2021’s Best States to Start a Farm or Ranch

What are the top three reasons to start a farm or ranch today?

There is an ever-increasing demand for locally-grown produce.

In 2019, about 82% of the total population in the United States lived in cities and urban areas and it is predicted this percentage will keep increasing. Urbanization leads to a declining ratio of farmers to food consumers, which means there is a need for more farmers or to have existing farmers increase their production to meet the increasing demand.

One-third of US farmers are close to retirement age, and there is a need for farmers from the younger generation.

What type of person is best suited to a career in agriculture?

A person who likes to be close to nature, stay outside, get their hands dirty, and wants to be an entrepreneur,

What will be the three biggest challenges for new farmers and ranchers over the next 3-5 years?

Finding a customer base: It’s always challenging to find customers and target markets when starting a new business.

Competition from large retailers: The competition is intense because large-scale food suppliers have many advantages in terms of competitive pricing and efficient distribution.

Understanding consumers’ needs: consumers’ needs and wants are changing due to many uncertainties and the changing population structure, so it is challenging but very important to understand the consumers’ needs.

Over the long-term, do you see more opportunity in direct-to-consumer farming or industrial supply-chain farming, which has not fared as well during the pandemic? Please explain.

I would say both will have opportunities because consumers are not the same. Some consumers are price sensitive, whereas others pay more attention to product origin, local, organic, etc. Both direct-to-consumer farming and industrial supply-chain farming will find their segment of consumers.

What’s your single most important tip for someone who wants to start a farm or ranch?

Love farming. Loving what you do will go a long way.

What are the top three reasons to start a farm or ranch today?

Because you have the passion for it, it’s not something you kind of just do, even if it’s only part-time, you need passion for it.

What type of person is best suited to a career in agriculture?

Hard worker, responsible, the person who goes the extra mile and does not need the spotlight for doing good, hard work.

What will be the three biggest challenges for new farmers and ranchers over the next 3-5 years?

Price and market variability as we move into the post-covid economy.  We are all still uncertain about how much consumer food demand has changed as a result of the pandemic.

Over the long-term, do you see more opportunity in direct-to-consumer farming or industrial supply-chain farming, which has not fared as well during the pandemic? Please explain.

Yes, food has moved into delivery just like much of retail, with more online shopping, home delivery, or curbside pick up.  Small local foods have followed this trend and I expect consumers to stick with the buying channel even after the pandemic ends. The shopping and online technology is there. 

The costly part is the shipping/delivery, the last mile.  Transportation and logistics are all about efficiency, but that is where the small farmers and processors (meat, cheese processors) at the local level will struggle – driving around in your own van is costly compared to a large semi-trailer shipping food from CA to WI. 

What’s your single most important tip for someone who wants to start a farm or ranch?

Try not to be too emotional about decision making, but go with what works and keeps your costs down.  Yes, a new hay mower will look great and make you feel great, but a used one is likely a much better deal. 

Keep your costs down and make rational decisions – most of farming is not about how things look or even how they work, but how much they cost to get the job done. Never underestimate the capacity of agriculture to oversupply any market and drive down prices –you will need to be able to survive low price years to make money in high price years.

What are the top three reasons to start a farm or ranch today?

Consumer demand is pushing for locally grown agricultural commodities. 

Global awareness is encouraging everyone to reduce carbon emissions; buy local and ship local. 

Mega-greenhouse structures are helping meet the need to grow more on less ground while being very environmentally friendly

What type of person is best suited to a career in agriculture?

Entrepreneurs willing to accept challenges and problem-solving thinkers are best suited for the greenhouse and green industry.

What will be the three biggest challenges for new farmers and ranchers over the next 3-5 years?

The greatest challenge growers are going to have is labor; finding quality laborers and being able to afford them while keeping the cost of production down.  

I suspect government regulations will soon be more challenging for growers. 

Finally, I suspect the cost of materials for products containing petroleum will increase significantly.  We have seen prices increase and occasionally drop over the years, but it trends with the costs of petroleum. 

Over the long-term, do you see more opportunity in direct-to-consumer farming or industrial supply-chain farming, which has not fared as well during the pandemic? Please explain.

I see community supported agriculture growing in popularity. Contract growing is great for farmers. They are guaranteed sales that usually require a deposit and that allows growers to manage cash flow a little easier.  

What’s your single most important tip for someone who wants to start a farm or ranch?

Try to get start-up money with forgivable loans.  Do your homework ahead of time to determine where your product will be sold.  Prepare a firm business plan.  Build a business, do not start an empire overnight.