Affordable Farmland Through the Vermont Land Trust

Our Farmland Access Program helps farmers gain access to land they can afford. We use a variety of approaches to help farmers, including:

buying conservation easements on farms, which offsets the cost and makes land more affordable to a new farmer
connecting farmers to available conserved farms
buying farmland and temporarily leasing it to a farmer while we help them move into ownership.
using our skills in farm transitions to help owners of previously conserved farms find a new farmer to buy the land, while also working with the new farmer on affordably options.

We work one-on-one with farmers to help them achieve their goals. In the past 15 years, we helped more than 100 farmers buy their first farm or expand a growing operation.

Who does this work at VLT?

People from across the organization work on Our Farmland Access Program, from our field-based staff to our legal staff. We also work with partners such as the Vermont Housing & Conservation Board Farm and Forest Viability Program, Intervale Center, NOFA-VT, and others.

Who can access our services?

Our services are available to farmers who meet the following criteria

At least three years of farming experience, ideally in a management position on a farm or as a business owner
The desire to have a commercial farm business
A focus on the production of food, medicine, and fiber on at least 20 acres of land.

How Can I Get Started?

Please sign-up to join our Farmland Access email list. This is how we share new opportunities.

If you have a specific property in mind that you would like to discuss, please reach out to Maggie Donin, Farmland Access Program Director at maggie@vlt.org