Stay ConnectedInsights for vegetable farmers and market gardeners who earn, or want to earn, a living growing vegetables profitably.
In each episode, I talk with a beginning or experienced farmer, diving deep into their story to find out what makes their market farm successful. I focus on in-the-field farming. Soil preparation, weed management, post-harvest processing, appropriate technology, farm tools and equipment, and growing crops.
Hosted and produced by Diego Footer’s Modern Grower Podcast Network.
Copyright: © Modern Grower
As farmers and business owners, it's easy to get lost in productivity—the need to grow more, sell more, expand the farm, scale operations.
This episode's guest, Derek Amadi from Texas, is trying to spend more time with his family, enjoy the experiences of parenting, and pay attention to his farm just enough.
What about you? Spending time on the farm is inevitable, but it's important to remember to take breaks every now and then and to be grateful for the things we have.
Follow Derek:
https://www.instagram.com/emadi_acres_farm
Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/
Follow Diego on IG https://instagram.com/diegofooter Follow PaperpotCo on IG https://instagram.com/paperpot
Podcasts by Diego Footer: Microgreens: https://apple.co/2m1QXmW Vegetable Farming: https://apple.co/2lCuv3m Livestock Farming: https://apple.co/2m75EVG Large Scale Farming: https://apple.co/2kxj39i
Small Farm Tools https://www.paperpot.co/
We've just signed off from 2020 and we're starting a new year in 2021. Looking back at the past year, how does it make you feel? Are you sighing with relief, just glad that it's finally over? Or maybe you're looking at how even though 2020 wasn't that great of a year, there were still things to be happy and thankful about? Javan's workshop: https://allpointsdesign.ca/product/envision-2021-workshop/
In this episode of Farm Small, Farm Smart, we have Javan Bernakevitch, and we're talking about year-end reviews: how you should do it, why you should do it, and how it can hopefully help set you up for a better 2021 by doing an honest self-reflection and setting intention. It won't just be looking at facts and numbers, it's also taking stock of your emotions, what brought you joy, what brought you suffering, and planning it out in the year ahead to get the same, or even better, results.
It's simply changing your approach.
Follow Javan:
https://allpointsdesign.ca/life-design
Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/
Follow Diego on IG https://instagram.com/diegofooter Follow PaperpotCo on IG https://instagram.com/paperpot
Podcasts by Diego Footer: Microgreens: https://apple.co/2m1QXmW Vegetable Farming: https://apple.co/2lCuv3m Livestock Farming: https://apple.co/2m75EVG Large Scale Farming: https://apple.co/2kxj39i
Small Farm Tools https://www.paperpot.co/
Today Javan Bernakevitch and I each go through our top 5 life lessons from 2020. In total 10 simple ways of looking at life, approaching life, and thinking about life that can change your life tomorrow. I look at a lot of these lessons as base principles in an approach to life that very much contradicts the status quo. None of these lessons require any money or technology to implement. There are no tools or techniques here. It's simply changing your approach.
Follow Javan:
https://allpointsdesign.ca/life-design
Increase farm efficiency with the Paperpot Transplanter and Other Small Farm Equipment at https://www.paperpot.co/
Follow Diego on IG https://instagram.com/diegofooter Follow PaperpotCo on IG https://instagram.com/paperpot
Podcasts by Diego Footer: Microgreens: https://apple.co/2m1QXmW Vegetable Farming: https://apple.co/2lCuv3m Livestock Farming: https://apple.co/2m75EVG Large Scale Farming: https://apple.co/2kxj39i
Small Farm Tools https://www.paperpot.co/
Sheri Frey, co-founder of Arbico Organics - joins me to talk about how you can use beneficial insects on your farm or in your garden to help control pest pressure. She also discusses how beneficial insects are just one part of integrated pest management.
Learn more about Arbico Organics - https://www.arbico-organics.com/
Follow Diego on IG https://instagram.com/diegofooter Follow PaperpotCo on IG https://instagram.com/paperpot
Podcasts by Diego Footer: Microgreens: https://apple.co/2m1QXmW Vegetable Farming: https://apple.co/2lCuv3m Livestock Farming: https://apple.co/2m75EVG Large Scale Farming: https://apple.co/2kxj39i
Small Farm Tools https://www.paperpot.co/
In today's episode of Farm Small Farm Smart
The pandemic brought about several restaurant closures, and that does not spell well for the farmers supplying them. But like many things in life, it's the tough times that bring out the best in people.
Today, we're talking to farmer Adam Pollack of Closed Loop Farms in Chicago, IL. In March Adam had to deal with a loss of the majority of his restaurant customer base overnight due to COVID-19. Instead of trying to wait for restaurants to come back online, Adam and his team set out to rebuild their whole business model from the ground up. They shifted from selling only to restaurants to selling directly to consumers. With a shift in their customer base, they also had to shift the products they were selling. Closed Loop Farms began aggregating products from other local producers and shifting their microgreen production to meet new demand. Overall the changes weren't easy, but it has worked out so far and put their business in a stronger position going forward.
