New Entry's farmer library has hundreds of resources on sustainable farming, marketing, and operating a successful small business. Our physical library at our office in Beverly, MA contains books, CD's, DVD's periodicals, pamphlets, and videos in English, Spanish, Hmong, and Khmer. You can also search the directory below for downloadable digital resources, helpful web sites, and online farming videos.
Please visit or email us at nesfp@tufts.edu if you can't find what you're looking for here. Sometimes we are out in the field, so it's best to let us know if you're planning on stopping by.
New Entry has worked for over 20 years to establish a model of local, regional, and national programming that strengthens local food systems by supporting new farmers. We serve and collaborate with the people, communities, and organizations in Massachusetts, the Northeast, and beyond.
This year, despite all of the turmoil and uncertainty, New Entry instead choose to be of service and leverage our resources to confront the weaknesses and inequities in the food system and double down on our mission to improve access to local and regional food. Our foundational work in farmer training and support continued in earnest. We doubled the number of incubator farmers at Moraine Farm, transitioned our programming online and reached more new farmers across the regional remotely. Our Food Hub expanded the CSA and launched new collaborations with our food access partners to bring weekly deliveries of fruits and vegetables to those most in need. Our national programs supported farmer training organizations to share COVID-19 adaptation strategies and our annual FIELD School virtually reached over 250 participants. And we accomplished so much more. To learn more about these initiatives, our programming, and a comprehensive overview of the year, our 2020 Annual Report is now available.
New Entry has worked for over 20 years to establish a model of local, regional, and national programming that strengthens local food systems by supporting new farmers. We serve and collaborate with the people, communities, and organizations in Massachusetts, the Northeast, and beyond.
The end of 2020 (post-election!) and all of 2021 continued to be a whirlwind of shifting uncertainty and figuring out the “new normal” at New Entry and beyond. We worked diligently to figure out how to support farmers to plan for the 2021 growing season. We were not clear how the markets would hold and how to support farmers to either grow more or scale back, to continue to offer home delivery, resume sales at farmers’ markets, or plan to scale up for a return of institutional demand. Yet, we accomplished much and made significant progress supporting new farmers, feeding our community, and bolstering our local, regional, and national food systems. In reflecting over 2021, one of the core themes that emerged for us has been community and connection. The pandemic reinforced the importance of both in ways no one could have predicted, but we hope will have lasting impacts on how society values our relationship to the natural world, to our food system, and to one another. Farmers sit at the nexus of all of these intersections and provide inroads to connect with the land, with the food that sustains us, and
connect us to one another. That community and connection helped inform much of the new relationships and future strategic directions we are approaching with our work as we move forward. To dig into what we accomplished in 2021 and learn about our plans for 2022, our 2021 Annual Report is now available - enjoy!
The Lahey-New Entry Farmer’s Market Program continues in its 7th year, dedicated to providing free shares of fresh fruits and vegetables to older adults in Middlesex County. A collaboration between the New Entry Sustainable Farming Project and Lahey Hospital & Medical Center, the program distributed 255 shares throughout the farming season. Pre- and post-surveys of 2021 participants identified risk factors facing the older adult population and identified the most vulnerable members. Survey data indicated that barriers to food access prevalent among participants include lower income, living alone, consuming under the daily recommended servings of fruits and vegetables, and having trouble accessing transportation. Food insecurity was directly measured within this population, indicating that 13% and 14% of participants within the pre- and post-survey respectively qualified as food insecure. The program met its goals this season as the majority of participants affirmed that they consumed more variety and quantity of fruits and vegetables. The FMP not only reduces barriers to food access but promotes social engagement through attendance in the market, as nearly half of participants indicated that participation in the FMP decreased their feelings of social isolation.
Committed to community-oriented health promotion, the FMP serves as an invaluable resource to local older adults by increasing access to nutritious produce, identifying and reaching those most vulnerable, and fostering
social connectedness within the greater community.
New Entry has worked for over 24 years to establish a model of local, regional, and national programming that strengthens local food systems by supporting new farmers. We serve and collaborate with the people, communities, and organizations in Massachusetts, the Northeast, and beyond.
