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This is an online event.Session 5: Whole Farm Planning Q & A
Have you always dreamed of starting your own farm or food business? Maybe you're a new farmer in the first few years of operations? Do you still need to write or clean up your business plan?
Join Rural Action for this free five-part webinar series that will provide you with everything you need to create a sustainable farm business plan!
You learned all about the Business Model Canvas, you survived the business planning process, and you saw firsthand how to plan out your seasonal production - now ask existing farm businesses all of your remaining questions! This final webinar in the series will feature the local farm experts from our first webinar - now with a full hour for you to pick their brains! Have a specific question about livestock management? Want to know the best kind of equipment you should be considering? Curious about agritourism or other diverse markets? This is the webinar for you! Come prepared with all of your questions for small group discussions and get ready to put the finishing touches on your Whole Farm Plan.
For this webinar, Rural Action will re-convene our local farmers who will be ready to answer all of your questions. Farmers include Abbe Turner, owner of Lucky Penny Farm; Paul Harper, owner of Woodland Ridge Farm; and Dan Kneier, Farm Manager at Hocking College. Participants will also get another chance to discuss their business plans with Faith Knutsen and John Glazer of Ohio University's Voinovich School of Leadership & Public Affairs.
Abbe Turner is the creative force behind Lucky Penny Creamery in Kent, Ohio where goats’ milk is handcrafted into artisan cheeses and award winning candies. As a seasoned entrepreneur, Turner is recognized as a leader in dairy and of women in agriculture. She was a Business Volunteers Unlimited Encore Fellow in 2015 for Evergreen Cooperatives, recipient of the Green business of the year award in 2014 from the Portage Parks Foundation, selected as a Farm Aid Farmer Hero in 2013, and awarded the Kent Chamber of Commerce IMMY Award for significant entrepreneurial investment in 2011.
Paul Harper leads the team at Woodland Ridge Farm & Learning Center. Woodland Ridge functions as both a business, learning center, and destination for visitors near Athens, Ohio. As a working farm, Harper raises a variety of livestock and fresh produce and has begun to incorporate silviculture and permaculture practices on the farm. Most notably the farm raises pastured pork that is healthier for the pigs, as well as the hilly landscape of Appalachian Ohio. As a meeting place and learning center, Woodland Ridge provide numerous educational activities and a central space for discussions about sustainability.
Dan Kneier is the Farm Manager for the Agroecology Program at Hocking College. In this role, Kneier oversees the entire farm property, coordinates all seasonal production, maintains equipment, and educates numerous students in the Agroecology program. Prior to his time at Hocking College, Kneier served as the farm manager at Green Edge Organic Gardens in Amesville, Ohio, where he managed an extensive farm crew and oversaw year-round production in the farm's ten high tunnels, microgreen house, and mushroom operation.
Faith Knutsen is the Director of Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship at the Voinovich School. In this role, Knutsen directs the Social Enterprise Ecosystem (SEE) project, funded by the Appalachian Regional Commission. SEE has a dual mission: bringing venture development services to regional social enterprises, which combine a market-based approach with a mission for social good, and capacity-building for philanthropic funders interested in impact investment. Knutsen lectures on entrepreneurship and venture development and aids in regional K-12 and college pitch competitions. She holds a bachelor's degree from Oberlin College and a master's degree from Ohio University.
John Glazer is the Senior Executive in Residence for Strategic Development at the Voinovich School. In this role, Glazer collaborates with senior program leaders and research faculty at the Voinovich School, across Ohio University, and with external community partners supporting program initiatives in economic development, social enterprise, impact investment, regional development, and a variety of academic research, applied programs, and community engagements. Glazer holds a bachelor's degree in Philosophy from the University of Michigan. He also received his Master's degree in Philosophy from the University of Michigan, where he taught courses in the Honors College, Philosophy, English, and Anthropology departments.