Veterans in Agriculture

AgrAbility PA provides resources and services to men and women who are battling a long-term health condition or disability - sometimes from their military service - but who want to work in the agricultural sector.

Cathie Dibert, owner of Green"er" Acres Farm and a veteran, has made the move into agricultural farming after her military service.
Read her success story.

• 2% of Americans are farmers, and 2% of Americans serve in the military.
• More than 40% of Veterans live in rural America near farms or farmland.
• More than 5 million U.S. Veterans are living with a disability.
• Many Veterans feel there is a strong correlation or similarities between military life and agricultural life.
• Many occupations and hobbies are available in agriculture for Veterans with a disability or long-term health condition, including mental health conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

For more information about how AgrAbility PA works with Veterans, contact us at AgrAbility@psu.edu or (814) 867-5288 or download this brochure.

Pennsylvania Resources for Veterans & Farmers

Pennsylvania Veteran Agriculture Resources

• DelVal University Organic Farming Program
  • The Organic Farming Program is a 36-credit, one-year certificate program offered through a partnership between Delaware Valley University and Rodale Institute. The program can lead to a rewarding career producing food in a way that restores, maintains and enhances the natural world. DelVal is proud to be a Yellow Ribbon School. The program is an approved non-degree certificate program and is eligible for enrollment by veterans who would like to use their education benefits.
• Heroic Gardens
  • A Philadelphia veteran-oriented horticulture therapy nonprofit with the goal is to introduce and surround Veterans with horticulture as a form of personal healing. Offers a variety of local services such as yard transformations and volunteer events to support gardens in the Philly area and surrounding counties. Also offers an indoor garden program where they provide a monthly virtual garden program to reach veterans throughout the US.
• Homegrown Heroes
  • This program allows veteran producer products to be marketed with a logo to identify their products. One must be part of the PA Preferred Program and a member of the Farmer Veteran Coalition to participate.
• PA Veteran Farming Project
  • A grassroots veteran farming organization that hosts grants, workshops, and an annual conference for the PA veteran farming community. Also provides information for farmers on their website and a map of veteran farms across the state.
• Project Love Coalition
  • This Pittsburg-based nonprofit provides veteran focused urban farming outdoors and indoor vertical farming (fruits, vegetables, flowers), Entrepreneur Agribusiness, Agricultural job skill training. The veteran receives paid wages, help with housing, living expenses, tools, training materials, and field trips. Hands on experiential learning, classroom learning, and veteran networking.
• Rodale Institute Veteran Farming Training
  • The Rodale Institute is a 386-acre organic certified farm in Kutztown, PA where they offer the Veteran Farming Training. This programming is 9-months, paid, with opportunity for provided housing. Participants can expect to learn about vegetable production, composting, greenhouse and high-tunnel production and much more.

Pennsylvania Veteran Resources

• PA Department of Military and Veteran Affairs
• PA Veteran Resources Guide
  • Consolidated listing of programs, benefits, and services for Veterans and their families in Pennsylvania.
• VBOC at Penn State
  • The VBOC provides entrepreneurial services to veterans, active-duty service members, National Guard members, Reservists, and military spouses across the commonwealth. The VBOC hosts the Boots to Business and Boots to Business Reboot training programs to demystify entrepreneurship and consultations to support veterans.

Take a look at this video for Veterans entering agriculture.

