Greater Sydney Local Land Services (GSLLS) has launched a series of online resources to support small farmers during self-isolation.
The Big Shift for Small Farms podcast and From the Ground Up – marketing fundamentals video series include a broad range of expert advice and information for growers and producers running a variety of business from industry experts and their farming peers.
GSLLS manager Vanessa Keyzer says the resources formed part of a major project designed to help the growing number of small scale farmers in the Sydney basin, including outer South West Sydney, the Macarthur region and Southern Highlands.
“It’s a trend we have been seeing for years now – as the population grows along with the urban sprawl a range of smaller scale producers have emerged in many forms from direct to market vegetable growers to mobile butchers with abattoirs on wheels,” she said.
“This is a tough time for our agricultural industry which has experienced severe drought, fires and floods.
“We want to do everything we can to ensure our farmers feel supported and still have access to expert advice, information and assistance.”
The Big Shift for Small Farms podcast is 10 part series produced by the Grow Love Project, dedicated to helping small scale farmers and covering a range of topics from soil health to mental health and everything in between.
“Each episode features a variety of farmers and industry experts with direct experience and real life stories on the topic in question,” Ms Keyzer said.
The marketing video series features expert tips and technical, practical advice on the fundamentals of marketing and how to develop your own marketing plan.
“This was originally run as an interactive two day workshop which we’ve now packaged up into a three part video series and workbook which farmers can access at their leisure,” she said.
Ms Keyzer encouraged anyone interested in improving their smaller scale farming business, or those interested in starting one to take advantage of these new tools.
“You not only get direct access to a marketing expert, but you get to hear from farmers and key agricultural players across the state about their experiences and what they’ve learnt along the way,” she said.
Download the podcast from your usual provider, or visit https://anchor.fm/the-big-shift and follow this link to view the video series.
This project has been developed by GSLLS through funding from the Australian Government’s National Landcare Program.
