Successful farms lay the groundwork for equitable regional food systems.
TCLF’s Farm Business Services team helps farmers with the business side of farming. We provide one-on-one technical assistance to Texas farmers and ranchers around business planning, marketing and sales development, selling to The Common Market Texas, and accessing USDA programs. We currently provide our services to producers in Central, East, and South Texas free of charge thanks to USDA grant funding.
Our services are best suited for beginning and underserved farmers operating diversified crop and/or livestock farms and selling into local food systems. We support all Texas farmers, and we particularly encourage Black, Indigenous, Hispanic, Latine, Chicano/a, and Asian producers, as well as Beginning, Limited Resource, Veteran, and LGBTQIA+ producers, to connect with us and gather the resources they need to run a successful farm business given the existing inequities in our food system.
Topics we can work with you on include:
Business Planning
- Defining your business values, mission, objectives, and goals
- Identifying your product offerings and what makes them unique
- Thinking through your management and operations plan
- Outlining your marketing plan
- Building a budget
- Analyzing profitability
- Understanding core financial statements
Marketing and Sales Development
- Assessing your local food market and trends
- Choosing market channels
- Identifying potential buyers and sales outlets
- Pricing your products for profitability
- Planning your marketing materials
Selling to The Common Market Texas
- Developing a production plan
- Connecting with The Common Market Texas
- Planning logistics and transportation
Accessing USDA Programs
- Identifying relevant USDA programs
- Strategizing program applications
- Writing and submitting grant applications
- Tracking and reporting on grant awards
We know there’s a lot more to farming. Feel free to get in touch if you’re looking for another type of resource in Texas so we can refer you. We also encourage you to check out Food & Ag Resources in the Texas Local Food Directory to find other organizations supporting farmers in Texas.
Ready to connect?
Please fill out our Producer Intake Form and we’ll be in touch within 5 business days.
Our Farm Business Services team is small but mighty! We will do our best to provide high quality one-on-one support to everyone who contacts us. If our time is maxed out, we will provide resources, make referrals, or follow up with you when we have more time.