At the same time, Americans are rethinking how and what we eat. The number of farmers’ markets has grown by 42 percent from 2004 to 2009. There is growing demand, coming from restaurants and home cooks, for food from small, local farms.

The question is how to create farm businesses that can profitably meet that demand. Tanya Mohn at Daily Finance reports on an effort in Pennsylvania’s Lehigh County to incubate new farm businesses by teaching aspiring farmers both agricultural and business skills. From Mohn’s story:

The incubator gives prospective farmers the opportunity to see whether they want to pursue farming full-time without making a huge investment in land and equipment. Among the apprentices there are mid-career switchers looking for new opportunities, people who have always dreamed of farming, and immigrants who farmed in their native countries but don’t have the resources to start farms here.

…

First-year apprentices, who attend the program for free (they do have to pay a $40 application fee), commit to 20 hours a week of class time and hands-on experience from February though November. The training covers technical topics like what crops to grow, disease and pest management, and what tools and equipment to use, and visits to local farms. Classroom instruction on the business of farming — with a strong focus on marketing and management — is provided by the local extension branch of Penn State University.

These aren’t hobbyists or back-to-the-land types starting communes; they’re entrepreneurs learning how to run businesses. Incubators in the technology industry and others give first-time entrepreneurs technical assistance, shared resources, and mentoring–all of which improve their odds of success. Farms that want to be sustainable businesses need similar support.

View full post on The New Entrepreneur – BusinessWeek

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Here’s how it works:

1. You send us companies that meet our criteria via the form below by July 26.

4. Readers vote for the companies they think are the most promising, and we announce the five that get the most votes.

Criteria:

We’ll only consider U.S.-based companies in which all the co-founders are no older than 25 on July 26, 2010. (That means that if you or your co-founder was born before July 26, 1984, you’re over the cutoff.) Companies should be prepared to disclose their revenue for 2009 and projected revenue for 2010. And we’ll also ask finalists for a photo.

That’s it. Suggest companies in the form below. We’ll start interviewing the most promising after July 26.

For a look at the 2009 finalists, flip through this slide show.

View full post on The New Entrepreneur – BusinessWeek

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