1. Farm Succession Between Unrelated Parties: Assessment of Farm Transfer Assistance Programs Julia Valliant (IU) Mary Fund (Kansas Rural Center) James Farmer (IU)
PROBLEM
A tremendous farmland transition is taking place in the Midwest and Plains:
10% of Midwest agricultural land will change hands over the next 5 years by transferring to a new owner (USDA NASS, 2012 Census of Agriculture)
One quarter of this land – 8 million acres – will sell outside the family
When a landowner lacks a successor or heir, then this creates an OPPORTUNITY for a farm operation to continue intact by partnering with an aspiring farmer
BUT the older generation needs a meaningful and secure retirement, and the beginner needs feasible access to land
RESEARCH QUESTION: What works and what doesn’t among programs that assist farms with transfers to a non-family successor?
DELIVERABLES & OUTREACH:
Deliverables:
Report-back to participants
Extension manual of findings
Regional and national radio broadcasts and podcasts of StoryCorps interviews between 2 dozen pairs of farmers:
Successful Farming Radio Magazine – Darrell Anderson
Farmer to Farmer Podcast – Chris Blanchard
Earth Eats – syndicated by WFIU (Bloomington)
Harvest Public Media (Midwestern public radio network)
Public Radio Exchange (national public radio clearinghouse)
SEEKING FARMERS
Participants Needed: If you have experience with non-family farmland transfer (either selling or buying)- we would like to follow-up with an online survey and/or possible phone interview. Please contact us and let us know you are interested.
Advisors Sought: We are seeking two Indiana farm owners with farmland transfer experience to serve as paid advisors for this project. Advisors will each earn $1,000 per year over three years ($3,000) in exchange for quarterly feedback on project directions and materials, and attending a one-day meeting of Indiana "stakeholders" in farm transfer in November 2017 at the Hancock County Extension Office (20 miles east of Indianapolis).  Your experience can be successful, failed, or mixed. 
Contact: Julia Valliant at Indiana University, (812) , c/o Ostrom Workshop, 521 North Park Ave., Bloomington, Indiana
RESEARCH:
Assessment of 30 present and past programs that aim to assist unrelated parties in transitioning operations and ownership of a farm/ranch.
Some program models:
“Land link” – to help farm owners and farm seekers to find one another
Tax credits – state programs in Iowa and Nebraska financially help owners and seekers who make a long term partnership
“Brokering” – in which a matchmaker facilitates
State Workforce Development apprenticeship programs
Mentoring programs in which mentoring is an early phase in a long-term transfer
NRCS CRP-TIP
Program assessment:
Online questionnaire of program coordinators
Phone interviews with program coordinators
Farmer-Rancher experiences:
Online questionnaire of farmers and ranchers
Phone interviews with farmers and ranchers
Case studies of 4 farms/ranches that are transitioning to a non-family successor
IN INDIANA
The study will initiate the planning of farm transfer assistance programs in Kansas and Indiana, two of the few states without a program to help farms succeed with out-of-family transfers. Project findings will outline frameworks for pilot program models tailored to Indiana
November 2017 – farm transfer stakeholder meeting – Indiana
Fall farm transfer stakeholder meeting – Kansas
(Interested? Tell us! Write us! Connect!)
Contact:
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
This material is based upon work that is supported by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture, under award number  through the North Central Region SARE program under subaward number LNC  USDA is an equal opportunity employer and service provider. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.