Ozarks CRAFT is a cooperative effort of Ozarks farms organized to enhance educational opportunities for farm apprentices, interns, and farmers.
weeding baby carrots
Ozarks CRAFT (Collaborative Regional Alliance for Farmer Training) was founded in 2010 by a group of family farmers and works to train our next generation of sustainable vegetable, livestock, fruit, and flower farmers. CRAFT operates under the umbrella of Springfield Urban Agriculture Coalition, a non-profit based in Springfield Missouri, whose mission is to “promote healthy lifestyles and environments through hands on education about production and consumption of locally-produced, natural, healthy foods.”
Internship positions at CRAFT farms provide the opportunity to observe, actively experience, ask many questions and above all learn about successful small farming. By no means are internships easy. They require hard work and long hours in the field daily, but offer the invaluable benefit of being a part of the inner workings of the farm. The focus of our internship program is to train future farmers in creating a successful, diversified commercial market farm. Ideal candidates are self-motivated folks looking for agricultural training with a community purpose, and in-the-field training on the details of small farm management .
CRAFT members gain access to hands-on training and learn skills that will help them advance from farming novice to starting and running their own farm. CRAFT offers on-farm training and business planning, field day workshops hosted by member farms and access to a wide variety of resources. All provided directly by the experienced farmers. You will be exposed to a wide diversity of farming practices and join a supportive network of farmers and farmers-in-training.
CRAFT welcomes trainees with all levels of experience, whether you’ve never farmed before, you have significant experience and need advanced training, or you’re an established farmer seeking to transition to sustainable agriculture. CRAFT trainees include rural and urban residents, men and women, young and old. Full-time residential and part-time non-residential internships are available on six farms for 2012, and start as early as February. Classes and farm tours offered as part of CRAFT are open to the public.
For more information, e-mail Curtis Millsap, Ozarks CRAFT coordinator, at farm@millsapfarms.com
