Innovations

Farm Credit Illinois FreshRoots offers learning, borrowing incentives

Farm Credit Illinois introduced an initiative supporting young and beginning farmers during two forums in Illinois, attended by more than 250 farmer participants in Springfield and Effingham.

The FreshRoots young and beginning farmers program provides lending assistance and learning incentives to farmers up to age 40 or in their first 10 years of farming, according to Steve Witges, a regional vice-president at Farm Credit Illinois. Eligible borrowers receive loan pricing discounts for five years on up to $1 million in farm real estate loans and $500,000 in operating loans.

Participants earn up to $2,000 in FreshRoots stipends for attending learning workshops, Witges told Brownfield Ag News, at the workshop in Springfield.  The young farmers can apply for one of the $5,000 Directors Cup awards, which annually recognize farmers demonstrating personal growth and professional development.

“Participants can use what they learn in the workshops when submitting a farm balance sheet and business plan with their loan application,” said Witges. “We want to guide young and beginning farmers to evaluate their business, set goals, and create action plans as they start growing FreshRoots.”

AUDIO: Steve Witges (9 min. MP3)