FarmStart
PO Box 1875
Guelph, ON
N1H 6Z9
www.farmstart.ca
Prospective FarmStart applicants,
Thank you for your interest in the New Farms Incubator Program!
Attached to this letter you will see an overview of the organization, the New Farms
Incubator Program and the New Farms Incubator facility at Brampton. If you are interested
in the New Farms Incubator Program, please download the appropriate application. There
are two applications available. The first one is the Test Cropper Application. The second one
is the Start-Up Farmer Proposal. Please read this package carefully and familiarize yourself
with the various categories of farmers. Subsequently, download the appropriate
application/proposal from the ‘Program’ section of the FarmStart website; fill out the
application and send it back to the contact provided at the bottom of this page.
Successful applicants will have the opportunity to begin their respective agricultural
enterprises as early as March 1st, 2012 at the McVean Incubator Farm in Brampton, located
one 1 km North of Hwy 7 (Queen St.) on McVean Drive.
We will start accepting applications Starting September 15, 2011. The Test Cropper
Application and the Start-Up Farmer Proposal are due January 7, 2011. Please feel free to
contact FarmStart anytime with questions on the program, our organization, the new farm
facility or the application process.
Thanks again for your interest.
Yours truly,
Sri Sethuratnum
Farm Start-Up Program Manager
sri@farmstart.ca
519-836-7046 ext.107
Introduction
Please take a moment to review FarmStart’s mission and goals, the description of the
New Farms Incubator Program Facility in Brampton and our participant selection process.
If the New Farms Incubator Program is a good fit for you and the goals of your proposed
enterprise, please complete the proposal and return it to FarmStart as early as possible
before the due date.(The application is available for download on the FarmStart website.) If
time permits, the FarmStart advisory staff will be happy to review your application and
advise you on how to improve your proposal before it will be given to the Land Committee
for a review.
FarmStart Mission
The FarmStart mission is to facilitate, support and encourage a new generation of farmers to
develop economically viable, locally based, and ecological agricultural enterprises.
FarmStart Goals
FarmStart is working toward increasing the presence of young and new farmers operating
their own farm enterprises within the agricultural community.
By combining the facilitation of unique programs and resources, together with existing
programs and resources administered by other organizations, FarmStart’s goals are to:
- Grow viable farms through an incubator farm program,
- Promote sustainable business models,
- Coordinate research and field trials,
- Deliver resources and linkages important to new and young farmers.
New Farm Incubator Program
FarmStart is accepting new applications for the New Farms Incubator Program stating
September 1, 2011 from potential participants in the 2012 program due December 31, 2011.
Proposals will be reviewed submitted to the Land Committee early January, 2012. Applicants
will receive a decision about the status of their application by the end of January.
The New Farms Incubator Program will be accessible to anyone ready to start a viable,
locally oriented, ecological farm or farm related enterprise. Applicants could include persons
from non-farm backgrounds who have developed relevant knowledge and practical
agriculture experience; people from conventional farms who wish to farm ecologically and
do not have access to land and /or capital; new Canadians with agricultural experience; and
those with innovative and ecological farm related enterprise ideas (i.e. relating to farm inputs
and /or processing).
New Farms Incubator Program Facility
The New Farms Incubator Program is administered at a farm facility where young and new
farmers have the opportunity to establish new and innovative agricultural enterprises. The
New Farms Incubator Program is located at the McVean Farm in Brampton, 1 kilometre
north of Hwy 7 (Queen St.) on McVean Drive. This facility features a 45 acre facility that is
owned by the Toronto and Region Conservation and leased to FarmStart on a long-term
lease.
The McVean Farm in Brampton
The McVean Farm is a historical agricultural property located in the developing north end of
Brampton, Ontario. In partnership with the Toronto and Region Conservation (TRCA),
FarmStart is bringing new life to this farm by providing new local farmers with access to the
land, equipment and infrastructure as well as support during the first year of their farm
business start-up. The McVean Farm makes up 45 acres of a conservation landscape that is
part of TRCA’s growing visions for sustainable near-urban agriculture.
Program Objectives and Targets
- FarmStart will select participants who show promise to contribute positively to the
future of farming and help foster a strong new generation of farmers
- FarmStart will strategically target the following individuals:
o New farmers, with acquired knowledge and experience, proposing to start a
new agricultural enterprise
o Transitional farmers proposing to start a new type of agricultural enterprise
o New to Canada farmers proposing to start a new agricultural enterprise in
Canada
- FarmStart will strategically target individuals /enterprises that:
o Show the greatest potential for establishing a successful farming businesses
o Show the greatest potential for economic viability
o Aim to conduct innovative operations
o Show greatest potential for positive community impact
o Show greatest potential for ecological sustainability
o Aim to serve local markets and contribute to local food sovereignty
o Show the least potential for negative impacts on existing local agricultural
Producers
o Are receptive to operating in a collaborative structure
Program Considerations and Limitations
FarmStart must operate within certain resource limits. Participant selections will be
influenced by the applicant's stated resource needs. It is advised that applicants make their
resource needs clear so that FarmStart can properly assess how many and what types of farm
enterprises can be supported.
