Tips For Volunteering On An Organic Farm

Discover > Farm to Table Eating in Texas > Tips For Volunteering On An Organic Farm

There are many ways to help small organic farms in Texas. The most common is to simply purchase the produce they create. However, there are other more involved ways you can help out and the best of these is to try and volunteer on a farm for a while.

There are countless benefits of doing so. First and foremost it’s a great way to spend time outdoors and to live a healthy lifestyle. Secondly, that’s the best way to get an appreciation of how difficult it is to produce eco-friendly food.

Values

The first things to decide on are the values that you want from the farms you’re working on. The farm you’re looking for should be organic and sustainable in how it grows its produce. You should also inquire about how much machinery is used and what machines in particular.

You’ll also take an interested look in how the organic farm treats its employees and what kind of community it creates and produces.  It should be a place you want to work with and that will appreciate and you and treat you fairly even when they don’t pay you.

Local Frame Of Mind

Start by looking for these values in your local farms. There are many reasons to start that way. Firstly, you won’t get paid for your work and there are expenses for traveling to work or moving for it. This way you don’t spend too much while you’re not earning.

Secondly, local farms are very much rooted in the community as a whole. That way you, by working with a local organic farm you’re setting down roots in the community and there are ways for you to expand on these relationships in the years to come.

Scope Of The Work

It’s also important to clearly define what your scope of the work on the farm is. That way you’ll know what’s expected of you and can you actually do the work you’ve signed up for. That’s something to agree on before you start the job.

At the same time, it’s up to you look for the farm that will allow you to work on a lot of different tasks related to small farms. The tasks should range from growing the produce to marketing and selling the produce. That way you’ll get to know the job from inside in.

Making A Commitment

Once you’ve decided to volunteer in a organic farm, you’ll need to make sure that you stick to that commitment. First of all, the farm owner will depend on you and you need to have in mind that you’re a part of a bigger production. Second of all, sticking to your obligations is important for your character as well.

This doesn’t mean you need to do anything that will jeopardize your health. Volunteering isn’t a job and you should have an easier way out. When you’re ready to stop because you feel volunteering isn’t right for you anymore – you should notify your employer.

Ask Questions

Even when your role on the farm is decided and you have agreed to work on a particular and defined task, you should use your volunteering job to learn as much as you can about the farm and how it works from the business point of view. The best way to do so is to ask questions.

It’s something that should be decided on a personal level. If you’re working with a farm owner that you like and that you can talk to, don’t hesitate to use this opportunity to learn and grow.

Promote

It’s also useful to promote your volunteering experience. This is best done by documenting it. It’s rather easy to do so in this day and age of social media. Firstly, you’ll need to agree with the owner that it’s something that you’re allowed to do. This doesn’t mean you need to set up an elaborate production about your time on the farm but simply tracking your day to day activities could mean a lot.

This will raise awareness about the existence and importance of local, eco-friendly gardens and farms and that’s the best way to get more customers and more volunteers.

Conclusion

One of the best things you can do for your local healthy food supply is to volunteer on organic farm. That will give you an insight into how the farm works and make you appreciate the work that goes into healthy and sustainable food.

Make sure it’s a farm that suits you standard in terms of produce and the work you can do on it and use the time to learn about every part of the farming process. It will also help to document and promote your work there so that you can attract others to do so.