Farmers' Co-op Founded in Northern New Mexico

by Joanie Quinn

From a consumer's point of view, nothing beats local produce — fresh, full of nutrition and delicious.

But getting that produce to market has been a major headache for many small farmers in the state.

The distances from the farms to the markets are great, and there are additional challenges in keeping the produce cold in the summer on its way to market and packing the product in a way that is compatible with the needs of retailers.

For small farmers, the trip to a market can use up (in terms of fuel and the grower's time) all of the profit — and then some — the grower might realize on a particular delivery.

And, the trips have to be frequent to insure freshness and an ongoing supply to the customer.

The time spent away from the farm at the height of the season means time NOT spent irrigating, cultivating, planting, harvesting.

This January brought an exciting breakthrough in dealing with these problems in Northern New Mexico and Southern Colorado: the formation of a producer cooperative.

"The aim is to create more efficiency in terms of distribution so local farmers can spend less time on the road and more time on their farms improving and increasing production," says Sarah Grant, Marketing and Project Coordinator for the newly- formed "Santa Fe Farmers' Cooperative."

The cooperative grew out of "a bunch of farmers sitting down and having a cup of coffee together a few years ago," recalls Don Bustos of Santa Cruz Farms, in Espanola. Bustos is the President of the Board of Directors of the Santa Fe Farmers Cooperative.

"We just started talking about how we could work together to improve things."

"It really got going when we started getting help from the Rural Agricultural Network (RAN). They funded a feasibility study that was conducted by Margaret Campos, a local grower. A survey was sent out to local growers to see what their needs were and how we could best address those needs. We also got help from the Rocky Mountain Farmers' Union in Colorado and Eric Vigil from USDA Cooperative Services who helped distribute and compile the surveys."

The mission of the new cooperative is "to create a family of visionary agricultural producers in the Upper Rio Grande Community as the foundation of sustainable well being and prosperity." The goals are to:

• Organize farmers into
a self-sustaining cooperative association.

• Train farmers in information technology, season extension and more.

• Establish cooperative storage and cooling facilities.

• Develop the cooperative distribution network.

• Loan technical and farm equipment to farmers.

• Create a bridge fund for group purchasing of agricultural supplies.

Sarah Grant reports that in this first year, the cooperative is going to start with modest goals.

"The idea is that we won't have our own truck and all the expenses associated with it the first year, but connect with existing transportation to get produce from the farmers to the markets for a delivery cost of about 15% of the invoice. We hope to do about $50,000 in sales this first year."

Grant emphasizes that for the co-op to succeed, "high quality produce is critical." "We want people to open a box and think, "Oh, what beautiful product."

Don Bustos echoes Grant's focus on high-quality produce.

"We are looking for the best growers who can provide top-quality stuff.

We are just now going into the process of organizational meetings," he adds. "We have yet to develop formal agreement about what defines membership in the cooperative and we are looking at agreements about crop planning and distribution.

We will be having a general membership meeting in February to finalize these things. Any local grower who is committed to quality and would like to talk to us about participating should contact us.

And anyone who is interested in being on the purchasing end should talk to us, too."

So far, over 1,700 volunteer hours have gone into the project. The executive committee of the cooperative has been meeting weekly to get the organization going.

The local Cooperative Extension Service is giving technical support and helping to find funding to cover the initial expenses of the project.

"This spring we'll be operating on a shoestring budget," Bustos says. "We'll have a mobile office — that's Sarah's cell phone in the trunk of her car." The Farm Connection, which has been instrumental in supporting the project from its inception, has promised to provide funding for the next several months, but organizers of the co-op feel that outside support will be needed for the first three years. "After that," Sarah Grant says, "we should be able to stand alone."

Don Bustos is also looking at the possibility of incorporating Community Supported Agriculture (CSA's) into the project; enabling consumers to link to farmers on a one-to-one basis. Consumers could join a CSA at a particular farm (pay an upfront membership fee to get the season going) and then receive weekly shipments from that farm through the cooperative. "That would be a first in the country,"
Bustos says.

The cooperative will also be a boon to local markets like La Montanita.

We will be able to get more local produce because it will be more cost-effective for the growers to send their produce down to Albuquerque and it will take less time because ordering and deliveries will be consolidated.

Rather than receiving ten local deliveries, we will be able to get produce from a variety of farms at one time.

Be on the lookout for produce from the cooperative starting this spring at both La Montanita Co-op locations.

"There is a real cohesiveness among the members of Santa Fe Farmers Cooperative," Don Bustos reports. "We have come together in a show of community involvement and strength, looking to share our experience and knowledge with other growers."