RECAP: Farmer Veteran Coalition Conference - Austin, TX
Hat’s off to Homegrown by Heroes.
“I believe that...American agriculture can and will hold true to the best traditions of our national life, and that I can exert and influence in my home and community which will stand solid for my part in that inspiring task.” The FFA Creed by EM Tiffany.
It was an honor to be present in Austin, Texas, this week as the 5th Annual Farmer Veteran Coalition Conference brought together Veterans and active-duty military service members from across the country. They convened to discuss and improve their Farm businesses and build community with others who served America first in the military, and second as food producers.
We were thrilled to reconnect with Farmers already using Barn2Door! Lisa, Nancy, and Tom (who we recently featured in another Blog here), came to say hello and offer testimonials (unprompted!) as we connected with other conference attendees. There was tangible excitement around selling Farm products online as a means to grow their Farm business --- what a joy to be part of the conversation!
The conference presentations mirrored that excitement. Dr. Crystal Kyle, a U.S Army veteran, goat meat Farmer, Director of the North Carolina AgrAbility Program, and a PhD in Agricultural Leadership and Community Education, spoke about her research on peer military veterans in agricultural careers. Dr. Kyle explained that she observed veteran Farmers translating their love of country born from Military service into Farming. Veterans first served America protecting our freedom, and now by providing food and protecting our land. Participants acknowledged that the highly physical and demanding act of Farming gave them a sense of control and self-determined future after their active service. Her study participants spoke independently to the mental health benefits of Farming, and the absolute importance of community, bringing their military service camaraderie into their Farming careers.
We also attended a session on vegetable farming, where Mike O’Gorman moderated a panel of veteran Farmers who offered their best practices for planning, producing, and marketing products to improve profitability. Some of the most compelling advice was offered by Endeavour Shen who was an accountant for 10 years after the military, before transitioning to Farming. He’s built two successful Farms in the San Diego area (South Coast Orchids and Sun Dial Farms). Endeavour offered that marketing is as important as the quality of your products - and the “Homegrown by Heroes” label matters deeply to customers. He also shared some sage accounting advice - “When things are bad, things are not necessarily that bad (multiply x 1.4). When things are good, things are not necessarily that good (multiply x 0.6).”
In conjunction with the conference, Barn2Door was proud to announce a partnership with the Farmer Veteran Coalition (FVC), which you can read about here. We know that our veterans are uniquely suited with strategic minds and mental grit required to Farm successfully. We’re proud and humbled by their contributions --- both on foreign and American soil.
If you’re a Farmer who is also a veteran, Barn2Door is happy to extend a special discount to help you get started selling online; we also donate part of your subscription back to the FVC to support their continued efforts to encourage Veterans to farm. Schedule a conversation with us here, if you’d like to learn more about our services and how we might be able to help your Farm.