MIFarmLink pilot budget funding is a big win for local farmers, ag economy, and land use

submitted by Megan DeLeeuw, Washtenaw County Conservation District

With the signing of state budget legislation this week, a $100,000 grant has been approved for the Washtenaw County Conservation District for a MIFarmLink pilot project to help keep local farmland in active production. The budget funding was secured by Sen. Sue Shink (D-Northfield Twp.) — a farmer herself, and the Senator representing Ann Arbor and a substantial portion of Washtenaw County — in response to the advocacy efforts of district leaders and local farmers.

“Washtenaw County cares deeply about keeping farmland working for a thriving and diversified local food system,” said Megan DeLeeuw, Executive Director of the Washtenaw County Conservation District. She went on to say, “As home to the largest number of beginning farmers in the state, and with many long-standing farmland preservation programs, Washtenaw is the ideal place to continue to build MIFarmLink.”

Ottawa County received the funding to launch MIFarmLink through the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program. Now, the program has transitioned to a home in southeast Michigan where the Washtenaw County Conservation District is managing funds from the Carls Foundation, Americana Foundation, and Towsley Foundation to run MIFarmLink through fiscal year 2024. The funding at the state level that Sen. Shink secured is exactly what the program needs to keep growing.

“We need farms and we need farmers in Michigan if we want healthy and nutritious foods. I’m committed to making sure that we attract a new generation of farmers and preserve our productive farmland,” Sen. Shink, who also serves as the Chair of the Committee on Natural Resources & Agriculture, said. “Agriculture is important; we need to invest in it if we want to protect our environment and our health, which is why I am proud to secure funding for MIFarmLink here in Washtenaw County.”

MIFarmLink arose out of a need for additional ways to address the changing demographics of farming and rapidly disappearing farmland. The program aims to help preserve Michigan farms and farming by shepherding prime farmland from its current stewards into the hands of the next generation, and help these new farmers fill this vital role and be successful. The need to support the next generation of Michigan farmers is significant, as almost a third of farmers in the state are over age 65. Less than 10% are under 35.

The WCCD assists residents and landowners with the conservation, management, and wise use of natural resources of Washtenaw County. They help with countywide resource assessments, conservation resource distributions, conservation education, and one-on-one technical assistance. The WCCD also runs the Farmer Cost-Share Program that is intended to assist farmers in Washtenaw County with implementing conservation on the ground and assist farmers with smaller, low-cost projects to improve their land use practices.

For as little as $1 a month, you can keep Manchester-focused news coverage alive.

by Marsha Chartrand

Marsha Johnson Chartrand, a founder, writer, and copy editor with the Manchester Mirror, is a 50-year resident of Manchester. She has a long history of volunteer and community involvement.