Black Yard Farm 2022 community support

Hello everyone!

We have about a year and a half of operation under our belt. Last year was one of many challenging ups and downs but most importantly it was a year of learning priceless lessons. Our business became destabilized due to a decision made by the property owners in Sloansville NY, to remove our access to the only housing on the land. With luck, prayer and support of our ancestors and higher beings, The Black Yard Farm Collective was able to gain access to a lease on a property in Washington county NY.

Moving can be stressful and hard in general but moving a farm business and starting over has proven to be even more challenging and stressful. We are having to build new relationships with folks and find new channels to market our products in order to be profitable. We also are reinvesting in startup costs like prepping areas for growing annual vegetables, building out deer fencing and putting up a greenhouse. It’s extremely frustrating because we already invested in these costs on the other land and were taken advantage of. It feels like we are working 3x harder than we should, making up for all the time, money, sweat and positive energy that was invested and lost on  the previous land.
We just want to Farm and it feels like we have yet to have the opportunity to try and do that fully without having to face extreme adversity.
It’s already challenging going into these mostly white spaces as black people, and having to deal with the racism and discomfort that inevitably comes along with that. We would just like to be able to finally be in a situation where we can give our all to try and establish a successful farm business while creating safe space for other black people and folks of color to learn and exist.

Since relocating we were able to accomplish a lot  including 

• Successfully moving our operation on short notice and still growing enough produce to supply some wholesale orders, a farmers market, and a soup kitchen in the Bronx with no greenhouse or irrigation setup 
• Expanding our flock of sheep and herd of goats with our first round of successful lambing and kidding in the midst of moving 
•  Connecting with two supportive landowners who are in alignment with our mission and actively work to build relationships with us as well as providing us secure land access and a clear pathway to land ownership
• Keeping all of our enterprises going which include sheep for wool and meat, goats for meat and agro-tourism,annual vegetables and cut flowers.

We envision transitioning The Black Yard Farm collective into a producer cooperative where we will be able to partner with other small agriculture related businesses to build community and market our goods under one umbrella while creating and sharing in ownership of land and resources that support each of us.

We are incredibly grateful to everyone following our journey and supporting us monetarily and/or in spirit. It will relieve a significant amount of stress and insecurity if we are able to raise these funds to continue to do this very necessary work. Completing this goal will help secure us and allow us to continue to build and grow in a way that honors our bodies, spirits and the creation of Safe inclusive spaces for black people, folks of color and any and everyone who is in support of folks being able to exist in nature and one another in symbiotic ways.