September 5, 2002
This workshop explored direct marketing alternatives, with emphasis on adding smaller scale enterprises to an existing farm or ranch operation.
Selling direct to your customers can give you a larger share of the food dollar. Niche, specialty, and value-added crops supplementing the existing farm plan can enchance financial stability. Direct marketing alternatives include the development of specialty and niche markets, agritourism, and on-farm marketing.
SPEAKERS:
Karen Bates: Karen is a partner at the Apple Farm in Philo, a multi-faceted fruit operation, which includes the direct marketing of fitty varieties of certified organic apples, an on-farm line of value-added products, cooking classes, and agritourism.
Scott Mathieson: Scott owns and operates Laguna Farms in Sebastopol. He runs a year-round CSA that direct-markets vegetables, fruit, eggs, and bread to his customers. He has sixteen years farming and direct marketing experience.
Debra Walton: Debra is founder and principal of Genus Group, a marketing business. Debra was involved in the early development of Select Sonoma, and brings over thirty years of marketing experience to the panel.
Travis Potter: Travis handles Bay Area farmers' market sales for Prather Organic's Certified Dry-Aged Beef products, which uses only direct marketing as its sales program.
Resources available from this workshop:
Agricultural Marketing Service (
Direct Marketing Series (Appropriate Technology Transfer for Rural Areas) www.attra.org/attra-pub/directmkt.html
ATTRA
http://attra.ncat.org/attra-pub/markres.html
Sustainable Agriculture & Resource Education
http://www.sare.org/publications/marketing/market10.htm
Niche Marketing
http://www.agrihelp.com/agops1.htm
Sonoma Success story
http://www.agrihelp.com/$$2acre.htm
North American Farmers' Direct Marketing Association
http://www.nafdma.com
Making a Business Plan
Redwood
http://www.santarosa.edu/sbdc
USDA Fact Sheet
http://www.fsa.usda.gov/dafl/Downloads/farmbizplan04.pdf
Labeling
http://www.ams.usda.gov/nop/FactSheets/LabelingE.html