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FARMS Vision and Mission
Rural poverty accounts for 70% of the world’s poor. This gigantic segment of the world's
population consists primarily of families with small farms who, regardless of the country,
face almost insurmountable systemic obstacles. The very low prices that small farmers
receive are decoupled from market forces and create a perpetual circle of low incentives
and few resources to invest in intensive production methods. Agriculture is also a high-risk
business. It is dependent on factors such as weather and impacted by pests, which can reduce
yields and destroy crops.
The vision and mission of FARMS® is to leverage the forces of today's agri-business markets
to enable the small farmers to participate in the value chain. It seeks to create an environment
for all stake holders to benefit from creative partnership arrangements. Small farmers are
part of the market mix and gain access to regional markets, reduce their risk, and increase their
profitability.
Farmers Access to Regional Markets (FARMS®) is an agricultural supply chain model developed by the
Rural Development Center (RDC) at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES). It addresses
universal problems facing small farmers around the world and leverages market forces to not only
address these problems but also create a sustainable economic engine that encourages investment and
drives growth. For well over a decade, the RDC at UMES has been developing partnerships with the
public and private sectors to identify and connect these components.
Learn more about the FARMS model
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