From Seed to Success: Turn Your Idea into an Actionable Plan
Do you need a business plan for your farm? Do you have an idea for a new venture, but aren't sure if it will work? This program is for you!
This course is designed for existing farm businesses or those planning to undertake a new farm business venture. Students will work with their farm's data, and the goal of the class is for participants to have a draft of a written business plan for a specific business venture. Because this is an on-line course, to participate you must have access to reliable internet and a computer.
During the course, you will learn to:
- Assess whether or not a business idea is a good fit for you.
- Develop a marketing strategy to make a profit
- Use financial tools to evaluate if your business has the potential to be profitable
This online course meets from January 7-March 4, 2025. All course content is available online so you can work on it at your own pace. There will be weekly webinars where you can meet other students and interact directly with the instructor on the content. These webinars will be recorded.
Questions? Contact Bonnie Nelsen at bjn2@cornell.edu, or 315-980-9926
Registration link under Event Details to the right.
Scroll down for details on all 9 sessions.
Event Details
Date
January 7, 2025
Time
3 - 4:30pm
Location
Webinar
Host
Bonnie Nelsen
3159809926
bjn2@cornell.edu
Event Registration
Session 1: The 30,000-foot view, what are you trying to accomplish? What resources do you have?
Unit 1: Introduction to Business Planning and the Business Plan (Liz Higgins)
Many farms struggle to write effective business plans because they haven't clearly articulated what they plan to do and how they plan to get there. In this unit we will help guide you through the process of choosing a viable path so you can move your business idea forward. An important part of this is project management - doing the work of figuring out how you will acquire and deploy resources to move your farm business venture forward.
At the end of this three-week unit, participants will be able to:
- Understand the importance of grounding a vision in reality
- Include time and resource availability into project planning and goal setting
- Develop a preliminary budget for their enterprise and use it to evaluate a project's viability
- Understand the difference between internal business planning and external business plans.
- Identify and use resources for writing a business plan.
Event Details
Date
January 14, 2025
Time
3 - 4:30pm
Location
Webinar
Host
Bonnie Nelsen
3159809926
bjn2@cornell.edu
Event Registration
Session 2: Introduction to Project Management
Unit 1: Introduction to Business Planning and the Business Plan (Liz Higgins)
Many farms struggle to write effective business plans because they haven't clearly articulated what they plan to do and how they plan to get there. In this unit we will help guide you through the process of choosing a viable path so you can move your business idea forward. An important part of this is project management - doing the work of figuring out how you will acquire and deploy resources to move your farm business venture forward.
At the end of this three-week unit, participants will be able to:
- Understand the importance of grounding a vision in reality
- Include time and resource availability into project planning and goal setting
- Develop a preliminary budget for their enterprise and use it to evaluate a project's viability
- Understand the difference between internal business planning and external business plans.
- Identify and use resources for writing a business plan.
Event Details
Date
January 21, 2025
Time
3 - 4:30pm
Location
Webinar
Host
Bonnie Nelsen
3159809926
bjn2@cornell.edu
Event Registration
Session 3: How Business Planning Becomes a Business Plan
Unit 1: Introduction to Business Planning and the Business Plan (Liz Higgins)
Many farms struggle to write effective business plans because they haven't clearly articulated what they plan to do and how they plan to get there. In this unit we will help guide you through the process of choosing a viable path so you can move your business idea forward. An important part of this is project management - doing the work of figuring out how you will acquire and deploy resources to move your farm business venture forward.
At the end of this three-week unit, participants will be able to:
- Understand the importance of grounding a vision in reality
- Include time and resource availability into project planning and goal setting
- Develop a preliminary budget for their enterprise and use it to evaluate a project's viability
- Understand the difference between internal business planning and external business plans.
- Identify and use resources for writing a business plan.
Event Details
Date
January 28, 2025
Time
3 - 4:30pm
Location
Webinar
Host
Bonnie Nelsen
3159809926
bjn2@cornell.edu
Event Registration
Session 4: Your Market and Your Competition
Unit 2: Developing a Marketing Plan for Your Farm (Bonnie Nelsen)
A well-designed marketing plan is an essential component every farm's overall business strategy and an important part of a business plan. A marketing plan helps farmers and ranchers identify target customers, understand the current market, build brand identity and awareness, and align your marketing activities with business goals. An effective marketing plan becomes a roadmap for gaining more customers and improving your farm's success.
At the end of this three-week unit, participants will be able to:
- Understand the importance of a good marketing plan
- List the key components of a marketing plan and its details
- Develop your own strategic marketing plan
- Align your marketing plan with your overall business plan
Event Details
Date
February 4, 2025
Time
TBA
Location
Webinar
Host
Bonnie Nelsen
3159809926
bjn2@cornell.edu
Event Registration
Session 5: Revenue and Product Mix to Achieve Your Goals
Unit 2: Developing a Marketing Plan for Your Farm (Bonnie Nelsen)
A well-designed marketing plan is an essential component every farm's overall business strategy and an important part of a business plan. A marketing plan helps farmers and ranchers identify target customers, understand the current market, build brand identity and awareness, and align your marketing activities with business goals. An effective marketing plan becomes a roadmap for gaining more customers and improving your farm's success.
