Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is: Slow Money & Johnson's Backyard Garden

I found it particularly interesting to hear Mr. Johnson discuss the different challenges that they have faced during their various phases of growth. As backyard gardeners, he could collect leaves from neighbors to produce sufficient compost for his plants. On a small farm (20 acres), they can't afford to sacrifice acreage to grow enough cover crop for compost so they end up having to resort to using mulch that isn't as sustainable as they'd like.

Now with more acres, as a medium-sized farm they can afford to grow cover crop for compost on half the acreage while growing crops for market on the other half. The farm's goal is to be able to support 1,000 CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) members per week.

Of course to grow, they need money. They have been able to get favorable loans to support most of their growth because they have a smart, innovative business plan. However, they have struggled to purchase all of the new equipment they need ($300,000) to work the new acreage. They were able to secure a loan if they could come up with a $90,000 down payment. That seemed like a daunting number until they learned about the Slow Money efforts happening around the country.

Slow Money is an effort to create investment around local, organic and sustainable small food businesses. The Johnson's are using this model to raise the money for their down payment, asking people to invest $5,000 for 4 years and paying them back at 4 percent interest rate.  As an investor, you get a reasonable rate of return and know that you are contributing to growing Austin's bread basket. The Johnson's were overwhelmed by the initial response to their request for help and are excited about the opportunity for growth.   

I had a great time touring the farm and was deeply impressed with Mr. Johnson's conscientiousness.  He is very focused on building a bright sustainable future not only for his farm, but for the other small and mid-sized farms in Central Texas.  They are even starting a nonprofit to teach the next generation of farmers how to grow crops responsibly.  It was impossible to not be infected by Brenton Johnson's optimism and enthusiasm; I definitely left the farm inspired.

If you are equally inspired about helping farms like Johnson's Backyard Garden grow, you can learn  more about investing in local sustainable businesses atSlow Money Austin's upcoming event on April 21st at City Hall.  Woody Tasch, one of the founders of the Slow Money movement, will keynote and there are a variety of informative panels about their effort. After all, doesn't it make sense to put your money where your mouth is?