KY Farm Launch is a new beginning farmer training program designed in broad collaboration with organizations working with beginning farmers in Kentucky. This includes University of Kentucky (UK) Cooperative Extension and academic departments, the Kentucky Center for Ag and Rural Development (KCARD), the Kentucky Sheep and Goat Development Organization (KSGDO), and an advisory board of non-profit agencies, beginning farmers, and experienced farmer leaders in Kentucky. The project team implementing the program is a partnership between UK Cooperative Extension, UK's Food Connection, UK Department of Horticulture, UK's Beef Team, KCARD and the KSGDO. This intensive program meets once per week for 9 months in Lexington area, based at UK's Horticulture Research Farm and Organic Farming Unit, UK's Animal Research Unit, and other privately-owned farms supporting the program. Our goal is for program participants to begin farming commercially within one year of completing the program. The program consists of full day of workshops each week focused on production knowledge, hands-on skill building, and farm business development. All participants complete a 'Common Curriculum' of business and market planning, financial record keeping, risk management, and farmland evaluation and assessment (~8 weeks). The bulk of the program is divided into two tracks that participants select based on their primary commercial enterprise: the Sustainable Vegetable Small Fruit Track or the Diversified Livestock Track. The 'Track-Based Programming' (~24 weeks) is applied, hands on training in essential aspects of commercial production of diversified vegetables and small fruits (Veg Small Fruit Track) or sheep, goats, small flock poultry, and small beef cattle herds (Livestock Track). Additionally, each participant works with the team to develop individualized mentoring plans to help fill any gaps in their knowledge and interests. For farmers without access to land, this program is also supporting the development of a beginning farmer incubator program in a partnership between UK and private landowners. This individually-tailored, cohort-based, hands-on approach is designed to accelerate participants progress to successful commercial farming at goal levels developed through a facilitated mentoring process. The program is capped at 30 farms (individuals or farm family units) per cohort cycle. The program will run for at least two consecutive cohort cycles (2025 and 2026). This poster will focus on the curriculum, learning objectives, methods and preliminary outcomes of the Veg Small Fruit track at the mid-way point through our first cohort.
