Location, Location, Location: Setting Your Small Farm Up for Market Success
Last August, I shared some thoughts on why small farms sometimes struggle , and among the factors I listed, "limited access to markets" really stood out. It's a common hurdle: small farms often find it tough to reach customers, whether due to remote locations or a lack of resources for effective marketing. Today, I want to dig deeper into that first part – the challenge of reaching your eager customers. Over time, as I witnessed small farms close their doors, a pattern emerged. Many farmers spoke of the inability to generate enough income to sustain their operations, even with off-farm jobs. A critical observation I made was that often, these farm locations were chosen out of emotional attachment rather than a practical understanding of how they'd integrate into a viable farm business. So, I want to share a methodology that aspiring farmers can use to strategically select their farm's location, with the ultimate goal of fostering a profitable farming enterprise. T...
