Beginning Farmers

Build a solid foundation of success

If you lack capital, credit history, or a steady income, starting a farm operation seems impossible. Whether you’re looking to purchase land, equipment or just seed and fertilizer, our young, beginning, small, and minority farmer loan program is designed to help you access credit and build a solid foundation of success in three simple steps.

Step 1. Access to Credit

Credit is one of your greatest challenges as a beginning farmer, that’s why we offer loan programs with:

Low interest term and operating loans
Low interest Best Management Practice (BMP) Loans
FSA or other Government Agency Loan Guarantee Fee Reimbursement
Farmland Financing – Conservation easement

Step 2. Mentoring and Research

When you lack the experiences that build your foundation, making connections with industry leaders and mentors will be crucial to your success. With over 100 years of serving rural communities, we have industry and commodity expertise to help you grow pretty much anything.

We also work closely with industry organizations and universities to help you network and keep up to date on research and trends - scroll all the way down to request your FREE digital Beginning Farmers Resource Kit!

Step 3. Further your Ag Education

You’ve already committed to the idea of wearing several hats as a farmer, now you need to build your skills to be good at wearing those hats. In addition to promoting and sponsoring local workshops and training across our territory, our AgBiz Masters program is a two-year interactive educational learning series that will help you master everything from strategic business planning to cash flow projection.

Hint: Start learning more today and request your beginning farmer resource kit below!

The AgBiz Masters Program teaches you skills like:

Megatrends
Strategic Business Planning
Preparing for Your Lender
Balance Sheets
Income Statement

Cash Flow Projection
Farm Business Management
Growth and Transition Management
Communication
Leadership

Register for the AgBiz Masters Program

The registration fee is $225 for a single operator or a couple/business partners. You may be eligible for a full reimbursement of the cost after completion of the course, based on available scholarships. Registration period runs from August 1 to October 31.

Register here