AGAINST THE GRAIN: WHY MIDDLE-SIZED FARMERS SHOULD STRAY FROM MASS-DISTRIBUTORS AND SELL DIRECT

摘要

Katie Myhre, sits at a stand in downtown Saint Paul, Minnesota watching the usual crowds come in and out of the local fanners' market. As she helps families, farmers, and community members seek out fresh produce, she stands worried about the problemssurrounding the Minnesota farming community. More specifically,she worries for the longevity and profitability of middle-size farms. "The problem is that mid-sized farms don't have the luxury of being able to choose to work with distributors because themargins murder the profitability of small farms."1 Myhre said, "[b]ig farms, on the other hand, operate at a scale and efficiency where their volume requires efficiencies on that scale.