The Agriculture of the Middle initiative seeks to renew small and mid-sized farming and ranching through innovative market relationships.
The Agriculture of the Middle initiative supports research, education and policy strategies that keep farmers and ranchers on the land. The initiative is supported as a Multistate Research Project through USDA. It brings together practitioners, researchers and activists to explore questions that arise in our efforts to transform agriculture and our food systems.
Agriculture of the Middle projects create strategic alliances among farmers, processors, distributors and retailers to reach consumers who care about the impacts of their food purchases.
Highlights
October 2024: Working group leadership was passed to Analena Bruce, University of New Hampshire. Patrick Bauer, University of Rhode Island, is our in-coming chair (2026), and out-going chair is Michelle Miller, University of Wisconsin (2024).
June 2025: Virginia Tech and Virginia Extension hosted a webinar on the current status of Agriculture of the Middle. The 1.5 hour webinar was developed for Extension and other agricultural and food system professionals, with a special emphasis on Virginia. 106 people participated. Presentation slides are available for download.
July 30-August 2: AOTM will be represented at the Rural Sociological Society meeting in Salt Lake City. Analena Bruce will present on market dynamics and farm viability; Florence Becot on socio-economic conditions for farm families; and Mary Hendrickson on contributions from the Missouri School on the Farm Crisis and consolidated markets. https://www.ruralsociology.org/annual-meeting-general
October 9-10, 2025: Our next national gathering in Minneapolis is planned for early October. Part of the meeting will include a remote option. Watch this space for updates.
What We Do
Research
Our research addresses economic, social, environmental, and policy topics related to a thriving Agriculture of the Middle… Read More
Education
We have created teaching materials on values based food supply chains for university-level courses and extension. Agriculture… Read More
Policy
Our research informs policy decisions that seek to ensure the viability of small and mid-scale farms and their values based supply chain partners. Starting… Read More