Carbon Farming Enterprises at Financial Permaculture09

Perennial Polyculture Enterprise  Ideas  NOTE: These ideas are specula8ve,  always research new enterprise ideas  carefully before inves8ng! 

What is an edible forest garden?  •  A consciously designed  edible ecosystem  •  Low maintenance food  producing landscape  •  Mimic of natural forest   •  Provides the ecosystem  beneﬁts of a natural forest  •  Produces food and other  useful products 

Forest farming vs. annual agriculture 

Tree Crops: A Permanent Agriculture  J. Russell Smith, 1927  •  Terrible erosion of slopes from annual crops  •  Solu8on: tree crops with pasture  •  For human food and for livestock fodder  “Montando” cork‐pork forests of Portugal 

Contour Hedgerows 

Produc8on Perennial Polycultures  

Enterprise Selec8on Guidelines  Perennial farming system products:  •  What can you PRODUCE  •  What can you SELL  •  What products complement each other  •  What products ﬁt your marke8ng plan 

Direct Market vs. Wholesale  •  Direct Marke8ng  –  keep higher %  –  work more  –  limited quan88es?  –  Set your own price  –  Can sell new & unusual products  •  Wholesaling  –  lower proﬁt per unit  –  Easier!  –  Can accept large quan88es  –  Prices set by external businesses  

Value‐Added Products  •  Increase price and proﬁtability  •  Improve shelf life  •  Diversify product line  •  Some legal/processing issues 

Pasture & Fodder System Products  Animals bring income but also manage understory with minimal human labor input.  Plant products  EQUIPMENT: coolers, slaughter  equipment or livestock trailer,  permits, commercial kitchen,  stainless steel dairy processing,  Hay  bo_ling equipment, cheese cave,  farm store or market stand  Animal Products:  Live Animals           Meats                             Eggs                           Dairy Products              Honey 

Tree Crop Products:  Wood Products  Equipment: portable sawmill,  woodworking equipment,  charcoal oven  Lumber                      Firewood                 Fenceposts  Cra`s                              Charcoal            Furniture      Bamboo Products 

Tree Crop Products:  Foods  Food Products:  Fruits                     Nuts                            Vegetables                     Herbs, Spices, & Teas                            Equipment: wash & pack,  bo_ling and sterilizing, sugar  shack, drying system, farm store  or market stand, commercial  kitchen, permits  Sweeteners      Beverages               Oils  Jams & Jellies          Baked Goods                   Smoothie Stand 

Understory Products: Foods  Berries                               Vegetables                     Herbs, Spices, & Teas    Mushrooms                             Jams & Jellies          Baked Goods                   Smoothie Stand              Annual Crops in Alley                                      Cropping or Early Stages                      

Understory Crops: Non‐Food Products  Func8onal understory more expensive to establish, must pay for itself.   Na8ve Plant Seeds       Cut ﬂowers (some trees too)    Cra`s, Dyes, Soaps…   Medicinal Herbs   Func8onal & Crop Seeds  Equipment: Seed cleaners, cra`  tools, 5‐gallon buckets, herb drying &  processing 

Other Products   Plas8cs                             Industrial feedstocks         Rubber (hardy sources too)     Fer8lizers,                                       Pes8cides       Veggie oil fuel                             Gasoline (!)          Fiber Crops & Products       Equipment: o`en prohibi8vely expensive, these crops o`en sold to  processors. Could include oil press, bo_ler, biodiesel rig, home lab 

Germplasm Sales:   Perennial Farm‐Adapted Organisms  Breeding stock         Nursery                Fungal spawn     Seeds &  seed mixes               inc. gra`ed trees  Pre‐planted mats      Brush fascines           Cuhngs for living fences etc.  (erosion control fabric,  groundcover ﬂats, etc.)  Equipment: irriga8on, nursery, seed cleaning & drying,  mushroom lab 

Services  Consul8ng            Tours & Workshops         Land management services  Equipment: laptop, experience, herd of goats 

RESOURCES for FARM and NATURAL RESOURCE‐BASED  The Legal Guide for Direct Farm MarkeMng  BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT  Neil Hamilton  Excellent resource for planning the legal aspects of a farm  Exploring the Small Farm Dream : Is StarMng an Agricultural   business.  Business Right for You?  The Organic Farmer’s Business Handbook  www.smallfarm.org  Richard Wiswall  Guide to deciding whether or not to farm as a business.   Brand new guide to business aspects of organic vegetable  produc8on.   Small Farm Planner: Building Your New farm Business Around   Tilling the Soil of Opportunity  What’s Most Important to You  www.nxlevel.org  www.smallfarm.org  Agricultural business planning curriculum, 12‐week course.  Helps aspiring farmers make decisions about loca8on,   Other business curricula and resources include:  enterprise selec8on, marke8ng strategies, and ﬁnancing.  Establishing a Shared‐Use Commercial Kitchen  Going Green guide to green decision making for entrepreneurs  And many general courses and guides for business planning  You Can Farm: The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Start and Succeed   in a Farm Enterprise  Building a Sustainable Business  Joel Sala8n  www.sare.org/publica8ons/business.htm  Interes8ng guide for new farmers, great enterprise selec8on   Online publica8on for developing detailed ag‐related business  guidelines.  plans.  New England Small Farm InsMtute ATTRA  www.smallfarm.org/main/for_new_farmers/ www.a_ra.org  resources_by_topics  One‐stop shopping for all your farm marke8ng and enterprise   Extensive resources list of resources for new farm businesses.  selec8on needs. Hundreds of fantas8c publica8ons all free   Voices of Experience: Good Advice for New Farmers  online.   www.nybeginningfarmers.org  Direct Marke8ng (10 publica8ons)  Excellent video clips of start‐up advice from experienced   Value‐Added and Food Processing Businesses (12 publica8ons)  farmers.  Business Planning and Management (8 publica8ons)  Plus many, many guides to enterprises from pastured pork to   bamboo produc8on.  

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Carbon Farming Enterprises at Financial Permaculture09

by financialpermaculture on Sep 23, 2009

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