Urban Farmer learns from training program at University of Missouri

James Boatman, left, with his son Aaron, 12, who’s holding the family’s rooster. The Boatman family practices urban farming raising chickens and produce at their home within the city limits of Independence. Photo by Adam Vogler.

Independence, Missouri man graduates from new Entrepreneurship Project program

By Adrianne DeWeese
The Examiner
Jun 05, 2011

Excerpt:

He might be a small urban farmer to some, but James Boatman is still trying to run a business.

So, he went back to school, so to speak. Two weeks ago, Boatman, a western Independence resident, graduated from The Entrepreneurship Project, a new training program through the University of Missouri. Boatman was part of the project’s second graduating class, and now 40 program alumni across Missouri are developing a network to further their agricultural dreams.

“It’s about trying to make more successful farmers, not just as growers, but as viable businesses,” says Boatman, who also has a business degree in accounting from California State University at Fullerton. “They compacted what I learned in four years of business school in four months and focused on finance, marketing and business strategies for mostly small farmers.”

Boatman says he and other students studied farming business practices by visiting farms and observing how they worked. Tours of farms, creameries, wineries and restaurants also show participants the new trends in agriculture and food. Missouri residents who have less than 10 years of farming experience are eligible to participate.

Read the complete article here.