For Farmers
Grants and Funding Opportunities
CT Small Business Boost Fund
The Connecticut Small Business Boost Fund gives small business owners access to flexible funding for capital expenditures and working capital and connects them with support…
Farm Recovery and Support Block Grant
Recovering and Rebuilding Connecticut Agriculture The Connecticut Department of Agriculture (CT DoAg), through funding provided by the USDA, is administering the Connecticut Farm Recovery &…
Conservation Stewardship Program (CSP)
Whether you are looking to improve grazing conditions, increase crop resiliency, or develop wildlife habitat, we can custom design a CSP plan to help you…
Organic Certification Cost Share Program (OCCSP)
The Organic Certification Cost Share Program (OCCSP) provides cost share assistance to producers and handlers of agricultural products who are obtaining or renewing their certification…
AMP Industrial Hemp CT
1 Freedom 4 All has announced the launch of the AMP Industrial Hemp CT program, funded by the National Association of Conservation Districts. This generational award…
Getting Organic Certification
A Certified Organic Farm is in compliance with the National Organic Program (NOP) standards, and has been inspected and certified by an accredited USDA certifying agent. Products have been grown/raised without the use of synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, growth hormones, irradiation, or genetic engineering. The certification process is rigorous and requires extensive record-keeping, payment of an annual fee, and an annual inspection. Note: The NOP allows farmers who sell less than $5,000 worth of organic produce per year to call their produce “organic” if they follow the national standards. Yet, this produce is not certified organic.
Without an organic label, it can be hard for shoppers to know how the farm has produced the food thier plates. For this and many other reasons, CT NOFA recommends you become a certified organic operation. For example, you would then be counted among the nation’s farmers who are leading the way to organic – the most ecologically-sound farming paradigm. Also, the organic certification process and your farm’s certifiers often share useful new business practices, too. It is easier than you think!
Online Resources
CT NOFA Winter Conference Recordings and Materials
CT NOFA makes all recorded materials from our recent winter conferences available to the public three months after the conclusion of that year's conference. (Registered attendees have exclusive access for the first three months.) Resources include recorded workshops, keynote addresses, and more.
Organic Record Keeping Checklists
The following materials were made possible thanks to the USDA Transition to Organic Partnership Program.
Whether you're already certified organic and need to prepare for recertification or are interested in becoming certified organic and want to know what information certifiers will be looking for, these recordkeeping checklists can help demystify the certification process.
These materials were made possible thanks to the USDA Transition to Organic Partnership Program.
Click on any of the checklist dropdowns to access a full-size version. You may also click the links, below, to access print-ready versions.
2027 Organic Livestock Record Keeping Calendar
Records are an integral part of organic certification and inspection. Farmers who work with livestock - poultry, dairy animals, meat animals, or fiber animals - can use this 2027 calendar as a record keeping tool to track feed and supplements, healthcare administrations, field applications, and other data that is critical to USDA organic certification processes. Click below to download and print at home or order a printed copy through Canva.
This calendar was produced for the USDA Transition to Organic Partnership Program.
Analyzing and Interpreting Soil Tests
Dr. Joseph Amsili, Director of the Cornell Soil Health Program, joins us to discuss soil health and soil testing interpretation, discussing what information you’ll find in laboratory soil testing results and what it means. Also included are three real soil tests from New England farms, which Dr. Amsili explains and answers questions about. This webinar was produced for the USDA Transition to Organic Partnership Program by three chapters of the Northeast Organic Farming Association: NOFA Vermont, NOFA New Hampshire, and NOFA Connecticut.
Compost Tea Tutorial for Farmers and Gardeners
Compost tea, an excellent organic fertilizer and soil biology builder, is easy to make and can provide significant benefits to both home gardens and commercial agricultural operations. In this video, CT NOFA’s Soil Health Program Manager, Monique Bosch, is joined by Justin Hawrysh, Livestock Manager at The Hickories in Ridgefield, CT, to discuss compost tea: the science behind it, how it benefits plants and soil, and both small and large scale production models. This video was produced as part of the USDA’s Transition to Organic Partnership Program (TOPP).
