Established in 2013, North Leupp Family Farms (NLFF) is a 501c (3) non-profit organization on the Navajo Reservation with a mission to develop and present comprehensive solutions to address deficiencies in community food system, encourage healthy lifestyles, and improve food security through partnerships with local food producers, schools, and business entities. As a small farmers’ cooperative, NLFF is cultivated by over thirty (30) farmer families. NLFF provides continued traditional food education, field trips, and demonstrations to local communities. Currently, the Farm provides fresh produce and farm products to local schools, hospitals, and elder centers.
This grant will be used to obtain technical/business assistance and the creation of infrastructure at the farm for effective business support.
The program is also open to all Federally Recognized Tribe in Arizona (Arizona has 22 Federally Recognized Tribes)
The Overarching Goal of this proposed program is to expand a successful program of technical assistance to Dine’ and other Native American farmers and ranchers focused on Western Navajo Nation
To achieve the overarching goal, this program intends to address the following objectives/purposes in the Navajo Nation as well as other tribal communities in Arizona:
Objective 1: Agricultural training and outreach to native producers. Tours and workshops will allow for producers to ask questions, learn about sustainable farm/ranch strategies, and build support networks with other Native producers.
Objective 2: Support native agricultural business start-up and expansion. This includes technical assistance for installing a meeting/office space and Mobile Market to host informational sessions, access word processing and budgeting software, as well as online banking, training, loans, and other opportunities central to business growth.
Objective 3: Assistance to agricultural groups in business planning and access to capital. The project team will provide business and technical assistance such as feasibility studies, business planning, and technical support for grant and loan applications.
Objective 4: Project management and reporting. The project team will provide all of the support listed above. We will also facilitate and provide all required federal reports to ensure all grant requirements are met for our constituents.
