Project Overview
Commodities
- Agronomic: potatoes
- Fruits: apples
- Vegetables: beans, cucurbits
Practices
- Crop Production: continuous cropping
- Education and Training: decision support system, demonstration, display, farmer to farmer, networking, participatory research
- Farm Business Management: new enterprise development, marketing management, feasibility study, agricultural finance, market study, value added
- Pest Management: weather monitoring
- Production Systems: agroecosystems
- Sustainable Communities: new business opportunities, public participation, social networks, sustainability measures
Proposal summary:
Producers in this group project want to create a viable year-round market to fill the winter void in the farmers’ market season in the Portland area. They plan to build and expand on existing producer expertise and the strong base of consumer and community support for current seasonal markets. The project team in the trial market will disseminate information to producers on buying, storing and preparing winter vegetables. Participating producers, in turn, will communicate information about the year-round market to customers who frequent their seasonal markets and inform them about the broad range of local products that will be available during the winter months. If successful, the project will enhance the economic viability of farming in the Willamette Valley by providing farm-direct marketing opportunities in the winter and sustaining local producers and their laborers.