The Power of Collaborative Farmer-to-Farmer Peer Networks

The Grower & The Economist

This week we take a look into what it means to develop a comprehensive curriculum for new farmers on a small and medium scale with guest expert, Dr. Marcus Coleman. He is currently serving as a Visiting Assistant Professor at Tulane University and previously served as Program Director for Grow Louisiana Beginning Farmer Training Program at LSU AgCenter. Dr. Coleman explains the importance of diversification and some of the common barriers that small- and medium-sized growers face in the beginning, specifically in New Orleans and Louisiana as a whole. However, he is bringing an innovative shift to farmer training by incorporating marketing and leadership development. We learn a lot in this conversation about tools to help farmers take the lead, examples of farmers scaling up and one positive outcome of the pandemic.