$2.5M in expenses

Field and national organizing: young farmers organizes a grassroots network of farmers, ranchers, and advocates working for a brighter, more just future for agriculture. National young farmers coalition chapters are the heart of our grassroots network, consisting of 30 farmer-led teams across 25 states working on the ground and in community. Twelve of these chapters are resourced through our chapter fiscal sponsorship program, allowing an administrative structure for chapters to fundraise, self-organize, and address regional challenges. Chapters focus on local, high-impact initiatives while working closely with the coalition to ensure they can sustainably meet their long-term goals. Initiatives like the farmers of color land fund facilitated by our west michigan chapter raised $50,000 in 2024, and the northern illinois farm-ily reunion attended by 100+ producers are important examples of local farmer leadership in action, supported by our chapter fiscal sponsorship program. Additionally, the coalition engages a growing membership base of more 6,000 individuals and hosts more than 50 farmer-centric events across the country. Through our collective storytelling, we create a unified voice that inspires others to ACT to advance policy change that can provide transformative opportunities for young, beginning, and bipoc (black, indigenous, and people of color) farmers. We resource and train farmer leaders to share their compelling stories through press, broadcast media, and podcasts, achieving 500+ press hits in 2024. Our storytelling strategy amplifies the voices of young farmers and farmers of color to educate decision-makers, recruits new members to our mission, and inspires a new generation to care more deeply about the food and farm policy that impacts what they eat, who they pay for their food, and the health and wellbeing of their communities. To support farmer leadership and advocacy and prepare farmers to take on decision-making roles in their local communities, the coalition launched the root and bloom fellowship in 2024, a transformative advocacy program for 40 young farmers. Through its two phases, root and bloom fellows explore how federal agriculture policy impacts young and bipoc farmers and identify ways to create change in their communities. This journey empowers them to build local relationships, launch projects, and step into positions of leadership. We also celebrated the graduation of our 100 land advocacy fellows, after their two years of training and commitment to the one million acres for the future campaign. Many graduates entered formal leadership roles, where they will guide decisions related to conservation, land access, and water equity. In total, 138 farmers participated in fellowships in 2024, gaining valuable skills in leadership development and community advocacy in key agricultural regions and on intersecting issue areas relevant to the needs of young farmers.

$1.2M in expenses

Policy campaigns and land: young farmers works to advocate for policies that address the structural challenges preventing young people from succeeding in farming, such as access to land, credit, skilled labor, climate challenges, racial injustice, and student loan debt. In 2024, we successfully advocated for the introduction of marker bills like the farm ownership improvement ACT and the land access, opportunity, and sustainability (laso) ACT. These efforts streamline USDA loan processes and tackle structural barriers to farmland ownership, providing critical pathways to land equity for young and bipoc farmers. To uplift the stories and needs of frontline farmers, we hosted a farm bill advocacy day and brought 15 farmers to washington d.c. To meet with senate and house agriculture committees. We also hosted a virtual policy briefing with more than 200 registrants. To expand access to capital, young farmers maintains a five-year cooperative agreement with the USDA to provide technical assistance to farmers in accessing farm service agency (fsa) programs. Through this relationship, we aim to address long-standing structural inequities and establish more equitable access to the USDA for farmers most marginalized in the food system. Building upon this work, in 2024, we provided direct assistance, supporting over 400 farmers in accessing the USDA's discrimination financial assistance program (section 22007 of the inflation reduction ACT), which offered hundreds of thousands of dollars in critical financial relief to producers who have experienced prior discrimination from the USDA.

$2.5M in expenses

Farmer mental health: cultivemos, also known as the farmer and rancher stress assistance network (frsan-northeast), is building an inclusive network of service providers dedicated to advancing the mental, emotional, social, and financial well-being of agricultural producers, workers, and their families in the northeast. Cultivemos is a partnership led by national young farmers coalition, university of maine cooperative extension, the migrant clinicians network, northeast farmers of color land trust, farm first, and farm aid. Recognizing the critical importance of farmer mental health, our efforts in 2024 significantly expanded these initiatives. Together with 160+ members across 90 organizations, the network focuses on service providers working with a wide range of farmers, including farmworkers, young farmers, and bipoc farmers, through programming including peer groups, a resource clearinghouse, trainings, and hotline services in english and spanish. Simultaneously, our grassroots organizers led a series of wellness-centered events across the country, engaging over 1,000 attendees and showcasing the benefits of farmer-to-farmer education. One powerful example of this work was the basal stage grazing clinic we hosted in decorah, iowa, where young and beginning farmers practiced hands-on skills such as setting up electric livestock fencing and held peer-led wellness sessions.