Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program (BFRDP)

The first-ever USDA program, other than farm credit/debt financing programs, targeted specifically to beginning farmers and ranchers

The Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program (BFRDP), authorized in Section 7405 of the 2002 Farm Bill, is the first ever USDA program, other than farm credit/debt financing programs, targeted specifically to beginning farmers and ranchers.

To be administered by the USDA’s Cooperative State Education and Extension Service (CSREES), this new grants program will fund initiatives directed at new farming opportunities in the areas of education, extension, outreach, and technical assistance.

The new program is targeted especially to collaborative local, state, and regionally based networks and partnerships. Such networks and partnerships may include cooperative extension; community-based, nongovernmental organizations; relevant USDA and state agencies; universities and community colleges; and other appropriate partners.

Project Examples
Because as of this writing the BFRDP has not yet been funded nor had rules established for its implementation, the following examples reflect services provided by the BFRDP-funded partnerships envisioned during its passage in the Farm Bill:

• Entrepreneurial, financial management, business training
• Mentoring, apprenticeship, and internship programs and referral services
• “Land link” assistance to match retiring farmers and ranchers with new farmers and ranchers
• Risk management education
• Innovative farm transfer tools and transition strategies
• Whole farm planning, training, and technical assistance with holistic conservation system
• Enterprise diversification and alternative marketing strategies
• Curriculum development
• Other means of assisting beginning farmers and ranchers

The program also establishes education "teams," consisting of representatives of colleges and universities, cooperative extension, non-governmental organizations, and agencies, whose task is to develop curriculum and educational modules geared to different regions and farming systems for use in a variety of educational settings and available online from USDA.

Application and Financial Information
Not less than 25 percent of funds appropriated for this program are targeted to limited resource and socially disadvantaged beginning farmers and ranchers and to farm workers seeking to become farmers or ranchers. There is a 25 percent cash or in-kind matching requirement. Grant terms may not exceed 3 years.

At the time of printing of this directory, other information about this program was unavailable.

Contact
Traci Buckner
Center for Rural Affairs
P.O. Box 136
Lyons, NE 68038
Phone: (402) 687-2103
E-mail: tracib@cfra.org