Farmer Roundtables
Provided courtesy of the New Connecticut Farmer Alliance
Cover Cropping on Small Farms
Greenhouse Tomato Growing
Scaling Up the Small Farm
Additional Resources
Organic Farming Research Foundation
The Organic Farming Research Foundation provides a centralized collection of technical tools, guides, and research resources designed to support organic and transitioning farmers across the U.S. Inside the Hub, you’ll find:
- Research summaries
- Factsheets and guidebooks
- Webinars and videos
- Tools curated from the nation’s top organic institutions and organizations
Organic Producer Resources from MOFGA
MOFGA (the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association) offers a variety of free educational resources, covering topics such as:
- Becoming MOFGA Certified Organic – Producer Toolkit Brochure
- MOFGA’s Farmer Programs
- Organic Certification Video Series
- Accredited Certifiers Association (ACA)
- MOFGA Pest Report
- Record Keeping Example Forms
- ATTRA Organic Farming Resources and Library
USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS)
Provides cost share for farm improvements, including deer fencing, wells, compost pads, forestry practices and more.
- Soil health, conservation planning, & cover crop resources – use the Soil Health portal
- Talk with NRCS staff in Connecticut – visit the local NRCS office website
Cornell University Farming Resources (NY)
- Cornell Guides & Resources for NY Farmers
- On-Farm Poultry Slaughter Guidelines
- Cornell’s buckwheat and beneficial insects to control Colorado Potato Beetles study
- Cornell’s Northeast Beginning Farmers Project
Urban Farm Business Plan Handbook
from Partnership for Sustainable Communities
Livestock Farming Resource Directory
A livestock farming resource network focused on the Berkshire-Taconic region.
- Meat processors
- Feed sources
- Livestock healthcare providers
- Grants
Solid Ground Farmer Trainings (UCONN)
UCONN's Solid Ground program offers free consultations (covering vegetable production, soil health, fruit production, urban farming, and more), farmer trainings and webinars (including their 'Stress & Solutions' series), online tutorials, and more.
CSA Toolkit for Connecticut Farmers
Getting Started; Pricing; Best Practices; customers; annual prices for CSA shares in CT.
NOFA-NY’s Breeding Organic Vegetables
A Step by Step Guide for Growers. A link to the view a PDF file can be found here.
Finding Land To Get Started Farming!
- New England Farmland Finder
- Connecticut FarmLink
- New England Landlink
- Carrot Project: facilitates access to financing and business support small farm and food businesses
Internship/apprenticeship resources
Leasing From Land Trusts To Farm Upon
- Farmland conneCTions – A Guide for Connecticut Towns, Institutions and Land Trusts Using or Leasing Farmland
- Equity Trust: local land trusts and others to preserve the affordability of farms for farmers
Rodale Institute Webinars
Webinars from Rodale Institute give you firsthand access to their staff and research, no matter where you’re located. Visit their website to view and register for upcoming broadcasts. You can also navigate to an archive of their previous webinars to watch at your convenience.
New Farmer Bucket List (UCONN)
Key Resources for New and Beginning Farmers in Connecticut. Collaboratively compiled by CT’s top agriculture service providers.
Local Poultry Resources
- My Pet Chicken – coops, supplies, and more online (CT company)
- Clark Farm in (Higganum, CT) – custom coops and chicks/pullets
- Margitas Poultry (Wallingford, CT) – custom coops and chicks
Sustainable Agriculture Research & Education (SARE)
Grants and Education to Advance Innovations in Sustainable Agriculture
Grants, Funding & Training
National Center for Home Food Preservation
source for current research-based recommendations for most methods of home food preservation.
Agritourism
Cultivating Tourists on the Farm
The Guide to Organic Handling and Processing
OrganicHandlers.org provides practical education for organic and transitioning handlers and processors. Find trusted information to expand your knowledge around critical topics in organic such as inspections, supplier management, and day-to-day compliance — all in one place.