Young Agrarians is celebrating the tenth year of the Business Mentorship Network (BMN) program in BC and the second year of the program in the Prairies! If you are a new farmer or the next generation to take on your family farm and need support to figure out the business aspects of your farm consider applying for the 2024/2025 cohort. The BMN offers business mentorships to a diverse array of new and young farmers/ranchers/producers. Through one-on-one mentorship, peer networks and online workshops new farmers develop the skills necessary to operate ecologically sustainable and financially viable farm businesses.
Apply for the 2024/2025 program here – applications processed in October .
Check out the Business Mentorship Network page for more information!
Over the next few weeks we will introduce you to each of the new farmers in the 2024 cohort to hear about the arc of their farming journey, what their hopes are for the season ahead and what inspired them to reach out for business mentorship. To access more of these stories head over to our blog here.
Young Agrarians acknowledges funding support provided by the Government of Canada through Prairies Economic Development Canada (PrairiesCan). In Alberta, the Business Mentorship Network is funded in part by the Government of Alberta.
Meet a Mentee: Hogs and Horns Homestead
We are Hogs and Horns Homestead, owned and operated by Jen (she/her) and partner Monica (she/her). Jerry Kitts are mentoring us from First Nature Farms.
Who We Are
Hogs and Horns Homestead is a family-run, women-powered Canadian homestead in Central Alberta, one hour straight east of Edmonton. Jen is a flight medic and farmer. Monica is a farmer 24-7. Us ladies run every aspect of the farm and, in addition, strive to preserve heritage breeds that are critically endangered. In doing so, we love that we can offer a window into our everyday passion for preserving endangered livestock. Our farming adventure started with a love for animals and a passion for raising our meat. During this process, we learned how close to extinction many heritage farming breeds are. We are working hard to increase numbers through ethical breeding and bloodline tracking while promoting awareness. Moving closer, one step at a time, to help save these unique breeds.
Our Values
How our animals are raised is very important to us. We believe that though they may be destined to feed us, all animals should be respected regardless of how short their lives may be. These animals should be given the best life possible, regardless of how short their lives may be.
How We Got Here
Neither one of us comes from a farming background and has been learning how to farm as we go. We have made many mistakes along the way, but each failure and success has taught us valuable lessons. We have also leaned on the knowledge of others that have started before us. When we first started, we enjoyed watching “Homesteady,” “Little Mountain Ranch,” and “Justin Rhodes” on YouTube. For the basics of livestock keeping, we have used the “Story’s Guide to Raising Sheep.”
Our farm is run as a partnership. We purchased our land along with our house. We bought our land and house personally before starting our farm business. My off-farm job, personal lines of credit and some personal loans have funded our start-up.
What We’re Doing
We are working hard to increase our regenerative practices. I have found this part quite challenging to learn as we dance the fine line of producing the livestock without overstocking our small parcel of land. We hope one day to be able to increase our available land to increase our rotational grazing practices and improve our regenerative practices. This season, we will be starting a cover-crop program in our paddocks and planting just over a hundred trees with hopes of decreasing water usage of the animals and increasing root structure in the soil.
We applied to the YA Business Mentorship Program in hopes that we could get our business practices improved. We have struggled with having the input costs so high that our end price is too high for the average customer, and we hope to bring these closer together by increasing efficiency and finding, reviewing and fixing weak points in the farm business. We have found it difficult to balance the extremely high startup and input costs while keeping the price low enough to be competitive. Our primary goals in 2024 are to streamline our herds, increase efficiency and find a balance between farm and personal life. We use the Farmbrite app to track every aspect of our farm, from the number of animals, which pens they live in, their health status, tasks, and financial records.
How You Can Find Us
We can be found on Facebook, Instagram, Threads, and Pinterest @hogsandhornshomestead and our Website hogsandhornshomestead.ca