Today’s Killer Startup: Barnraiser
Elevator Pitch
Barnraiser is a social and funding community for the millions of people who want to ensure that sustainable food and farming becomes the standard.
Why It’s A Killer Startup
The day before Thanksgiving, my dad and I drove up to Mark’s farm in Montgomery, Vermont, to pick up the 27 pound turkey that would be the centerpiece of our dinner the next day. Mark is the latest in his family to run the farm, following in the footsteps of generations who have raised animals and cultivated the land.
He was also almost the last.
That’s because Mark’s farm was originally a dairy farm and sometime over the past twenty years, Vermont dairy farms started dying out, unable to compete with the mega-farms that had sprouted up in the Midwest. Mark – who started farming when he was just 19 – closed down the farm and took up odd jobs to make ends meet.
With the rise of the localvore movement, however, Mark was able to return to farming, but this time minus the dairy cows. Focusing instead on humanely raised meat animals, Mark’s business is thriving again and next spring he’s even planning on re-siding the front of his barn.
Mark was able to return to farming and do better than he’d ever done before because Vermont is a state that cares a lot about local food, supporting small businesses, and farms. Not all states are like that, though, and that’s why Barnraiser is today’s Killer Startup.
Barnraiser is a crowdfunding site that focuses specifically on “food innovators as they reshape a healthy food world.” That means anything from producers of healthy and artisanal food to community kitchens to small, sustainable farms like Mark’s. Their goal is to put 1 billion dollars into the hands of farmers and food producers through their website – and they’ve already raised over $200k and can boast an 80% success rate.
The projects on the site currently range from urban farms looking to build infrastructure to small farms literally trying to raise a new barn to a company creating allergen-free snacks. You can also check out profiles of people who are active in the clean food movement, networking or even just drawing inspiration.
If you’re interested in helping fund one of these awesome projects or if you want to launch a fundraising campaign of your own, check out Barnraiser’s website at Barnraiser.us and be sure to like them on Facebook for regular updates on the farms and companies they’re helping grow to be as successful as Mark’s is today.
Tweetable
Down with AgroBusiness! Support #sustainable farms and sustainable foods with @barnraiser! https://www.barnraiser.us/ #crowdfunding
