Farmland is essential for everyone, but many people who want to grow food can’t get land. Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC), recent immigrants (New Americans), and emerging farmers face many challenges to owning farmland. Our goal is to help these farmers find affordable farmland near Madison through the Buy, Protect, Sell program.
In this program, we buy farmland, protect it with an agricultural conservation easement, and sell it to an emerging farmer. The easement stops development on the land, keeping it for farming. By removing development rights, the future sale price is lower, making it more affordable for farmers. This helps them invest in their farms and build a sustainable business.
We can’t do this alone. We are working with American Farmland Trust and other organizations to launch and maintain this program. Funding is crucial ]for success. Thank you to the Racine Dominicans and Forward Community Investments for their generous $50,000 Racine Dominican Mission Grant. Groundswell is proud to be one of ten grantees!