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57 <br />1 County. Offer workshops on conservation programs and forestry that can <br />2 supplement revenue to existing operations, particularly for large landowners. <br />3 <br />4 3. Encourage new farmers. <br />5 a) Expand existing programs that teach farming, such as the PLANT incubator at the <br />6 Breeze Farm. <br />7 b) Continue and expand existing programs for farmers through Cooperative Extension <br />8 and the Soil and Water Conservation District. <br />9 c) Begin a dialogue with successful farmers regarding a future apprentice program. <br />10 d) Create a linkage with the Latino community, through entities such as EI Centro <br />11 Latino, to engage those interested in pursuing agrarian efforts consistent with their <br />12 heritage. <br />13 <br />14 4. Improve community awareness of farming and the relationship between local farms and <br />15 food security. <br />16 a) Promote the pursuit of farming as an honored occupation. <br />17 <br />18 5. Begin the dialogue with local officials to ensure that future schools are designed and <br />19 built with commercial kitchens capable of cooking food from scratch. <br />20 a) Ask local governments to start buying locally grown and produced products for <br />21 government functions where food is provided. <br />22 <br />23 <br />24 B. Second Year Action Steps <br />25 1. Decrease impediments to profitable farm ventures <br />26 a) Pursue new measures for additional tax relief (some of which may require special <br />27 legislation). <br />28 b) Expand on conversations between Orange County and the municipalities regarding <br />29 the future of local farming. Develop a mediation or ombudsman program to <br />30 evaluate the unintended consequences of zoning changes and annexation to existing <br />31 farmers. Consider adopting memorandums of understanding to support agricultural <br />32 programs. <br />33 <br />34 2. Attract new agricultural operations to Orange County <br />35 a) Advertise for new agricultural operations. <br />36 b) Advertise for existing operations to relocate, or begin a new "branch" in Orange <br />37 County. <br />38 c) Consider sending an existing local farmer for training sessions to learn about a new <br />39 type of crop or production process. <br />40 <br />41 3. Encourage new farmers. <br />42 a) Develop a mentoring system to link successful farmers with new farmers. The <br />43 program does not have to include a formal apprentice component, although it can. <br />44 Rather it should provide the new farmer with an advisor. <br />45 b) Build on existing programs between 4-H and local FFA programs and commodity <br />46 organizations, and agricultural advisory boards. <br />47 <br />Draft 11/09/2Q09 Implementation Schedule 46 <br />