Mentorship Program Supports the Next Generation of Women Farmers in New York
Earlier this year, AFT’s New York Women for the Land team launched a two-year women’s farm mentorship program in western New York, a pioneering approach to overcome gendered barriers for beginning farmers. Starting out in farming is hard these days, but it can be less daunting with the support of an experienced farmer, especially one who has confronted similar obstacles.
Establishing any kind of business is a risk, but women face steeper barriers to entry in agriculture, often struggling to be seen as serious farmers. Frequently, women are balancing family caretaking responsibilities and holding off-farm jobs while they work to establish their own operation. It’s no surprise that women have worse outcomes, facing lower profitability, higher exit rates, and exclusion from resources. Yet, they persevere. 37% of New York farms are owned or co-owned by women, and women stand out as drivers of local food system economies, often growing the crops that directly feed our communities.
AFT brought on two established women farmers to serve as mentors for this project, supporting two women mentees in their region over the next two years.
Meet the Mentor: Amanda Grisa, Schenck Homestead Farm
Amanda Grisa, co-owner of Schenk Homestead Farm in Naples, New York, has been farming full-time for eight years with her husband and three children. She grows vegetables year-round, selling them to restaurants and directly to consumers weekly at the Brighton Farmer’s Market.
“I am excited to be able to share things that we have learned on our farm,” shares Amanda, “and the background business information that I wish I knew earlier in my farm career. I wanted to become a mentor because I was excited to be able to help others and to act as a sounding board for new farmers.”
Amanda selected Maria and Ashley as her mentees for this project. Maria established her farm this year in the Finger Lakes region, having recently relocated from the West Coast. She was following her dream with no regrets but found the experience overwhelming. Maria explains, “[Mentorship] allows me to feel less like I am in this alone and more like I am a part of a community of people doing hard things together.”
Ashley has not yet established her operation but currently works at Foodlink in Rochester and dreams of establishing a co-op style farm where family and friends can live together and benefit from the land. Recently, Ashley joined Amanda at her local farmers market to learn more about sales and marketing — crucial components of a successful farm business.
Meet the Mentor: Laura Colligan, Dirt Rich CSA
Laura Colligan, co-owner of Dirt Rich Farm in Springville, has been farming for ten years with her husband, offering vegetable CSA shares, farm tours, and a highly successful seedling sale each spring. Laura joined the program as a mentor, drawing from her own experience as a beginning farmer: “I didn't come from a farming family, so I learned how to farm by interning on farms as a young adult. When I dreamt of my future farm, I always figured interns would be part of it, and I looked forward to training them and watching them go on to start farms of their own. The way things have worked out, though, I don't have the capacity to house employees.”
She is looking forward to passing along her hard-earned knowledge to her mentees, Allison and Katie, who are both in the process of establishing operations outside Buffalo. Allison strives to follow her dream of nurturing herself, her land, and her community. She says, “I truly believe this mentorship will provide me invaluable insights and knowledge that Laura has gained from her own experiences and is willing to share.”
Planting the Seeds for Growth
We will guide our participants throughout the two years of this pilot project, inviting them to be active members of the Women for the Land community, participating in Learning Circles and gaining access to resources from our Farmland for a New Generation New York hub. Establishing a mentorship program pulls together AFT’s mission areas by fostering collaboration among farmers to overcome barriers that prevent them from reaching their full potential. We hope this pilot project allows us to grow the program statewide in the coming years.
In year two, each mentee will develop a sustainable farm business plan with guidance from AFT, its partners, and of course, their mentors. As Maria says, “it is one thing to say, "I'm a farmer and I'm starting a farm!" and a far, far different thing to financially succeed, rent or purchase land, and thrive as a farmer for years to come.”
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