APPLY: OFRF Farmer-Led Trials program

The Organic Farming Research Foundation (OFRF, https://ofrf.org) is offering a new Farmer-Led Trials program to provide farmers with funding and technical assistance to investigate and learn about solutions to their most pressing production challenges.

· Are you a certified organic or transitioning organic farmer?

· Would you like to try out a new practice, crop, cultivar, or innovation to address climate, soil, pest, or other production challenges you have encountered?

· Do you need technical assistance and/or financial support in order to do so?

· Are you willing to work closely with OFRF staff to design and carry out a highly effective on-farm trial with your chosen practice and share results with other producers?

If you answer “yes” to each of these questions, check out the OFRF Farmer Led Trials Program. This web page includes links to:

· A video recording of a recent information session on the program.

· A new farmers’ guide to conducting on-farm research, written by OFRF staff.

· Instructions for applying to the program (click on “apply now”).

Priority topics include but are not limited to:

· Weed, pest, or disease suppression.

· Soil health, cover crops, and maintaining crop yields.

· Organic crop variety and seed trials.

· Organic livestock breeds and management.

OFRF will provide technical assistance throughout the trial, beginning with planning in March of 2024, and also provides a $1,500 stipend to cover costs of conducting the research. All participants in the program will attend a form in the fall of 2024 to share and discuss what you learned through the trials.

Applications will be accepted through December 3. The application process is quite simple and should take only a couple of hours if you have a specific question or practice in mind that you would like to research.