National Veteran and Agriculture Resources

National Resources

• AgriSafe Network
• Archi's Institute of Sustainable Agriculture
  • Housed within a veteran-owned organic hydroponic farm in Escondido, California. Offers online, in person, and hybrid accredited sustainable agriculture education programming for military veterans. SkillBridge, GI Bill, and Tuition Assistance can be used to attend. Provides opportunity for those interested in pursuing agribusiness and farm management.
• Farmer Veteran Coalition
  • FVC is a national program dedicated to increasing veterans' awareness of agriculture and helping them break into the agricultural industry. FVC has state chapters that provide opportunity for networking and collaboration.
• Free Farming and Beekeeping for Veterans
• Growing Veterans
  • Located in the Pacific Northwest, Growing Veterans helps veterans learn the trade of agriculture through hands-on participation. They assist the transition from military to civilian life while working with partners to provide resources to veterans including employment, volunteering, internships, and fellowships.
• Heroes to Hives
  • Provides free 9-month online training for beginning beekeeping education tailored towards US military service members. Hobbyists, entrepreneurs, and those interested in therapeutic benefits are encouraged to participate. Since 2015, over 15,000 service members and their family members have participated in this program.
• National AgrAbility Project
• NCAT Armed to Farm
  • Sustainable agriculture training for military veterans through the National Centre for Appropriate Technology based in Butte, Montana. The program has served 1,000 veterans in 47 states with support from USDA Rural Development, offering a basic one-week course and advanced courses available nationwide
• REAch Wounded Veterans Program
• US Vet Connect - Homesteading
• USDA New Farmers
• Veterans Administration (VA)
• Veterans to Farmers
  • Started by a Marine in 2009, Veterans to Farmers is a Denver, Colorado based program that offers veterans intensive training courses in aeroponics and hydroponics, small scale organic production, maintenance/construction, and business ownership.
• Work Vessels for Vets

Other States' Resources

• Alabama
  • Operation Grow
    • A collaborative project with Alabama Extension, Alabama Department of Agriculture and Industries, and Alabama Department of Veteran Affairs. This program aims to provide farm training, network building, and sustainable support for beginning veteran farmers. Over 450 producers have been reached since the start of the program in 2022.
• California
  • Grow Good Veterans Farm
• Colorado
  • HealTerra
• Florida
  • North-South Institute - Veteran Small Farm and Incubator Program
    • North-South Institute hosts the Veteran Small Farm and Incubator program, which is funded through the AgVets Enhancing agricultural Education Opportunities for Veterans USDA grant. This multi-decade program is ideal for veterans living in Florida looking to develop skills for farming business success.
  • Therapeutic Horticulture Program (Wilmot Gardens)
  • Veterans Florida Agriculture Program
• Hawaii
  • GoFarm Hawaii - Grow Veterans
• Georgia
  • AgrAbility of Georgia (Farm Again)
• Illinois
  • Growing Healthy Veterans
• Kansas
  • The SAVE Farm
• New York
  • Farm Ops
    • Cornell's Farm Ops program provides mentoring, training, and resources for veterans interested in farming. Farm Ops is part of the Cornell Small Farms Program, which offers a wide variety of educational opportunities for small and beginning farmers.
  • THRIVE Program
• North Carolina
  • Veteran's Farms of North Carolina
  • Frontline to Farm
  • Soldiers to Agriculture
• Tennessee
  • Frontline Gardens
• Texas
  • The F.A.R.M. (Farmers Assisting Returning Military)
    • The F.A.R.M., a veterans' organization located in Desoto, Texas, conducts farm therapy and TBI/PTSD therapy reintegration through agricultural internships and career opportunities.
  • Texas AgrAbility
    • BattleGround to Breaking Ground
      • Texas AgrAbility is offering workshops for veterans who are interested in agricultural business start-up and business plan development. The BattleGround to Breaking Ground Project is a three-phase hands-on and online educational program available to veterans, active duty military, their families, and beginning farmers and ranchers.
• Virginia
  • Arcadia Veteran Farmer Program
    • Arcadia Center, based in Alexandria, Virginia, offers veterans a 12-month, one weekend per month, hands-on training program focusing on food production and marketing. Also, one- or two-year paid fellowships are available where participants are immersed in all aspects of production and business operations.
  • Patriot Garden Box Project
• West Virginia
  • Veterans and Heroes to Agriculture
    • West Virginia Veterans & Heroes to Agriculture enables veterans to work with fellow veterans to learn agricultural practices and food production. They identify veterans, market farm products, cooperate with the VA, work in rehabilitation sites, and create long-term growth environments for veterans.
  • Patriot Guardens
• Washington
  • Disabled Veterans National Foundation

International Resources

• United Kingdom
  • Defence Gardens
  • Horticultural Therapy
  • Veteran's Growth