Farm Viability
Research, tools, and information on how farmers can build and maintain an economically viable farm business.
Compass tools
Compass Tools help farmers with data-driven decision-making to become more profitable and sustainable. The CIAS Compass Toolbox contains a suite of whole farm profit management spreadsheet tools to help farmers understand their costs of production, identify what products and markets are best for them, and identify ways to improve profitability. Compass Workshops help train farmers and service providers to use these tools.
Veggie Compass
Livestock Compass
Fruit & Nut Compass
Pasture-Based Beef Enterprise Calculator
OGRAIN Compass – NEW 2023 VERSION
Hemp Compass
Grassland 2.0 Grazing Compass Tools
These tools, built in collaboration with the Grassland 2.0 Program, evaluate a transition from a confinement to a pasture-based system of raising animals. They analyze the financials of the grazing season to estimate cost and labor savings. They help estimate the amount of land needed, paddock establishment and operating costs, and also include an evaluation of the nutritional composition of a feeding plan focused on grazing.
Heifer Grazing Compass
Beef Grazing Compass
PUBLICATIONS AND OTHER RESOURCES
-
UW-Madison Extension and Marbleseed Organic Field Day
Organic Apple, Currant, and Gooseberry Production Wednesday, June 28, 2023 – 1:00pm-4:00pm – Free Two Onion Farm, 19638 Cottage Inn Road, Belmont, WI 53510 Join […]
-
2023 Graduate Student Summer Mini-Grant Program Recipients
The CIAS Mini-Grant Program provides funding for graduate students to conduct research and outreach projects over the course of a single summer. In 2023, 11 […]
-
Relationships for Change
Join the UW Agroecology community as we share our work and hear from agroecologists from around the country. This is innovative research, based on bold […]
CIAS PARTNERS
Organic Grain Resource and Information Network (OGRAIN)
Ellen Polishuk, Plant to Profit
Jim Munsch, Deer Run Farm
NEWS
These tools, built in collaboration with the Grassland 2.0 Program, evaluate a transition from a confinement to a pasture-based system of raising animals. They analyze the financials of the grazing season to estimate cost and labor savings. They help estimate the amount of land needed, paddock establishment and operating costs, and also include an evaluation of the nutritional composition of a feeding plan focused on grazing.
- Panel Discussion: The Materiality of DataThe University of Wisconsin Digital Scholarship Hub is featuring CIAS Food Systems Work on transportation and logistics at an upcoming discussion. The Materiality of Data… Read more: Panel Discussion: The Materiality of Data
- Another Successful Year for the CIAS Graduate Student Summer Research Mini-Grant ProgramAdvancing Leadership and Innovation in Sustainable Agriculture Since 2013, generous support from the Single Step Foundation has made it possible for the Center for Integrated… Read more: Another Successful Year for the CIAS Graduate Student Summer Research Mini-Grant Program
- Tribal Poultry Training Series, taught by Dr. Ron Kean, UW-Extension Poultry SpecialistStarting March 25th, 2026, 5:30 PM–6:30 PM Are you curious about whether chickens and other poultry are right for you? In partnership with Wisconsin Tribal… Read more: Tribal Poultry Training Series, taught by Dr. Ron Kean, UW-Extension Poultry Specialist
- Webinar Summary: Dr. Marco Formentini, University of TrentoWatch the webinar and read the summary. “Digitalization of Agrifood Supply Chains, and the Impact on Social Sustainability and Fair Value Redistribution”
- Dr. Marie Carmen Shingne has joined CIASWe are excited to announce that Dr. Marie Carmen Shingne has joined our team at CIAS as a Postdoctoral Research Associate. Marie will bring her systems-level lens… Read more: Dr. Marie Carmen Shingne has joined CIAS