Hitting the July market window with his early tomatoes is very important to George Hemmeter of Hemmeter's Farms, Saginaw, Mich. This is the time to "make it or break it" in terms of a profitable season. Customers are anxious for fresh tomatoes and sweet corn and are willing to pay the price. Delay until the first of August, and that can be another story. Prices customarily drop. Hemmeter markets tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, sweet corn and a variety of other vegetables through a small, 50- by 80-foot pole shed on his farm built to serve customers, virtually all from the Saginaw area Roughly 80 percent of his production goes through the outlet; the remaining 20 percent is marketed through small farmer's markets scattered along nearby highways.
展开▼
