The John Ogonowski and Doug Bereuter Farmer-to-Farmer Program (F2F) provides technical assistance from U.S. volunteers to farmers, farm groups, agribusinesses and other agriculture sector institutions in developing and transitional countries with the goal of promoting sustainable improvements in food security, agricultural processing, production, financing, and marketing. F2F leverages the expertise of volunteers from U.S. farms, universities, cooperatives, private agribusinesses and nonprofit farm organizations to respond to the local needs of host-country farmers and organizations. Volunteers, recruited from all 50 states and the District of Columbia. F2F represents the diversity, ingenuity and generosity of U.S. society to the world.
The F2F program was initially authorized by Congress in the 1985 Farm Bill and funded through Title V of Public Law 480. The program was designated as the "John Ogonowski and Doug Bereuter Farmer-to-Farmer Program" in honor of one of the pilots killed September 11, 2001 and of former Congressman Bereuter, who initially sponsored the program.
F2F has demonstrated significant impact through high-quality services from volunteers. Volunteers help individuals and organizations build local institutions and linkages to resolve local problems. Since F2F’s inception, the program has completed more than 22,000 volunteer assignments assisting over 14,000 local hosts, directly assisting more than 2.5 million agricultural professionals and impacting over 178 million indirect beneficiaries.
Current Farmer-to-Farmer Program: FY24 – FY28
USAID has awarded Leader with Associate Cooperative Agreements to nine organizations for implementation of the core F2F volunteer programs for fiscal years 2024 – 2028. The implementing partners will work closely with USAID Missions and local partner organizations, supporting a variety of development programs aimed at reducing poverty and stimulating sustainable and broad-based economic growth. F2F supports USAID and U.S. Government agriculture, climate, and food security initiatives, and works to support inclusive agriculture sector growth, facilitate private sector engagement in the agriculture sector, enhance development of local capacity and promote climate-smart development.
Each F2F award is global in nature but implements core country programs in a specific region or technical area:
- ACDI/VOCA - Caucasus, and Central Asia F2F Program (F2F ECCA): Georgia, Armenia, and the Kyrgyz Republic, www.acdivoca.org
- Catholic Relief Services (CRS) - East Africa and Asia F2F Program: Ethiopia, Uganda, Nepal and Timor-Leste, www.crs.org
- Cultivating New Frontiers in Agriculture (CNFA) - Southern Africa F2F Program: Madagascar, Malawi, Zambia, and Zimbabwe, www.cnfa.org
- Improving Economies for Stronger Communities (IESC) - F2F Access to Finance Program (F2F A2F): Kenya, Tanzania, and Liberia, www.iesc.org
- Land O’Lakes Venture 37 - F2F Food Safety and Quality program (FSQ): Egypt, Lebanon, and Rwanda, www.landolakesventure37.org
- NCBA CLUSA - Diversified and Resilient Farmer Businesses F2F Program: Ecuador, El Salvador, Honduras, and Peru, www.ncbaclusa.coop
- Partners of the Americas - Caribbean Basin F2F Program: Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Guyana, and Jamaica, www.partners.net
- University of Tennessee - Agricultural Leaders of Tomorrow (ALOFT) F2F Program: Cambodia, Philippines, and Thailand, smithcenter.tennessee.edu
- Winrock International - West Africa F2F Program: Guinea, Senegal, and Sierra Leone, www.winrock.org
For more information, please visit: http://farmer-to-farmer.org/
Farmer-to-Farmer Program Contacts
Peggy Carlson, F2F Program Manager, USAID, mcarlson@usaid.gov
John Peters, F2F Strategic Advisor, USAID, jopeters@usaid.gov
Kate McDonald Polakiewicz, F2F Program Analyst, USAID, kmcdonaldpolakiewicz@usaid.gov
Partners of the Americas