books
Date: Saturday January 10th 2009
Presenters: TBA
Location: Toronto
Time: 9:30 am – 4:30 pm
This session will focus on the financial operations of your farm business. We will show you how to create the balance sheet, cash flow and income statement you need for your business plan. We will discuss how to make financial decisions and ways of managing financial records. Tools will be introduced to begin assessing and developing a financial plan for your enterprise.
Optional: Spreadsheets for Farmers
Date: Thursday January 29th 2009
Location: TBA
Time: 6:00 – 9:00 pm
Learn how to use spreadsheet software to create financial documents and perform essential calculations with ease.
This session will be organized in partnership with FarmStart.
Session 6: Implementing, Monitoring and Growing your Farm Business
Date: Thusday February 5th 2008
Presenters: TBA
Location: Toronto
Time: 9:30 am – 4:30 pm
In addition to going over the organization and writing of your business plan, this session will present tools for effectively implementing and monitoring your plan. Presentations will cover experiences planning, record keeping and growing farm businesses.
Session 7– Ecological New Farmer Conference
Date: Saturday March 7th 2009
Presenters: TBA
Location: TBA
Time: 9:30am – 4:00pm
Presentations by farmers and policy experts will address the challenges and opportunities in accessing land and securing financing for small farm businesses. This conference will also look at regulations pertaining to production and processing, as well as answering questions on taxes and legal issues.
This conference will be open to the public and may grow to some size. These are the basic components with more details to follow. This event will be organized in partnership with FarmStart.
Session 8 – Reflecting on the Business Planning Process
Date: Saturday March 22nd 2008
Presenters: Course participants to panel of 2 – 3 experienced farmers.
Location: Everdale Environmental Learning Centre, Hillsburgh, ON
Time: 9:30 am – 4:30 pm
This session will synthesize the course and the work you have done throughout. Each new farmer will have an opportunity to present to the rest of the class an overview of their farm business while focusing on one or two issues for discussion and feedback from the farmer panel.
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Below are key events that are happening during the course. The timing of the course has been planned around these conferences.
CSA Conference
Date November 21st – 23rd 2008
Location: Geneva Park, Orillia
Details: http://www.csaconference2008.ca/home.html
Check out the CSA mini-school during the day on Friday the 21st.
Guelph Organic Conference
Date: January 22nd – 25th 2009
Location: University Of Guelph
Details: http://www.guelphorganicconf.ca/
An amazing conference for everyone with an interest in organics; from consumers to experienced farmers this conference offers many opportunities for everyone.
COG – Visionary Organics Conference
Date: Saturday February 14th or 21st 2009
Location: Toronto
Details: http://www.cog.ca/visionaryfarmersvisionaryconsumers/home.htm
This conference focuses on the marketing and policy aspects of organics. More details to follow.