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Farm Link connecting existing Minnesota farms with prospective farmers

The Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA) is connecting existing farms to prospective beginning farmers through a new program.

MDA official Curt Zimmerman says Farm Link started last year and has quickly grown.

“Farm Link works with existing farms that are looking to continue the legacy that they’ve built.  They may not have someone in their family to transition that to: an heir, a neighbor.  But yet, they’d like to see the farm continue in agriculture.”

He tells Brownfield one of the 10 Minnesota farms MDA is currently working with has 200 acres in Sibley County.

“They’re a 50 head dairy (with) a full line of planting and harvesting equipment.  They’re willing to consider a partnership or start with an employer/employee relationship with an option to buy over time.”

Farm Link is up to 40 beginning farmers in the first few months of building its database, and Zimmerman says two connections have already occurred.

“It’s a matching, but it’s mostly just facilitating the interest of one party to the next.”

While only existing farms in Minnesota are eligible for inclusion in Farm Link, any farmer interested in getting connected to an operation within the state can take advantage of the service.