Diversified Vegetable Apprenticeship is registered with the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry. It pairs beginning farmers with established mentor farmers to provide a guided pathway toward managing or starting a vegetable farm. The program operates in Pennsylvania and surrounding areas.
This apprenticeship benefits both beginning and experienced growers: Apprentices acquire the skills they need to manage or start their own vegetable farm, while host farmers gain a committed employee invested in farming as a career.
Learn all about Diversified Vegetable Apprenticeship by watching this webinar recording >>
Apprentices receive 2,700+ hours of on-the-job training and 200+ hours of related technical coursework over 18 months
Host farmers gain access to a pool of pre-qualified employees who want to farm as a career
Host farmers compensate apprentices with scheduled wage increases as they advance their skills
Apprentices receive:
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Mentor farmers receive:
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To ensure Diversified Vegetable Apprenticeship both comprehensively trains apprentices and satisfies host farmers' employment needs, we worked with beginning and seasoned farmers representing 19 of our member farms to build the 18-month curriculum from the ground up through an expert-facilitated instructional design process.
Host farmers train apprentices in 15 core competencies that vegetable farmers need to operate a successful farm business:
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Each star icon indicates the location of a farm with an approved host farmer who is either currently seeking an apprentice or has an active apprentice on their farm.
Don’t see a farm near where you’d like to apprentice? We encourage you to ask a farmer you’d like to apprentice with to consider applying to become a host farmer, and explain why you’d like to apprentice with them and on their farm, specifically. If you and the host farmer you’ve recruited both apply to the program and are approved, you will be matched directly with one another.
