Richard Wiswall is owner/operator of Cate Farm in East Montpelier, VT, where he has been farming organically for over 35 years. Richard is known for his work with farm business and profitability and in this episode we discussed how they have simplified their farm over the years to make it work for them, how they are now exploring farm transition to his youngest son, and his advice for new and beginning farmers.
In This Episode:
>> How a workshop in 1993 on holistic management changed the trajectory of Richard’s farm and made it much more profitable
>> The three areas that have to be transitioned to the next farmer and which one is the hardest
>> What the early days of organic agriculture were like in Vermont
>> Why smaller farms can frequently make higher profit margins
Quotes from the episode:
“Farming is the greatest job in the world”
“The biggest fallacy in farming is that there is no money in farming, there is”
“Its a farm’s responsibility to make money so that it can pay its employees well ”
“I am my own best self-promotion because it is my business”
“Succeeding is all about falling down and getting back up again”
“Starting a farm is like a launch, you need to sit down, strap in, and hang on for the ride up”
About the Guest
Richard Wiswall is owner/operator of Cate Farm in East Montpelier, VT, where he has been farming organically for over 35 years. Known for his work on farm profitability and appropriate business tools, he has consulted with over 90 farmers in New England, helping them increase profitability and meet their long term goals. Richard is author of The Organic Farmer’s Business Handbook- A Complete guide to Managing Finances, Crops, and Staff- and Making a Profit, and gives workshops frequently on the subject of farm business. To learn more about Richard and Cate Farm, visit www.catefarm.com .
Resources that Ray Mentioned
Richard Wiswall’s book is The Organic Farmers Business Handbook
Edward Martsoft and holistic management
The Vermont farm and forest viability program
The Vermont Food Safety team podcast episode
Vermont Vegetable and Berry Growers Association
Holistic management testing questions
Richard’s favorite tools:
Bruce
August 24, 2019 1:58 amReally enjoyed this episode. Great insight of getting started and giving me inspiration as I begin my journey with market garden farming. It reinforced my decision to start with 1/2 acre even though I have 6 acres available. Still working on the crop mix but going to limit myself to 10-15 crop types. Look forward to future episode.