Young Agrarians is celebrating the eighth year of the Business Mentorship Network (BMN) program. The BMN offers business mentorships to a diverse array of new and young farmers across BC. Through one-on-one mentorship and peer networks, young farmers develop the skills necessary to operate ecologically sustainable and financially viable farm businesses.
The 2022 Mentee Cohort have been working and planning with the support of their Mentors and we are thrilled to profile them and wish them lots of success for the year ahead!
Watch out for applications to open again in fall of 2022!
Please tell us your full name(s), your farm name and who your Mentor is (are).
My name is Christine Kempter and my farm is Dixon Creek Farm. My mentor is Jordan Marr.
Where do you farm? Please include the traditional territory acknowledgement if you know it.
We farm in Louis Creek BC on the traditional, ancestral, unceded shared territory of the Secwepemc Nation.
What do you farm?
We are a mixed vegetable market garden farm.
What inspired you to get into farming?
I grew up on a beef farm, which is awesome but I am more of a plant lover than an animal lover (unpopular opinion, I know). I come from a long line of farmers and my family really inspired me to start farming and make a living out of it. As a kid, farming wasn’t my first career choice but as I got older I realized just how important the farm lifestyle is to me and that there were so many other options for a farming career than just beef farming. I’ve always loved working with the land and growing things, and moving back to the farm to start my business has been so incredibly rewarding!
What did you do to learn how to farm?
A lot of my knowledge on farming is generational knowledge, my parents and grandparents have shared so much information with me growing up and to this day. I’m also working towards my degree in Horticulture slowly over the winter months when I have more time, which has really given me another perspective on business as well as plant care. I also had the amazing opportunity to join the Young Agrarians Mentorship Program, and although this time of year has become very busy for me, the information I’ve learned from my mentor has been so valuable. Of course, experience has always been the best teacher even though it sometimes teaches some tough lessons. As a new business and a young farmer, I’m constantly learning and every year on my farm has been better than the last. I also take time for new online courses and reading new books as I think self-teaching is such an important aspect of education, recently I’ve started a farm course with Michael Kilpatrik, which I’ve found to have a ton of really useful, practical information.
What types of ecological farm practices do you use?
Though we are not yet certified organic, this is the direction I am working towards in the future. I don’t spray my crops with any herbicides or pesticides, use only natural and organic sources of fertilizer, and although I’m still learning about no-till farming, I do practice minimal tillage and tarping where possible. It’s a work in progress and every year we are making strides towards being more ecologically friendly. This year, I have switched all my packaging to 100% compostable packaging through a Canadian company, which I am really excited about. We are also low-emissions, and use mostly hand tools to grow our products. I find it’s certainly more work than traditional farming but the work is so much more rewarding and our customer base has been so supportive.
What type of business structure is your farm?
I am a sole proprietorship, but work closely with my partner and parents.
How much land is under production on your farm?
We have roughly two acres in production, as well as two greenhouses, a small orchard, and a herb garden.
What is your land tenure? Are there special relationships that enabled this (family, BCLMP)?
We are farming on my parents farm.
Why did you apply for business mentorship?
I applied for this mentorship because I believe that learning from someone with life experience is the most valuable form of education you can get. Often, they have already made mistakes similar to the ones you’re going to make, and have learned from them enough to be able to tell you how to avoid them.
What is the greatest business challenge you face as a new farmer? What is your primary business goal for the season?
The greatest challenge I face as a new farmer are the high capital costs that come with farming, and the fact that it can be very unpredictable. I love farming, but it can be hard to deal with the fact that you can’t control the weather, and no matter how much hard work you do to protect your crops losses still happen. My primary goal for this season is to make enough so that my partner and I can both live off the farm without having to go work for someone else. I would also like to be able to expand our box program and provide more families with natural, local food!
What business tools could you not live without?
Google sheets and my greenhouses!
If you had a farming robot what would it be?
A robot to help with weeding 😉
How can we find out more about you, your farm, and its products? (website, FB, insta, twitter handles)
Check us out on facebook and instagram at dixoncreekfarm and our website at dixoncreekfarm.ca!
This program is made possible with the generous funding support of Vancity and Columbia Basin Trust.