Agricultural Alternative Tools

By Linda Falcone and Lynn Kime

If you are a potential or experienced farmer seeking ideas to diversify your operation, the Agricultural Alternatives project at Penn State has a series of articles and publications to assist with your decisions. For the potential farmer, the information will help you decide if your hobby or passion may be expanded into a business. For those seeking options to existing operations, the information will point out the practices and marketing opportunities that may compliment your current farm.

The project began in 1992 under the direction of Dr. Jayson Harper and there are currently 70 publications and articles covering fruit, vegetables, livestock, farm management, irrigation, and more. The information contained in the articles and publications is designed to provide basic knowledge of the enterprise and spur further research to increase your knowledge on the topic.

The business and marketing-oriented offerings will assist with the start-up, marketing, and risk management aspects. When you have determined your passion and chosen your enterprise, review these articles to help establish the business.

Format

A consistent format is followed for all publications and articles. Publications begin with a history of the production of the topic, especially when addressing crop production. This section is followed by statistics about production and acreage to determine if the market for that crop or enterprise might already be saturated. Fortunately, market saturation is often not an issue in the northeastern states due to the proximity of major population centers. However, you should research the practice in your area to determine how much competition is within your immediate area. For example, does your rural area need three corn mazes within a five square mile area?

Marketing

The next section of the publication is always about product marketing, as it is an essential component of a business plan. A farm's marketing stream or plan can significantly impact the business's bottom line. The publications outline potential markets and optional marketing methods.

Always investigate potential markets and have a marketing plan before beginning production. Producing the volume needed to sell through wholesale or processing markets may be difficult when farming on small acreages. Wholesale markets depend on volume for the producer to be sustainable. A marketing approach of selling directly to the customer may help with sustainability in small-scale production.

Your marketing plan should match your personality. Direct marketing is not for everyone. If you do not enjoy interacting with the public, you may need someone to perform the marketing while you focus on production. Even in a family-operated business, division of labor is possible.

It is recommended when starting a new enterprise that you begin with a small plot or a few animals to learn the best production practices. When you have experience with the enterprise and your comfort level has increased, you should begin to scale up your operation. Experience is always the best teacher. This is best done when you have solidly established your marketing stream.

Production

The following section in the publications covers form(s) of production practices. In the livestock publications, methods of housing, the amount of pasture recommended per animal, and feed rations are outlined. Health issues are also described, along with potential solutions. Keep in mind that some livestock enterprises may require a year or more before you have a marketable animal or product. You may choose to purchase bred animals to shorten the time to market.

If the publication covers horticultural crops, information about diseases and pesticide usage will be provided. Integrated pest management (IPM) practices to reduce pesticide usage are recommended whenever possible. Specific products are not recommended so organic control measures may be used instead of synthetic pesticides. IPM provides a healthier environment for the farm as pesticide usage is reduced in favor of more beneficial insects. Some articles contain information about using plastic much instead of cultivation.

Soil testing prior to fertilizer application is usually recommended to reduce costs and potential runoff. Having soil test information may also indicate that you may need to delay production to build the soil.  Cover crops the year prior to planting may be recommended to reduce weed pressure and build soil health.  Past herbicide use may also delay planting of some crops as residue may linger in the soil.

The information may also include the practice of crop rotation to reduce disease pressure. Some diseases may stay in the soil for a year or more requiring you to rotate unsusceptible crops into that area for a year or more.

Environmental Factors

All farms impact the environment, and there are nutrient management laws that impact many farms. Spreading manure and or the use of fertilizers may come under these laws. It is always good to keep surface water and groundwater management in mind. You do not want to contaminate your well or your neighbor's well. Please contact your local soil conservation office to determine if your practices may be governed by these laws. Food safety is also a concern when considering impacts to the soil and the farm. Many food safety issues come directly from the water used and what is spread on the soil.

Risk Management

The Agricultural Alternative publications also address potential risk mitigation. All farms face many risks associated with production of crops or livestock. Risk mitigation strategies and potential insurance products are suggested to assist with risk management practices.

Budgets

For the printed publications, the final section is usually the budgets. There is space in the print versions for you to enter your figures too. A price sensitivity analysis to compare several levels of production and prices is included in the print versions. The articles associated with production of a crop or livestock enterprise have links to interactive Pdf budgets. These interactive budgets help you assess the types of income and expenses you may encounter when producing the associated enterprise. All budgets include sample numbers; however, the most important figures are the ones you enter based on our production capabilities. There are also spaces available for you to enter any expenses you have that we may not have listed. You should conduct your research or use your records to develop these budgets.