The New Farmer Development Project (NFDP) identifies, educates, and supports immigrants with agricultural experience by helping them become local farmers and establish small farms in the region.

By training the next generation of regional farmers, the NFDP helps preserve local farmland and rural farm communities, strengthen farmers markets and regional food security, and expand public access to high-quality, locally-grown farm products.

The NFDP was created in 2000 as a partnership between Greenmarket and Cornell Cooperative Extension's NYC Program. The project is based in New York City and supports new farmers witin the city, New York's Hudson Valley & Catskill Regions, New Jersey and northeastern Pennsylvania.

Project Facts and Milestones:

• More than 130 project members have graduated from the NFDP's comprehensive agricultural training course, La Nueva Siembra.
• 16 individuals and their families have started their own farming businesses with the support of the NFDP. These farmers come from countries such as Columbia, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador and Mexico.
• These new farmers sell produce at more than 40 farmers markets throughout the year. Many of these markets are located in immigrant neighborhoods where NFDP farmers sell vegetables, flowers, traditional ethnic produce, eggs from pastured chickens, and honey to members of their community.
• The NFDP has further developed its model through partnership with the National Immigrant Farming Initiative and the Northeast Network of Immigrant Farming Projects.  See our Project Partners for more information.