Beginning Farmer Retreat – Practical Farmers of Iowa

Beginning Farmer Retreat – Practical Farmers of Iowa

This free retreat hosted by Practical Farmers of Iowa is a daylong intensive for beginning and aspiring farmers to learn from experienced farmers and farm business coaches. With time for individual reflection and networking, retreat topics will include business models and structures, business plans, panel discussions and a Q&A with experienced farmers by enterprise.

Sessions

Connecting and Getting Started With Your Farm

This session will focus on connecting with other beginning farmers. You’ll also have time to clarify and shape your dreams, goals and challenges related to farming, and tease out how those realizations fit with life beyond the farm.

A Farm Business Plan: What’s Most Important

In this session, you’ll learn the basic anatomy of a business plan. You will have the chance to connect in small groups and see examples of business plans. You’ll also hear from Savings Incentive Program graduates about their experience writing a business plan, and how having that plan helped them and their farm businesses.

Organizing Your Business: Legal Entities and Operating Agreements

How should you structure your business, and why does it matter? In this session, we’ll explore different business structures, include a Schedule F, partnerships, LLCs, and S-corporations and C-corporations, along with filing taxes as an individual. We’ll also talk about operating agreements and how you can structure work responsibilities, decision-making and incomes when working with others.

What Your Business Looks Like in Real Life: How Business Plans Evolve

What will it take for you to be successful over time? In this session, we’ll hear from experienced farmers who will share their stories of reliance and change, and explain how their businesses evolved over time.

Join us for dinner and socializing after!

Questions?

Contact Rachel Burke at rachel.burke@practicalfarmers.org or by calling the office at (515) 232-5661.