ENERGY ANSWERS FOR THE BEGINNING FARMER AND RANCHER

Beginning farmers and ranchers face the challenge of making energy decision that will shape the viability and sustainability of their operations. While business and agronomic information have been tailored to beginning farmers and ranchers and made available on the farmanswers.org website, energy information, such as energy use assessment, alternatives to traditional energy sources, and energy conservation measures have yet to be created for these beginning farmers and ranchers. Energy cost is typically one of the highest on-going costs of any farm operation. This project builds on an already active USDA Sustainable Farm Energy group of extension farm energy experts and directs their knowledge and creative talents into the production of energy information that targets the needs of beginning farmers and ranchers.For this project, 36+ new 5-10 minute videos will be professionally produced to fill gaps identified in a survey of available farm energy curricula applicable to beginning farmers and ranchers. Integration of these videos into an Energy Toolbox created on the farmanswers.org website will pull together existing information on the website and these new video productions to create a comprehensive farm energy storehouse of material specifically relevant to beginning farmers and ranchers. Fourteen farm energy experts from throughout the country will lend their expertise and time in the production of these video products.These collaborators are from the following organizations: Penn State, Rutgers, Michigan State, Cornell University, University of Nebraska, Virginia Tech, University of Maryland, University of New Hampshire,University of Illinois