Program Overview
Practical Farmers of Iowa’s Cooperators’ Program empowers curious farmers to conduct on-farm experiments that answer their questions and guide their decision making. Farmers are always at the helm – they are the ones brainstorming projects, setting research priorities and gathering data on their farms.
Explore on-farm research opportunitiesCooperators' Program Report
Read highlights of some of the projects conducted last year.
Explore 2024 Report67 Cooperator's participated in 100 Research Trials!
Latest Research Reports
Research reports are written by Practical Farmers staff to ensure consistency and quality and are available to view or download for free. Reports cover a variety of enterprises, including field crops, horticulture, livestock and more.
Explore Research ReportsProgram Purpose
Farmers conduct on-farm research to better answer their most challenging farming questions.
Mission
To empower farmers to generate and share knowledge through timely and relevant farmer-led research.
Vision
A community of curious and creative farmers taking a scientific approach to improving their farms. These farmers are leaders among their farming peers whose work contributes to the field of agricultural research, resulting in more profitable, diverse and environmentally sound farms.
Guiding Principles
We believe that farmers should lead both the creation and exchange of knowledge. Farmers set our research goals and priorities. We also help farmers inform academic agricultural research that affects their farms by connecting researchers and farmers in meaningful dialogue and promoting the exchange of ideas.
We believe that real-world, applied research on farms is critical for building a better agriculture in Iowa and beyond. We prioritize research conducted on-farm by farmers but recognize the limitations and understand not all topics can sufficiently be addressed with this approach.
We believe in working together. Research that is collaborative facilitates the sharing of knowledge and, ultimately, builds community. We prioritize multi-farm projects as well as single-farm trials that have broad support within the cooperator community or could yield important insights for other farmers. We occasionally collaborate with university researchers and other partners who have gained the trust and confidence of farmers through their work, research and extension activities.
We believe that research should answer questions individual farmers have about their farms. This often involves supporting proof-of-concept investigation, ground-truthing new ideas and products and helping farmers design research that can satisfy their curiosity about their farms. Our farmer-researchers and partners are on the cutting edge of innovation in agriculture, and the Cooperators' Program supports their efforts.
We believe the knowledge, experience and findings generated by the Cooperators' Program should be available to the public. Farmers are our primary audience; we present results using farmer voices while also adhering to standards of scientific reporting. The products of the Cooperators' Program are used by farmers to make more informed decisions.
We believe that farmers are capable of conducting experiments on their own farms and carrying out the process from beginning to end. As the experts on their farming systems, we believe the role of PFI staff is to support farmers' inherent curiosity. Being at the helm of the on-farm research process builds on this curiosity by boosting farmers' scientific skills and confidence while generating powerful questions and advancing farmer-ownership of research conclusions and created knowledge.
We believe the scientific method and good experimental design are necessary tools for farmers. The work of PFI farmers who conduct on-farm research is highly valued and trusted by both the broader PFI membership and non-members, including farmers, academic researchers and the general public.
We believe in following through. Cooperators and PFI staff are eager to participate, engage and complete on-farm projects. We reward cooperator efforts and commitments to on-farm research by providing modest honoraria and showcasing their contributions.
Meet Past Cooperators
Apart from the specific objectives of on-farm research trials that help inform future decisions, cooperators often cite personal growth and learning as valuable outcomes from participating.
Jack Boyer,
J Boyer Farms, Inc., Reinbeck, Iowa
"My philosophy is to continue to learn as long as I live, and this Cooperators' Program has helped me with that.”
Hannah Breckbill,
Humble Hands Harvest, Decorah, Iowa
“Trials help me pay attention to thing I wouldn't necessarily have paid attention to, and I think that attention makes me a better farmer.”
Dave Schmidt,
Troublesome Creek Cattle Co., Exira, Iowa
"There's great comfort being in the mainstream, but once you step out of that mainstream, having data helps.”
Frequently Asked Questions
We refer to our farmer-researchers as cooperators because the first experiments in the program were done in cooperation with agricultural researchers. Nowadays, on-farm research trials are collaborative efforts between farmers and PFI staff scientists who guide the design of experiments based on questions posed by the participating farmers. So “cooperator” applies on many levels!
Practical Farmers of Iowa farmers use science to help them transition to more sustainable and economically profitable systems. Through improved observation, record-keeping and testing, our farmers have improved the biological resiliency of their farms and reduced their risk to outside forces. Pay attention to subtle trends on your farm, learn what works and what doesn't for your situation and get the answers you are looking for through on-farm research, record-keeping and demonstration projects. Join other Practical Farmers cooperators and start seeing what you are curious about today.
Contact Emma Link, research manager to learn more and get started.
When you become cooperator, you will work Practical Farmers staff to design a project appropriate for the question you are asking. It is important for potential cooperators to realize that participating in a project requires good data collection skills and follow-through.
We maintain a rigorous standard for achieving research results. Cooperators are expected to:
- Ask a question they want to answer via on-farm research (e.g. “Will cover crops reduce weeds in my soybeans?”)
- Help set project parameters
- Complete research project following a written protocol
- Collect and record data as specified
- Take photos of the project during the season
- Keep in contact with Practical Farmers staff with updates and questions
- Turn in data to Practical Farmers of Iowa at the end of the project
Practical Farmers of Iowa staff will help throughout the entire project, from design to the final report. Each project is unique, but typical responsibilities for staff include:
- Help design project and write a detailed project description
- Monitor progress of the project and provide support when needed
- Provide reimbursement for each project successfully completed plus allowable expenses
- Summarize and publish results
Practical Farmers of Iowa feels strongly about providing financial support for farmers who participate in our Cooperators' Program. We assess the farmer stipend each year to determine if it is enough money to help offset the costs and time farmers spend conducting on-farm research projects. Sometimes additional money is available for larger projects, and staff and Cooperators pre-determine those payments before initiating a project. If a Cooperator wants to initiate a project for which Practical Farmers has no funding, staff can help with the design process but will not conduct a formal research project.
