For Casey Townsend III, the work of strengthening Kentucky’s food system starts with land—how it’s used, how it’s sustained, and how it’s passed on.
Casey’s Role in the Food and Farm System
For Casey Townsend III, the work always comes back to one question: how do we help families hold onto the land they already have?
Casey serves as a Land Retention and Wealth Development Specialist at Kentucky State University, working directly with farmers, many of them stewards of generational property, to help them see the full value of what’s already theirs. Sometimes that means talking through the potential of an empty barn. Sometimes it’s exploring what livestock expansion could look like. “I try to help people find the highest and best use of what they already have,” Casey says.
Before he connected with Community Farm Alliance, Casey’s work centered on outreach and education. He encouraged people to grow their own food and see farming as something within reach, whether as a source of income or simply a way of life.
But some of the most important conversations he has are also the hardest to start. Land ownership, heirs’ property, long-term planning — these aren’t easy topics, and they take a level of trust that doesn’t build overnight. “I needed folks to come to the table,” Casey says, “but that’s not always easy when trust isn’t there.”
Through the relationships and credibility, Casey became someone families could turn to when they were ready to talk about the future of their land. “CFA helped position me as someone people can come to,” he says.
Today, that trust shows up in the work itself. “I’m putting boots on the ground — working with people who want to grow their own food and become more self-reliant,” Casey says. And underneath it all is the same driving purpose: making sure families get to keep what they’ve built. “I’m passionate about making sure people can pass on their assets to their family.”
His message to anyone facing those same questions is simple: “If you have questions — reach out. I just want people to be successful.”
Need help keeping farmland in the family?
If you’re thinking about land succession, heirs’ property, or how to pass your farm on to the next generation, you don’t have to figure it out alone. Casey is among a growing group of folks across the state who are helping keep farmland, well, farmland.
- Reach out to Casey Townsend III through Kentucky State University Cooperative Extension — casey.townsend1@kysu.edu or 502-597-6417.
- KCARD’s Kentucky AgriLegacy Solutions Program (KASP) helps Kentucky farm families work through succession planning conversations, at no cost — kcard.info/kentucky-agrilegacy-solutions-program or (859) 417-2592.
- Or contact CFA directly — we’re happy to help point you in the right direction and meet you wherever you are.