Marketing

The U.S. fresh produce sector continues to grow. Markets for these products are increasingly complex and often involve high risks, with the potential for high rewards. Innovations in distribution and technology, retailer and wholesaler consolidation, changing legal environment, international policies, food safety issues, and health concerns create new challenges and new opportunities in a sector where per acre cost of production is already high and traditional government safety nets do not exist. A list of seven (7) articles makes a comprehensive compilation of the U.S. fresh produce tendencies and its challenges.

1. Overview: Fresh Produce Marketing: Critical Trends and Issues
2. Direct Marketing of Fresh Produce: Understanding Consumer Purchasing Decisions
3. Ethnic Produce Marketing in the Mid-Atlantic States: Consumer Shopping Patterns and Willingness-to-Pay Analysis
4. Traceability: Formulation and Implementation of an Economic Efficient System in the Fruit and Vegetable Industry
5. Preventive Health Maintenance Information Brought to You by Your Local Fruit and Nut Producers
6. Fresh Produce Intermediaries in Away-from-Home Food Markets
7. A Marketing Systems Approach to Removing Distribution Barriers Confronting Small-Volume Fruit and Vegetable Growers

Direct Marketing

For small acreage farmers, one strategy to reduce market risk, increase revenue, and widen the profit margin is by targeting Direct Marketing. The following links provide valuable information to reach your final costumers:

1. USDA Direct Marketing resource

If you are considering to use direct sales as Pick Your Own, CSA, and/or Farmers Markets, consider creating an account so that consumers can find your farm and products. The following websites offer free listings to small farms and farm businesses:

1. MarketMakers
2. Pickyourown.org

Articles of Interest for Small Acreage Farmers

1. Marketing Tips
2. Marketing Tip Sheet: Outreach Tips for Farms that Accept SNAP Payments for CSAs
3. Tips for Marketing Sheep and Goat Products: Dairy
4. Tips for Marketing Sheep and Goat Products: Fiber
5. Tips for Marketing Sheep and Goat Products: Live Animals
6. Tips for Marketing Sheep and Goat Products: Meat
7. Tips for Marketing Sheep and Goat Products Vegetation Management Services
8. Tips for Selling at Farmers Markets
9. Tips for Selling at Roadside Stands
10. Tips for Selling on the Internet
11. Tips for Selling through CSA’s – Community Supported Agriculture
12. Tips for Selling to Aggregators or Grower Marketing Co-ops
13. Tips for Selling to Grocery Stores
14. Tips for Selling to Institutional Markets
15. Tips for Selling to Produce Brokers
16. Tips for Selling to Produce Distributors
17. Tips for Selling to Restaurants
18. Tips for Selling to Wholesale Buyers at Terminal Markets
19. Tips for Selling with Agritourism and “Pick-Your-Own”
20. Understanding Organic Pricing and Costs of Production

More articles of interest could be found at:

1. AgriLife Bookstore
2. Choice Magazine