Conversations with Collaborators Episode 2

Author: Garrett Ziegler, Michigan State University Extension

Brought to you by Michigan State University Extension, this podcast provides farmers, educators and advocates with stories of how local farmers are collaborating (formally and informally) to create solutions that foster more sustainable and viable businesses for local farmers.

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Episode two of Conversations with Collaborators brings you the captivating and informative story behind the development of the MI Farm Co-op. This farmer led Cooperative was started in 2015 as a way for local farmers in Northwest Michigan to collaboratively provide local food to area schools. It has since grown to include a mulit-farm CSA box. We hear from two of the founding members Nic Welty and Jim Bardenhagen about the work that led to the cooperatives formation and how things have evolved over the years of operation. They go in-depth into challenges encountered and the creative solutions that were used. This story is one that any farmers thinking about starting a producer owned cooperative will definitely want to tune in for! 

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