Farming Strategies for Small Farmers

and Limited Resource Farmers in North Florida

 Through the 80's

 Grace A. McWhorter
 Coordinator Horticulture
 Florida A & M University
 Tallahassee, FL


 A 1981 report to the Florida Legislature indicated that 75%
of Florida's 44,000 farms are small farms. Among Florida's
3,079 black farmers, annual sales range from $1,000 $2,500.
 The 1981 Governors' Conference on Small Farmers in
Florida listed cost of labor and supplies, cost of equipment, in-
terest rates and marketing as the most serious problems facing
farmers.


 Based on the above problems, FAMU has developed a plan
of action that includes: (1) Development of alternative farm-
ing enterprises; (2) Education geared toward more effective
management skills; (3) Development of on-farm demonstra-
tion projects.


 What is a small farm? Historically, small farms consisted of 160
acres with most of the labor being supplied by the family.
Decades after the Homestead Act these farms became known as
family farms. Small farms were considered small because the
operation was not managed on a full time basis. In the 1960's an-
nual sales, rather than acreage, became the dividing line between
success and failure. These dividing lines moved from $10,000 in
the 1960's to $20,000 by 1970.
 The USDA has derived a three-part definition of a small farm
operation:
 1. The family provides most of the labor and management.
 2. Total family income from farm and non-farm sources is
 below the median non-metropolitan family income in the
 state.
 3. Farming provides a significant portion, though not
 necessarily a majority, of the family income.
 The above definition assumes that income will be derived from
both farm and non-farm sources.
 In contrast, the Tuskegee Institute Small Farm Model em-
phasizes the importance of the family component and recognizes
the family farm as a full time, not part time, operation. I'm sure
most of you are familiar with this plan through the nationwide
lectures given by my former professor and mentor, Dr. Booker
Whatley.
 The primary mission of the Division of Agriculture at FAMU is
to "help people help themselves." The Division consists of three
units: Teaching, Research and Extension. As part of the 1890
land-grant system its job or mission is to provide educational
resources and technical assistance to north Florida farmers, most
of whom would fit into any one of two or three USDA definitions
of a small farmer.
 Our clientele occupy the lower-economic strata of the general
population. They are made up of varied racial and ethnic back-
grounds. The one thing they share in common is that there is
usually less than $10,000 per year family income. Their standard
of living is thus dictated by this economic straightjacket.
 Although the USDA Extension programs continue to struggle
with the perplexing problems facing small farmers, black small
farms continue to decrease at an alarming rate. According to the
Civil Rights Commission, if the current trend continues, blacks

VOL. XX-PROCEEDINGS of the CARIBBEAN FOOD CROPS SOCIETY


operating farms will become a part of the United States
agricultural history.
 Future goals set by the agriculture programs at FAMU envision
a more positive outlook for small farmers in the north Florida
area. In fact, we take issue with the prophetic forecast of doom
for small farmers in our area.
 A 1981 report to the Florida Legislature indicated that, based
on USDA standards, 75% of Florida's 44,000 farms are small
farms. Among Florida's 3,079 black farmers, annual sales range
from $1,000-$2,500. These farmers cultivate 121,708 acres of
Florida land. Approximately 13% (392) of the black farmers are
located in eight counties served by FAMU.
 The 1981 Governors' Conference on the Future of Small
Farmers in Florida cited the following as major problems en-
countered by small farmers: cost of labor supplies (80%), cost of
equipment (51%), interest rates (41%), and marketing (53%).
 Based on these and other studies, the problems facing our
clients in north Florida are as follows:
 1. High cost of equipment and supplies;
 2. Inadequate marketing strategies;
 3. Inability to secure loans;
 4. Poor management;
 5. Lack of support by governmental institutions;
 Based on the above problems we have developed the following
plan of action:
 1. Develop educational programs that will inform farmers of
 the potential income that may be derived from production
 of alternative farming enterprises;
 2. Develop readable educational materials that will provide
 limited resource or small farmers with information on
 marketing strategies, farm management, purchasing of
 equipment and supplies, and securing farm operating
 loans;
 3. Develop demonstration farm projects within target coun-
 ties on clientele's farm;
 4. Develop small farm demonstration center at FAMU.
 We support Dr. Whatley's view of the small farmer of the
future. The small north Florida farmer of the future will be well-
trained, perhaps trained in an agricultural discipline. He will be a
successful manager, self-fulfilled by his love of people and the


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