Courtesy of Roxanne C., Philadelphia PA Bruce Manns says, “It’s not a bad thing to be a business person in the inner city.” He doesn’t sound like your typical urban farmer do-gooder, and he isn’t. Sure, his York Fresh Food Farms shares the same mission as other non-profit farms, but...
Courtesy of Roxanne C., Philadelphia PA Saskatoon is losing a farm many never knew was there, especially its neighbors. Wally Satzewich has sold the birthplace of SPIN-Farming, a suburban-style house that served as a backyard farm for over 25 years. Gone are the beds, the greenhouses and the basement grow...
Here’s Backyard Riches’ Alphabet List of 2018 Trends to look forward to, culled from all the presentations at this year’s Member Meetups. Thanks to all of the forward thinking SPIN farmers listed below who presented their business plans, how they implemented them and the revenue they targeted and achieved. SPIN’s...
Thanks to Ray Derksen,John Greenwood, Darmaris Katt, Beth Hagenbuch and Adithya Ramachanrdan for helping Wally lead last week’s meetup. and sharing their end of the year assessments in 5 areas: crops, marketing, work flow, gear and revenue. The main theme was in-season revamps to farm plans are now the rule...
Courtesy of Wally S., Wally’s Urban Market Garden, Saskatoon SK Over the 10 years I’ve been doing SPIN-Farming workshops this question comes up at just about every one. SPIN-Farming is certainly more labor intensive than riding around on a tractor all day. And I know I’m not getting any younger,...
Courtesy of Roxanne C., Philadelphia PA It took several generations to dismantle local food supply chains but SPIN farmers like Mary Ackley, owner/operator of Little Wild Things City Farm in the heart of DC, are rebuilding it pretty quickly, without Trump-size infrastructure investment or government policy changes. All she’s using...
Here’s SPIN-Farming’s Alphabet List of 2017 Trends culled from all the presentations at last year’s Member Meetups. Thanks to all of the forward thinking SPIN farmers listed below who presented their business plans, how they implemented them and the revenue they targeted and achieved. SPIN’s online Member Meetups are THE...
Courtesy of Roxanne C. , Philadelphia PA Since its launch 10 years ago, SPIN-Farming has come to mean many things. While it embodies lots of food and farming trends, it’s practitioners know it as a profit-driven production system coupled with a business model. That’s what it is meant to be....
Courtesy of Roxanne C., Philadelphia PA Farmers get attached to their soil for good reason. No soil, no business. They have to treat it right, and there are lots of groups and movements telling them so. They may be overstating their case, however, if farmers are starting to feel guilty,...
Courtesy of Roxanne C., Philadelphia PA SPIN-Farming and nonprofits are not a natural fit. Sure, SPIN’s planting plan can be used to maximize yields in a minimum amount of space. But SPIN is primarily a franchise-like business model. Those who have the most success with it use it to become...