- The following needs and requirements will be considered in relation to available
FarmStart resources:
o Land area requirements
o Infrastructure requirements
o Equipment requirements
o Water needs
o Electricity needs
o Input needs
FarmStart advisory staff will provide feedback and work with applicants to ensure that each
proposal fully communicates how each candidate is likely to further the above stated
FarmStart objectives and targets while fitting within the resource limitations of the program.
Farm Categories
There are four categories of farmers that are incorporated into the structure of the McVean
Incubator Farm in Brampton. The first category of farmers is referred to as ‘test croppers’ (1
year). People who have little experience farming in Ontario and little experience with
establishing and running a farming enterprise are good candidates for this stage of farming.
Being a test cropper gives people the opportunity to try establishing and running a farm
business in Ontario with minimal cost and risk. As a test cropper, one receives a quarter of
an acre of land for the growing season (March – November). In addition to the land, a test
cropper receives the support of a farm manager, free workshops, and access to water,
equipment, and a storage facility. There is a small fee per season. By the end of the season, a
test cropper should be more familiar with what it required to run a farm business in Ontario
and whether this is the route they wish to pursue in the future.
The second category of farmers is the start-up farmer. At this stage, the farmer is ‘incubated’
for a 3 year period (year 2 to 4). An incubator farmer will receive one acre of land upon the
start of the program. During this time, they will also receive reduced rates on land,
equipment, irrigation and storage. Leased land, infrastructure and equipment, supplied by
FarmStart, will be available to Start-Up Farm participants at a rate discounted to 20% below
market value. This phase will also include production and methodology support and
mechanical assistance. The program will encourage informal mentorships, cooperation with
other on-site farms and local farmers, and will help link New Farms with various relevant
support programs and resources (i.e. education courses and mentorship opportunities
offered by the Ecological Farmers Association of Ontario (EFAO)).
The third stage of farmers at the McVean Incubator Farm is the ‘enterprise farmer’. This
stage of farming can only be achieved after the three year incubator period. Therefore, a
farmer that has completed the incubator period can continue to farm for two more (year 5
and 6) years as enterprise farms. During this period they will pay the full costs for their
operation (i.e. for land, infrastructure, equipment, etc.) as a means to refine their business
plan to reflect real market operating conditions. All other support, such as business planning
and production assistance, will continue to be available.
Most enterprise farmers will be expected to graduate to their own farms after the 6 year
period. FarmStart will continue to support these farmers by helping them find land and give
them access to various FarmStart resources. Depending on the enterprise and on the land
availability, there is a possibility of some enterprise farmers to graduate to ‘mentor farms’.
Mentor farms are the final stage of farms at McVean (+ 6 years). These farmers will receive a
permanent space at McVean. The role of these farmers is to mentor incubator farmers and
assist to facilitate the overall farm structure. Mentor farms will provide assistance to
incubator farms on crop plans, crop rotations, marketing strategies, cultivation practices and
other elements of successfully running a farm enterprise.
The New Farms Incubator Program Facility will eventually host a mix of test croppers, StartUp Incubator Farms, Enterprise Farms and Mentor Farms. FarmStart will work toward
creating a farm environment that encourages both shared knowledge and resources. By
fostering a diversity of farmers, with collaborative approaches to business, our goal is to
create a growing number of interdependent and mutually beneficial viable enterprises.
Application Process
Accession into each category at the McVean Incubator Farm requires a formal application,
proposal or agreement process, depending on the category. Each application will ask farmers
to describe their enterprise and preparedness to start their farm. They will be evaluated and
accepted based on their proposed product and business idea as well as their background,
experience and goals. FarmStart will also evaluate applications based on standards that
reflect the organization’s mandate, goals, and resource limitations. In so doing, the FarmStart
Land Committee has identified a series of key objectives, targets, and limitations that will
direct the selection process. Within their proposals, prospective participants need to clearly
communicate how their respective enterprise(s) are compatible with FarmStarts objectives,
and resource limitations. Participation in any of the categories of farms at the McVean
Incubator Farm will also require the farmers to partake in a mid-season review and produce
an end-of-the-season report. The end-of-the-season report will ask farmers to reflect upon
the amount of inputs and outputs, the success of produce, marketing strategies, challenges
faced during the farming period and overall lessons learned from the growing season.