green circle projects noble hill rfp noble hill...
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Noble Hill Agricultural DevelopmentGrowing Farmers, Growing Food
● City of Springfield Noble Hill RFP
● Green Circle Projects● What will we do
there?● Who benefits● Why is this important
Maybe You Know Someone Who Wants to be a Farmer?
● Century ago, everyone farmed
● Now, less than 2% grew up on Farms
● Yet young people want to farm
● How do they start?
To Start Farming Today You Need...
● Commercial Growing Experience
● Access to Capital● Access to Markets
But What If You Had a Persistent Dream of Farming, Even If You...
● Didn’t Inherit a Farm?● Didn’t have much
money?● Didn’t have extensive
commercial farming experience
Short Answer…You Can’t
● Banks Won’t Loan you Money without Commercial Success
● And Extensive Experience
● And Business Plan and Reliable Market
Might be why the Average Farmer Age is 60...
● And getting Older Every year
Not Enough Farmers...So Food Travels Far To The Ozarks!
● 1500 Miles “Farm to Market”
● Lettuce from California Peppers from Holland
● Ozarks, once leading producer of Tomatoes, Strawberries
How Can We Use Our Community Resources?
How do we create a path for Local Farmers:
● Young people● Veterans● Second Career Folks● Immigrants
Noble HIll Agricultural DevelopmentGrowing Farmers. Growing Food
● Greenhouses and Irrigated Fields
● Ag Accelerator● Agro Forestry
Demonstration● Food Hub
Noble Hill Agricultural Complex4 State of The Art Hydroponic Greenhouses
Noble Hill Agricultural Complex16 acres-Irrigated Produce Fields With Season Extenders
Noble Hill Agricultural Complex5 Acre Agroforestry and Permaculture Demonstration ● Pecans, almonds and
chestnuts, native fruits● With Forrest Keeling
MDC, USDA, MU Extension, MSU
● Demonstration to Local Schools Landowners
Noble Hill Agricultural ComplexOnsite Food Hub Will Purchase Foodfrom Beginning and Local Farmers
Specifically...How Does Noble Hill Help Our New Farmers?
Noble Hill Agricultural Complex1st Stage: MSU Certificate
● MSU-18 hr certificate, 2019● 1) Commercial Greenhouse
Production, 2) Organic Field Production
● Paid Internship Opportunities MSU, OTC, Drury, SCG, Veterans
Noble Hill Agricultural Complex2nd Stage: Ag Accelerator
● 3 years of Commercial Experience
● Leased land/Greenhouses, Access to equipment
● Guaranteed Market-Food Hub● Experienced mentorship,
business and marketing help
Noble Hill Agricultural ComplexThen...many options
● Buy a Farm-3 years is enough for SBA, Farm Credit Services
● Continue leasing Land or Greenhouses at NH
● Job Managing Greenhouses● Job Managing Other Farm
Noble Hill Agricultural ComplexTimeline
● Present Proposal to City: November 30th● City Review: December-March, 2019● Design: Spring 2019● Site Work: Late Spring 2019● Construction: Late Summer 2019● Opens: Spring 2020
Noble Hill Agricultural Complex: Site Map
Noble Hill Agricultural DevelopmentGrowing Farmers, Growing Food
Thank you!
Mike [email protected]
John [email protected]