All workshops are remote, presented on the Zoom platform. Advance registration required. Zoom links to the workshops will be emailed the day before for each workshop. To register for one or more of the workshops, scroll to the bottom of this page. For more information, contact Jordan Archey, Program Manager for Business Members, at jordan@berkshiregrown.org
Not a Member? Join Berkshire Grown Business Membership and receive discounts on these workshops, as well as receiving other great benefits aimed to help your farm or food business grow. Click here for more information.
Brand Integrity of Your Farm – Online and In Print
with Caroline Alexander
Wednesday, January 26, 2022
5:00 – 7:00pm
$10 members/$15 non-members
Your website is the ideal platform to increase your farm’s visibility. Websites create a visual and content-rich branding opportunity, giving you a voice of authority and educating potential customers about your products, markets and services. Learn how to tell your story through eye catching website design and informative newsletters. Website photos and text show transparency in business, an imperative for food producers. Newsletters reinforce and supplement website information and keep you in touch with customers.
Please pre-register before noon on Tuesday, January 25th.
Soil Management in Response to Climate Change
with Jim Schultz; owner of Red Shirt Farm, Lanesboro, MA
Thursday, February 10, 2022
5:00 – 7:00 pm
$10 members/$15 non-members
Droughts, floods, high winds, increasing temperatures, intensified storms, shifting seasons and more diseases and pests. As farmers we have always had to contend with the vagaries of weather but climate change has upped the ante. What strategies can we employ to meet the daunting challenge of producing food in a changing climate? What techniques can increase our resilience and adaptability while enhancing economic and ecological sustainability? This workshop will mesh concept with practice as Jim Schultz shares strategies and techniques that are working on his farm and small- to medium-sized farms.
Please pre-register before noon on Wednesday, February 9th.
Making Local Food More Accessible: Welcoming SNAP & WIC/Senior Coupons, and All Who Use Them
Part 1: How to accept SNAP and WIC/Senior Coupons at Your Farm
Tuesday, February 15, 2022
1:00 – 2:30pm
FREE
Learn how to accept SNAP, WIC & Senior coupons at your farm and how these programs enable you to feed your neighbors and boost your bottom line. We’ll cover how government supplemental nutrition assistance programs can fit into your farm business. Participants will learn how to set up SNAP, how to accept WIC and Senior Coupons, and who to ask for help with the application process.
Part 2: Make it a SNAP! Welcoming Low-income Customers at Your Farm
Tuesday, March 1, 2022
10:00 – 11:30am
FREE
For farmers who already accept or are interested in accepting SNAP- learn how to make the most of this tool from a panel of farmers who incorporate SNAP at their business in a way that makes all shoppers feel welcome and keeps customers coming back! Panelists will talk about how accepting SNAP affected their business, how they effectively promote their use of SNAP, how they connect with low-income customers, and how they tailor their offerings in ways that meet their customers’ needs. We will also discuss strategies for use of welcoming language, sliding scale payment models, and signage.
These two workshops are co-hosted by CISA and Berkshire Grown.
Click here to register for part 1, part 2, or both!
Building Capacity for Collaboration to Maintain a Strong Farm Team
with Claudia and Willy Denner, Little Seed Gardens, Chatham, NY
Tuesday, March 15, 2022
5:00 – 7:00pm
$10 members/$15 non-members
Understanding what motivates human action and how to communicate effectively unleashes the potential for creative collaboration. This workshop will introduce ideas and skills to help transform human challenges into opportunities that fulfill the purpose of your farm. We will focus on simple, learnable skills that will help build capacity to understand yourself and others, and how to use that understanding to clarify the values and purpose of your farm business.
Please pre-register before noon on Monday, March 14th.
Good Grazing Practices
with Sarah Flack
Tuesday, March 29th, 2022
5:00 – 6:30pm
$10 members/$15 non-members
This workshop will cover the basic principles of good grazing management systems, first from the perspective of the plants, and then from the perspective of the livestock. We will discuss how to monitor pastures and animals in order to maximize dry matter intake from pasture and use grazing to improve pasture quality and productivity. We will discuss how to use different stocking densities, pre and post grazing heights, length of rest periods, different plant species to improve pasture and strategies to maximize dry matter intake from pasture. With the use photos of pastures, sheep, goats and cows to talk about how to observe and monitor pastures and cattle to better understand if grazing systems are working the way they should.
Please pre-register before noon on Monday, March 28th.
All workshops are remote, presented on the Zoom platform. Advance registration recommended. For more information contact jordan@berkshiregrown.org