Harcourt Organic Farming Co-op is recruiting new farmers and enterprises.
The co-op is a collaboration of diverse organic and regenerative farmers who lease land on a single farm in Harcourt.
Katie and Hugh Finlay own the farm and began the co-op to diversify the farming on their land and give young farmers an entry point to farming.
One of those young farmers is Tess Sellar who has been running the dairy at the co-op for the past six years.
“I’d been putting money away for a long time with the plan to either start my business or buy a farm, knowing I couldn’t afford both,” Tess said.
“Having the opportunity to start at the co-op meant I could test out the business model first. Little did I know that the most valuable part of being in the co-op was farming alongside others. Having others around to celebrate when you have a win and an ear to listen when some cold hard farming realities happen.”
The co-op model presents opportunities for farmers to access land, existing strong sales channels and shared infrastructure, and offers a great opportunity for new farmers or those without land.
They are currently recruiting for people wanting to run enterprises in horticulture, orcharding, grazing, and business-in-place.
There are a range of prospectus documents available on the Harcourt Organic Farming Co-op website with more details for each opportunity available via: hofcoop.com.au/join-our-co-op
The co-op is holding two webinars for those interested in the model, and in joining the co-op.
On Thursday June 6, 7pm to 8pm, the co-op will be sharing the outcomes of a two-year project undertaken to document the co-op’s successes and lessons learned, and to understand small farm viability. There will be a short film about their work and some behind the scenes info from the co-op and its enterprises.
For those interested in joining the co-op there is a more hands-on session on Tuesday June 11, 7pm to 8pm.
For details, or to register, visit: hofcoop.com.au/join-our-co-op