At the end of this three-week unit, participants will be able to:
- Understand the importance of a good marketing plan
- List the key components of a marketing plan and its details
- Develop your own strategic marketing plan
- Align your marketing plan with your overall business plan
Event Details
Date
February 11, 2025
Time
3 - 4:30pm
Location
Webinar
Host
Bonnie Nelsen
3159809926
bjn2@cornell.edu
Event Registration
Session 6: Marketing Plan and Evaluation of Marketing Efforts
Unit 2: Developing a Marketing Plan for Your Farm (Bonnie Nelsen)
A well-designed marketing plan is an essential component every farm's overall business strategy and an important part of a business plan. A marketing plan helps farmers and ranchers identify target customers, understand the current market, build brand identity and awareness, and align your marketing activities with business goals. An effective marketing plan becomes a roadmap for gaining more customers and improving your farm's success.
At the end of this three-week unit, participants will be able to:
- Understand the importance of a good marketing plan
- List the key components of a marketing plan and its details
- Develop your own strategic marketing plan
- Align your marketing plan with your overall business plan
Event Details
Date
February 18, 2025
Time
3 - 4:30pm
Location
Webinar
Host
Bonnie Nelsen
3159809926
bjn2@cornell.edu
Event Registration
Session 7: The Basics of Financial Statements
Unit 3: Developing a Financial Plan for Your Farm Business (Steve Hadcock)
Your farm's financial information is a powerful tool to assess your performance, evaluate your enterprises and share information with investors and lenders as part of your business plan. Learn to use this tool more effectively and combine it with other data to make more informed business decisions.
At the end of this three-week unit, participants will be able to:
- prepare and read farm financial statements
- make financial projections and develop farm budgets
- use financial statements and other data to evaluate a farm enterprise
- project need for credit and make informed borrowing decisions
Event Details
Date
February 25, 2025
Time
3 - 4:30pm
Location
Webinar
Host
Bonnie Nelsen
3159809926
bjn2@cornell.edu
Event Registration
Session 8: Enhancing Confidence in Your Numbers
Unit 3: Developing a Financial Plan for Your Farm Business (Steve Hadcock)
Your farm's financial information is a powerful tool to assess your performance, evaluate your enterprises and share information with investors and lenders as part of your business plan. Learn to use this tool more effectively and combine it with other data to make more informed business decisions.
At the end of this three-week unit, participants will be able to:
- prepare and read farm financial statements
- make financial projections and develop farm budgets
- use financial statements and other data to evaluate a farm enterprise
- project need for credit and make informed borrowing decisions
Event Details
Date
March 4, 2025
Time
3 - 4:30pm
Location
Webinar
Host
Bonnie Nelsen
3159809926
bjn2@cornell.edu
Event Registration
Session 9: Using Financial Statements and Financial Information to Plan and Evaluate an Enterprise
Unit 3: Developing a Financial Plan for Your Farm Business (Steve Hadcock)
Your farm's financial information is a powerful tool to assess your performance, evaluate your enterprises and share information with investors and lenders as part of your business plan. Learn to use this tool more effectively and combine it with other data to make more informed business decisions.
At the end of this three-week unit, participants will be able to:
- prepare and read farm financial statements
- make financial projections and develop farm budgets
- use financial statements and other data to evaluate a farm enterprise
- project need for credit and make informed borrowing decisions
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Asian Pears
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Peaches
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Upcoming Events
2026 Virtual Orchard Meetup Series
February 27, 2026 : Session 1 - The Impacts of Weather on Pome Fruit Quality and Storability: Lessons Learned
The Impacts of Weather on Pome Fruit Quality and Storability: Lessons from 2025 - The first meetup will be conducted live on Friday, February 27, 2026, at 10:30pm (PST)/1:30pm (EST). The webinar will last 90 minutes. The format will include brief presentations by two SPARC scientists, followed by a packer/grower panel of industry leaders across North America. The meetup will conclude with an open discussion in a very inclusive virtual format. Viewers are invited to share solutions, ask questions, and interact with scientists and panelists. The program is free of charge.
June 11, 2026 : Session 2
Details to follow.
June 18, 2026
Details to follow.
June 25, 2026 : Session 4
Details to follow.
Cornell Fruit Field Day
July 30, 2026
Geneva, NY
Join Cornell researchers in Geneva for Fruit Field Day, returning after 10 years, to tour research plots, learn from experts—including Dr. Terence Robinson with 40+ years in tree fruit research—and explore the latest orchard technologies and practices.