The Growing Growers Training Program: An Apprenticeship Program for Market Gardeners Serving Kansas City

Edward Carey, Katherine Kelly, Mary Hendrickson, Dan Nagengast, James Quinn, Craig Volland, and Lala Kumar

Abstract
The Growing Growers Training Program facilitates on-farm apprenticeships complemented by workshops on critical skills to train new growers and improve the skills of existing growers to meet large demand for local and organically grown produce in the Kansas City metropolitan area.

The program is a collaborative effort of Kansas State University, University of Missouri Extension, the Kansas City Food Circle, and the Kansas Rural Center, and was established in response to requests by area organic growers for a training program to increase numbers of local organic producers.

In Fall 2003, we developed the components of the program, including a curriculum designed to help apprentices gain a set of core competencies through practical and theoretical training activities, including one-on-one training by host farmers, readings, workshops and farm tours. During the 2004 growing season 11 apprentices worked part time or volunteered on eight host farms, and participated in a series of 11 workshops and farm tours. Based on self-assessment, apprentices felt they gained considerable skill in most of the core competencies. Both apprentices and host farmers expressed high satisfaction with the program.

At the start of the 2005 season, demand for the program increased, with 25 apprentices with diverse backgrounds placed on 12 host farms. Workshop participation was not restricted to apprentices, and over 200 trainees paid to attend workshops during 2004, helping to generate funds to cover program costs. It is still early to judge program success, but eight of 11 of the 2004 apprentices were engaged in full- or part-time market gardening in 2005.

Source
Hort Technology (2006) Vol. 16, No. 3


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Posted May 2007