Small-scale farming in America has long been synonymous with farmers markets, CSAs, and roadside stands. That is changing as the demand for local and organic foods are becoming increasingly mainstream. Grocery stores, public school systems, distributors, and even hospitals are responding to public interest and willingness to pay more for locally sourced food by developing local buying programs.

Small and medium-scale farmers in the Carolinas are perfectly positioned to fill this expanding demand for locally produced food. There is one significant roadblock to entering the wholesale market for many farmers: a big learning curve.

If you have never sold to wholesale buyers that follow stringent packing, transport, and labeling protocols, you have a lot to learn. If you don’t know what a 22.3 gallon vented, gusseted, 3 mil poly bag secured with a metal tie is, join the crowd. If you don’t know where to start with designing traceability labels and processes on your farm, you aren’t alone. If it comes as a surprise that a case of beautiful, perfectly ripe tomatoes will most likely be rejected by a grocery store because they are perfectly ripe, you have plenty of company. In fact, in formal and informal polls and studies across the nation, wholesale buyers cite lack of wholesale readiness on the part of farms to be their biggest barrier to purchasing more local food.
 

Finish reading Sarah's article, Steps to Determine if Selling Wholesale Is Right for You over on our website.

(If you're new -- or missed an edition -- please check out previous Expert Tips here.)

A growing topic of conversation amongst farmers is improving postharvest handling techniques and infrastructure to ensure that the produce leaving the farm is the healthiest, freshest, and highest quality it can be. The On-Farm Infrastructure Toolkit is an easy-to-use and very informative guide to help farmers make the best postharvest handling decisions. 

Produced by North Carolina Growing Together and CFSA, the Toolkit was created to address barriers, such as postharvest handling requirements, that can prevent producers from selling into larger markets; and to build produce growers’ capacity to cool, wash, cure and store produce on-farm. It has a ton of great, helpful information.

We recommend that you check it out!
 

 

Survey #1: Farm Labor on Small and Mid-Sized Farms
This survey by the University of Vermont Extension seeks your experience making decisions about and managing farm labor. The survey is part of a multi-state research and extension project working to help farmers address challenges small and medium scale farmers encounter finding, training and keeping workers.
 
Survey #2: Disease Occurrence in Winter Greens
This survey by Cornell University’s Dr. Meg McGrath is studying diseases of winter greens including downy mildews (spinach, brassicas, and lettuce) and powdery mildews (brassicas and lettuce). McGrath wants to gain a better understanding of when, where, and how commonly these diseases are now occurring in the U.S. in order to develop effective management strategies. We're hoping to add the voice and experiences of growers in the Carolinas, so that strategies identified will be of help to you.

Survey #3: Soil, Crop, and Pest Management Practices
The National Farming Practices Survey by Cornell University needs input from crop farmers. When deciding how and what to grow, many factors are taken into consideration, such as pest pressure, labor shortages, market prices, and complex regulations. The goal is to understand what the most important factors are for farm owners and managers when deciding whether or not to use certain practices. For participating by Mar. 31, you will be eligible to win $500.