2011 Annual Report to the General Assembly - Vermont Housing ...

Vermont Farm Viability Program
The Vermont Farm Viability Program (vfvp) provides business planning,
technical assistance and implementation grants to Vermont farmers and
ag-related businesses. Businesses receive individually tailored services from
advisors at the Intervale Center, nofa-vt, uvm Extension or through
private consultants.The program builds Vermont’s agricultural infrastructure
and increases the supply and distribution of Vermont agricultural products
while also improving the viability of Vermont farms.
2011 Program Highlights
• The program enrolled 60 farms and 17 ag-related businesses for technical
assistance and business planning services and awarded $183,520 in implementation
grants to farmers and agricultural processing, distribution and
marketing businesses. The grants pay for equipment, facilities, marketing
materials, and conservation investments.
• The Farm Viability Program continued to partner with the Vermont
Sustainable Jobs Fund to successfully launch the Vermont Agricultural
Development Program (vadp). With support from aic and private foundations,
the vadp is now providing in-depth technical assistance to eight
key food and ag-related businesses.
• Using an award from the Vermont Agriculture Innovation Center ( aic),
which was created with funding secured by Senator Leahy, the Farm
Viability Program partnered with the Vermont Food Venture Center, the
Center for an Agricultural Economy and nofa-vt to extend business
planning and technical assistance services to ag-related businesses and
value-added enterprises.
• Also with funding from the aic, the Farm Viability Program extended
its business planning and technical services to meet the needs of meat
producers and processors, in order to expand Vermont’s capacity to meet
the local, regional and national demand for Vermont meat products.
Above, farmers Americo and Jill Balzano
worked with the Viability Program on a
business plan for their plan to develop
an orchard at their new property in
_______.
The Vermont Food Venture Center
at the groundbreaking ceremony
in Hardwick.
photo: Center for an Agricultural Economy
Johannes Kroemer photo
7
Left: Pete Colman works up a batch of artisanal
sausage for his start-up business, Vermont Salumi
Above, from top: Chris Siegriest, Bread and Roses
Farm, Westford; Ben Gleason shows off new grain
milling equipment financed in part by the Farm
Viability Program; Clark Parmelee raises poultry,
beef, and pork on his farm in Randolph and offers
mobile poultry slaughtering services to farmers with
new equipment purchased last year.