Adam is a great example of a business owner that adapted and pivoted when his back was up against the wall showing that regardless of how hard things might seem, there's always a way out.
Today's Guest - Adam PollackAdam is a microgreen farmer and the owner of Closed Loop Farms. His farm was servicing nearly one hundred restaurants in the Chicago area until the pandemic came. Now, he and his team have adapted by going online.
Closed Loop Farms – Website | Shopify | Facebook | Instagram
Follow Diego on IG https://instagram.com/diegofooter Follow PaperpotCo on IG https://instagram.com/paperpot
Podcasts by Diego Footer: Microgreens: https://apple.co/2m1QXmW Vegetable Farming: https://apple.co/2lCuv3m Livestock Farming: https://apple.co/2m75EVG Large Scale Farming: https://apple.co/2kxj39i
Small Farm Tools https://www.paperpot.co/
Jessica Washkowiak from Field to Fork Farm joins me to talk about why she loves the CSA business model for their farm. We also discuss how they run their CSA, manage crop diversity, and how they market their CSA.
Field to Fork Farm https://www.instagram.com/fieldtoforkcsa/
Follow Diego on IG https://instagram.com/diegofooter Follow PaperpotCo on IG https://instagram.com/paperpot
Podcasts by Diego Footer: Microgreens: https://apple.co/2m1QXmW Vegetable Farming: https://apple.co/2lCuv3m Livestock Farming: https://apple.co/2m75EVG Large Scale Farming: https://apple.co/2kxj39i
Small Farm Tools https://www.paperpot.co/
The owner of Mumm's Sprouting Seeds, Lisa Mumm, joins Chris Thoreau and me to talk about how Mumm's sources high-quality microgreen seeds. Most of those seeds are sourced locally in Saskatchewan. Lisa also details their extensive procedures that ensure that all of the seed they sell is pathogen-free.
You can purchase microgreen seeds at Mumm's Sprouting Seeds https://www.sprouting.com
Follow Diego on IG https://instagram.com/diegofooter Follow PaperpotCo on IG https://instagram.com/paperpot
Podcasts by Diego Footer: Microgreens: https://apple.co/2m1QXmW Vegetable Farming: https://apple.co/2lCuv3m Livestock Farming: https://apple.co/2m75EVG Large Scale Farming: https://apple.co/2kxj39i
Small Farm Tools https://www.paperpot.co/
Microgreen grower Chris Thoreau joins me to talk about the importance of sourcing high quality, pathogen-free seed for a microgreens operation.
Chris's online course Growing Your Profitable Microgreens Business https://microgreens.teachable.com/courses
Follow Diego on IG https://instagram.com/diegofooter Follow PaperpotCo on IG https://instagram.com/paperpot
Podcasts by Diego Footer: Microgreens: https://apple.co/2m1QXmW Vegetable Farming: https://apple.co/2lCuv3m Livestock Farming: https://apple.co/2m75EVG Large Scale Farming: https://apple.co/2kxj39i
Small Farm Tools https://www.paperpot.co/
Farmer and Entrepreneur Chaz Daughtry (http://www.soulfitgrill.com/) joins me to discuss the two different online sales platforms he is using to sell his vegetables and his spice blends. One platform is a very beginner, basic platform, and the other is more advanced. Chaz also details why he got into creating spice blends and what running that business is like.
Follow Chaz https://www.instagram.com/sweetwaterfarmshtx
Follow Diego on IG https://instagram.com/diegofooter Follow PaperpotCo on IG https://instagram.com/paperpot
Podcasts by Diego Footer: Microgreens: https://apple.co/2m1QXmW Vegetable Farming: https://apple.co/2lCuv3m Livestock Farming: https://apple.co/2m75EVG Large Scale Farming: https://apple.co/2kxj39i
Small Farm Tools https://www.paperpot.co/
Farmer Erich Schultz joins me to talk about lessons he has learned after moving his farm several times over the past 10 years. Along the way, Erich has streamlined his farming operation to use fewer tools and use simpler processes. He also talks about partnering with developers to gain access to land.
Follow Erich https://www.instagram.com/steadfastfarm
Follow Diego on IG https://instagram.com/diegofooter Follow PaperpotCo on IG https://instagram.com/paperpot
Podcasts by Diego Footer: Microgreens: https://apple.co/2m1QXmW Vegetable Farming: https://apple.co/2lCuv3m Livestock Farming: https://apple.co/2m75EVG Large Scale Farming: https://apple.co/2kxj39i
Small Farm Tools https://www.paperpot.co/
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