2022 was a year of resourcefulness and resilience. We worked diligently to improve our capital assets on our incubator farm, support farmers with dozens of workshops on agricutlure technology, food safety, accessing federal programs, and to plan for the 2022 growing season. We faced a debilitating drought which impacted crops and yields, yet we accomplished much and made significant progress supporting new farmers, feeding our community, and bolstering our local, regional, and national food systems. We were able to bring back on-farm community events and host hundreds of visitors to the farm in 2022 through tours, networking events, farm-to-table dinners and our famous Pumpkin Smash. We hosted our national FIELD School in person after two years of virtual conferences with a successful event in Seattle, WA that built new connections and collaborations across the country. These efforts and more helped inform many of the new relationships and future strategic directions we are approaching with our work as we move forward in the year ahead. To dig into what we accomplished in 2022 and learn about our plans for 2023 - enjoy!
New Entry Food Hub provides market access to beginning farmers, market-based training, and produce aggregation and distribution services to a broad array of consumers. We operate a Community Supported Agriculture program, food access programs for food insecure families and individuals, and donate produce to food banks and pantries, transitional living centers, and other social service agencies. In 2022, we expanded our sales to local schools and institutions. Learn more about our 2022 Food Hub operations, impact, and partnerships!
New Entry Food Hub provides market access to beginning farmers, market-based training, and produce aggregation and distribution services to a broad array of consumers. We operate a Community Supported Agriculture program, food access programs for food insecure families and individuals, and donate produce to food banks and pantries, transitional living centers, and other social service agencies. In 2023, we expanded our sales to local schools and institutions and grew our local produce deliveries to food security organizations. Learn more about our 2023 Food Hub operations, impact, and partnerships!
In 2023, New Entry celebrated 25 years of supporting local, regional, and national programming that strengthens local food systems by supporting new farmers. We serve and collaborate with the people, communities, and organizations in Massachusetts, the Northeast, and beyond.
2023 was a year of growth and positive change. We brought on new farmer training staff to grow our capacity and we grew the food hub revenue by 161% thanks largely to new state and federal programs that provide food access organizations and schools with funds to prioritize local and regional food purchasing. We supported over 467 farmers to engage in our courses, workshops, accessing federal programs, and to prepare for a challenging 2023 growing season. We faced an overabundance of rain (the 7th wettest year on record!) which impacted crops and yields, yet we accomplished much and made significant progress supporting new farmers, feeding our community, and bolstering our local, regional, and national food systems. We engaged hundreds of volunteers and visitors to the farm in 2023 through tours, networking events, farm-to-table dinners and our famous Pumpkin Smash. We hosted our national FIELD School in Kansas City, MO that built new connections and collaborations across the country. These efforts and more helped inform many of the new relationships and future strategic directions we are approaching with our work as we move forward in the year ahead. To dig into what we accomplished in 2023 and learn about our plans for 2024 - enjoy!
This document lists the newly developed and enhanced teaching resource created for projects working with New American farmers, and includes an overview of the core skills taught in that lesson. Core skills refer to concepts and skills that are central to farmer training programs. The teaching resources reference here were developed collaboratively by the Institute for Social and Economic Development (ISED Solutions) and 18 refugee farmer training programs across the country.
A Guide for Scaling Up Food Hubs is intended to provide food hub leadership and staff with knowledge and tools to develop a successful strategy for expanding operations and increasing sales growth. The broad USDA definition of food hub encompasses a great diversity of organizations, including non-profit organizations and for-profit enterprises, ranging in scale from single-producer Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) models to regional distribution networks of producers and buyers, with a variety of missions. Including the many types of organizations under one umbrella is useful because it allows diverse organizations to participate in a greater movement to develop resilient regional food systems. This guide documents lessons learned from the food hub literature and experience gathered in key informant interviews with management staff at selected food hubs in New England. These lessons will help food hub leaders weigh their options and develop their own marketing strategies for scaling up.
