Happy new year, and welcome to another exciting year of market farming. 2004 promises to be a very good year for us market gardeners. I know I say that every year, but isn’t that part of the fun of being a market gardener? The excitement just doesn’t go out of this business. There is always a new crop, a new market, and endless numbers of things to learn as we begin another cycle of growing and selling.
There are, of course, obstacles ahead. The weather is always challenging, and increasingly so in recent years. The hottest three years on record in the U.S. have been in the past six years. Organic production continues to challenge many of us in several ways. Many who are certified organic are dissatisfied with the first year of the federal organic standards; I have heard from some people who think the National Organic Program is too rigid, while others are angry that USDA has not enforced some provisions of the standards. The incursion of agribusiness into organic production has created competition for local growers; we did such a good job of educating consumers on the value of organic food that we now risk having people think the certified-organic label on shipped-in produce makes it as good as what they can buy at the farmers’ market.
In addition, meaningless labels are being created to confuse consumers. See the story on page 18 about the Hudson Institute’s new “Earth Friendly/Farm Friendly” labeling program. The cynicism takes one’s breath away.
Problems often bring opportunity, though, and that is certainly the case now for direct market farmers. Our markets are based on relationships, and that gives us great strength. Consumers may well become disenchanted with organic food, but they will not lose faith in their local farmers, provided we continue to produce high-quality food and to remain open and accessible to our customers.
Here at Growing for Market, we promise to keep you informed on developments that can affect your business. We are all growers ourselves – everyone in the office, and everyone who writes for us – so we know what is important to you. We know what questions to ask when reporting and to answer when writing. We know, month by month, what kinds of things you are working on so we can make our articles timely. “It almost feels like you’ve been looking over our shoulder,” one grower wrote to us recently. It makes us realize how much we have in common, wherever we are farming.
I, for one, am already feeling a rush of enthusiasm for growing tomatoes in the hoophouse (page 17) and starting a few trays of microgreens (page 13), at least for my own use. And I definitely will be planting Thai peppers next month for wreaths and swags (page 6) to sell in fall; the recent gift-giving frenzy also made me want to plan ahead for homemade gifts next year. This happens as I put together every issue of Growing for Market. Rarely does an issue go to press without me feeling inspired to try something I read about here. And the articles that make me NOT want to do something are just as valuable because of the time they save.
I hope that you will find plenty to inspire you this year in Growing for Market, and that you will continue to embrace the challenges and opportunities of this wonderful business.