Bridging the gap between farms and city people who are interested in sustainable farming is the central idea behind Farmhopping, a global web platform to support small sustainable farms and communities by giving them an opportunity to access additional funding, launch natural products into new markets and converse with a pool of dedicated, supportive customers.

FIR co-host Neville Hobson met with Farmhopping CEO and co-founder Rossi Mitova at the LeWeb London 2013 conference on June 5 to hear her vision for Farmhopping, the power of communities and the role social media plays.

Mitova explains how Farmhopping can solve two of the main problems faced by farms: finding and reaching customers and securing financing.

Listen Now:

Get this podcast:

• Download the MP3 file (4.7Mb, 10:12)
• Get the show on iTunes
• Subscribe to the FIR Interviews RSS feed
• Get the FIR app for your iPhone, and for your Android device from the Amazon App Store

About our Conversation Partner

“Hello, my name is Rossi Mitova and I am the founder of Farmhopping. I graduated in investment and financial risk management in London. My future was predetermined. I was to start my career in the financial world where endless 100 hour working weeks in the City awaited me. I can’t say I found this prospect really exciting and I nurtured my passion for the outdoors with sports such as skiing and kite surfing.

“One day Michael took me to the farm in Kresna and I realized that being in the mountains and around animals is something that makes me feel exceptionally close to nature. I made a choice then and there: I left my corporate future behind and I took the road less travelled. I realize however that this is not a decision that everyone can take so I thought why not allow people around the world to be part of this amazing lifestyle without having to quit their jobs?

“And this is Farmhopping.”

Share your comments or questions about this podcast, or suggestions for future interviews, in the online FIR communities on Facebook, Friendfeed and Google+. You can also email us at fircomments@gmail.com; call the Comment Line at +1 415 895 2971 (North America), +44 20 3239 9082 (Europe), or Skype: fircomments; comment at Twitter: @FIRpodcast. You can email your comments, questions and suggestions as MP3 file attachments, if you wish (max. 3 minutes / 5Mb attachment, please!). We’ll be happy to see how we can include your audio contribution in a show.

To receive all For Immediate Release podcasts including the weekly Hobson & Holtz Report, subscribe to the full RSS feed.

This FIR Interview is brought to you with Lawrence Ragan Communications, serving communicators worldwide for 35 years. Information: www.ragan.com.

Podsafe music – On A Podcast Instrumental Mix (MP3, 5Mb) by Cruisebox.

(Cross-posted from For Immediate Release, Shel’s and my podcast blog.)