The Center for Integrated Agricultural Systems has been running intensive workshops for beginning farmers since 1995. Our schools, taught by experienced farmers, are packed with practical, how-to information, insights, inspiration, and a dose of the sometimes harsh realities involved in making a living from the land.

Would-be farmers can now learn about pasture-based production and business management without leaving home. The Wisconsin School for Beginning Dairy and Livestock Farmers (WSBDF), the first course of its kind, is now available online.

As older farmers retire, fewer young farmers are stepping in to take their place. The number of beginning farmers dropped 20 percent in the last five-year census period, and the average US farmer now tops 58 years of age.

Directors and educators with the Wisconsin School for Beginning Dairy and Livestock Farmers (WSBDF) at the University of Wisconsin-Madison share advice and principles for starting and operating a successful farm business.

This handbook will help mentors develop their teaching skills as they progress through their first—or perhaps fortieth—internship.

For a wide variety of economic, environmental and social reasons, it makes good sense to regard the practice of managed grazing as an effective system for strengthening dairy and livestock farming in Wisconsin. The UW-Madison Center for Integrated Agricultural Systems (CIAS) partnered with GrassWorks, Inc. to develop a statewide, participatory discussion about managed grazing that they called “Blue Sky Greener Pastures” (BSGP).

The UW-Madison”s School for Beginning Dairy and Livestock Farmers has received its biggest contribution ever—a gift of $50,000 pledged by FCS Financial Services, a farmer-owned […]

When it comes to household income, farming background, age, and technology use, dairy farmers who use managed grazing aren”t all that different from farmers who […]

Despite volatile milk prices, hundreds of new farmers get started in dairying each year. Compared to other types of livestock farming, dairying can provide a higher income per animal, monthly paychecks, and, in many areas, more markets.

New dairy farmers often face high start-up costs for land, equipment and facilities. Volatile milk prices, long hours and hard work reduce the appeal of […]