The watershed year for the farm was 2002. He also started a small CSA on Long Island. So Matt scaled up to 10 acres and added a few more farmers markets. Because the land was protected by a conservation easement that permanently preserves it for farmland, he was able to lease it for just a few hundred dollars per acre per year. There was a lot of trial and error!” In 1997, he had the opportunity to lease his current farm on Long Island. ![]() “I started really small,” he said, “no business plan, no equipment, no knowledge. In 1994, giving in to the siren song of farming, he quit his cooking job and planted about 1 acre of vegetables, which he sold to restaurants, small stores and one farmers market. ![]() He loved vegetables and natural foods, and he found himself spending more and more time at the city’s farmers markets. Matt, a culinary school graduate in his early 20s, was working in restaurants in New York City. The farm supports two full-time farmers and provides seasonal jobs to more than 15 employees. His farm, Golden Earthworm Organic Farm in Jamesport, New York, has a CSA with 1,350 members, a farm stand, three farmers markets, and restaurant accounts. Thanks to a combination of hard work, great markets, and a bit of luck, he is now one of the success stories. ![]() Like many direct-market vegetable farmers, Matthew Kurek had no farming experience when he started farming.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |