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WHAT IS FOUNDATIONS FOR FARMING?

Foundations for Farming is a method of farming developed by Brian Oldrieve in Zimbabwe during the late 1970’s and 80's, after seeing how plants grew in nature. It is a method of farming which is also known as conservation agriculture. It is helping farmers to become good stewards of the land and provides sustainable profitability to future generations.

Foundations for Farming is more than just a technique of caring for the soil. It is about heart change. When hope is restored in the heart of a farmer, he or she can face the future with confidence. The greatest hope comes from the understanding that there is no condemnation for those who accept the free gift of forgiveness of sin. That our Creator is desiring only good for us and that he wants to teach us his ways through the things he created.

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Foundations for Farming then is an initiative for the sharing of the gospel, strengthening and planting churches, and extending the Kingdom of God with an emphasis on sustainable agriculture as a model for life transformation of individuals, communities, and nations.

“Whatsoever you do, do all to the glory of God.”

OUR CONVICTION:

1. Jesus is the only foundation, the cornerstone of all of life. "For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ." (1 Cor 3:11)

2. Jesus was sent to earth to reveal God the Father to us. In the same way God is revealing his ways to us through the things he created. "For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse." ( Romans 1:20 )

3. Foundations for Farming first want to touch the hearts of people before it touches their hands. "Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life." (Proverbs 4:23)

4. Foundations for Farming recognizes our reliance on God and not in human wisdom. "Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths." (Proverbs 3:5-6)

OUR MANAGEMENT PRINCIPLES:

• On Time (Plan ahead, Prepare well, Start early, Never be late!)

• To a High Standard (Do every operation and detail as well as we can, No shortcuts, Be honest and honorable in all we do!)

• With Minimum Wastage (Don’t waste time, soil, the stover on the land, water, sunlight, seed, nutrients, labour, energy, opportunity etc.)

• With Joy (If you do these first three things faithfully without self-pity, complaining, blaming others, and making excuses, but rather with a THANKFUL HEART, God will take away any fear and hopelessness and give you the hope and joy, which is your strength.)

STARVING EARTH - STARVING PEOPLE

The poorest in the world are often hungry, have much less access to education, regularly have no light at night, and suffer from much poorer health.

84% of the world’s 608 million farms are smallholdings; that is, farms less than two hectares in size. Tragically, many small scale farmers do not even produce enough food for themselves. They are among the poorest people in the world.

Various factors add more pressure to small scale farmers like the loss of arable land, the world’s growing population and land distribution issues. In the past 40 years more than 30% of the world’s arable land has been lost due to soil erosion, climate change, pollution, continual ploughing and heavy fertilization

WHO WE ARE

Foundations for Farming is an NGO based in Zimbabwe. Founded in 1981, Foundations for Farming has grown to an Organization with about 40 employees. We have a model farm for training and research. Before working for us, most team members were farmers, some of them for decades.

WHAT WE DO

We specialize in training small scale farmers in all aspects of farming. Through us, they learn the minimal requirements to be self-sufficient and how to generate surplus from their land. With our best practices the farmers escape poverty, have nutritional diets, improve the environment and generate enough surplus to build a better future for themselves and their family. Our training is based on a holistic approach including personal transformation.

OUR IMPACT

We have directly trained more than 30’000 farmers and instructors. Many of our former trainees are passionate advocates for our methods in their own communities. In this way Foundations for Farming principles have been taught to more than 3 million farmers around the world.

On average farmers mentored by us get a yield of 8 T/Ha, compared to the national (Zimbabwe) average of 0.4 T/Ha for small-scale farmers.