U-Pick and Pick-Your-Own (PYO) Farms

U-pick or Pick-your-own (PYO) farm operations are a type of farm gate direct marketing (farm-to-table) strategy where the emphasis is on consumers doing the harvesting themselves.^[1] U-pick is often preferred by consumers who like to select fresher, higher quality, vine ripened produce at lower prices.

Advantages of U-Pick Marketing

This strategy is not unique and has probably been around as long as farmers have grown more than they can sell at wholesale or consume on the farm. U-Pick operations serve as an alternative selling method that, depending on the type of produce a farmer grows and the farm's customer base, it can supplement other marketing strategies. This strategy has several advantages:

• Direct sales to the consumer lowers operating costs and brings a profit even if prices may be lower.
• There are no transportation costs and no need for seasonal labor.
• Lower packaging costs because customers are encouraged to bring their own bags, and berry cartons are included in the pricing.
• Income is in hand when the consumer leaves the farm.
• Since customers are allowed and often encouraged to eat while picking, an entry fee usually covers any produce customers may eat. Despite this, the produce at U-pick farms often cost lower since the cost of hiring farmers to harvest the produce is precluded.

Disadvantages of U-Pick Marketing

As in any type of direct marketing system, potential customers must be identified. The means of doing this varies, from direct mailings to flyers or print advertising. The level of competition in the area can also dictate the types of crops and services producers provide. Owner-operators must identify the number of similar farmers in the area and the type of crops they produce and services offered, so as not to flood the market. One strategy to avoid this is by planting or harvesting crops at different times or extending the season in greenhouses or hoophouses to help prolong the harvest season and possibly increase the number of customers still looking for locally grown fresh produce. In addition, special services or products can be added to the business operation to gain market share. Some examples are baked and cooked foods, landscape services, plants, flowers, seeds, herbs, and homemade crafts.^[2]

Other disadvantages of U-Pick marketing are:

• Insurance liability increases.
• The producer has to accept the local price for his/her produce.
• The producer's work day is extended with managing sales.
• The work week is extended as the weekends require longer hours.
• The producer may not be advantageously located to sell his/her products.
• Once the local market demand is supplied, the producer has to look to regional markets or sell the produce in a different form: canned, cooked, smoked, or frozen, for example.
• Customers may be hard to control and disagreeable.

PYO in the United Kingdom

In the UK, the customers are encouraged to pick their own, but not consume produce while picking. Sampling is generally allowed while out on the fields, but PYO farms charge customers by the weight of produce they have picked. Some PYO farms charge a small refundable deposit on entry to discourage a minority of customers from eating produce without paying. Many farmers still pick for the market, while the public can enjoy themselves in the same fields. PYO was very popular in the 1970s and 1980s, when there was a season for fruit, but has declined in popularity now that the global market can provide the same fruit for most of the year. In the 2000s there has been a revival in local foods, and PYO has benefited from this. Pick-your-own strawberries were pioneered in the UK by Ted Moult in 1961.

External links

Canada

Vancouver

• Get Local. Helping folks in Metro Vancouver learn about the benefits of eating locally, where to find local food, tips on how to ‘get local’.
• FarmFolk/CityFolk. Works with farm and city to cultivate a local, sustainable food system.
• Vancouver Farmers Markets. You are what you eat. Prepare to meet your maker.

British Columbia

• Certified Organic Associations of British Columbia. Search for organic farms near you.
• Local Motive. Non-profit local food delivery (by bike an option) for the Okanagan.
• Food Roots. Innovative distributor co-op and pocket farmers markets around Victoria.
• BC Food Systems Network. Linking people all over the province involved in community-level action related to food.

Ontario

• Farmers Markets Ontario. Find a farmers’ market near you.
• Food Down the Road. Locator map, seasonal chart, local-food newspaper for Kingston area.

Quebec

• Montreal Marches Publics/Farmers Market. A list of farmers’ markets in Montreal.

United States

• Local Harvest. Find farmgate sales, Community Supported Agriculture deliveries, grocery stores, farmers’ markets and restaurants across America.
• PickYourOwn.org
• USDA Official Farmers Market Directory. Find a market in your state.
• Slow Food USA. Artisan food lovers have chapters across the country and national groups from France to Japan.

California

• Locavores. San Francisco-based group has inspired local eaters across America.

Colorado

• Homegrown Colorado. Statewide resources, events and news.

New Hampshire

• Seacoast Eat Local. Farmers market info and wiki for coastal New Hampshire.

Oregon

• Ten Rivers Food Web. Resources and links for foodshed of Benton, Linn, and Lincoln counties.
• Oregon City Farmers Market. Find out what’s in season in Clackamas County, and where to buy it.

Vermont

• Blackwell Roots. A farm providing winter storage vegetables and preserves in Cabot.
• Middlebury Food Map. View maps showing distances four meals traveled to the cafeteria at Middlebury College.

Washington

• Skagit Foodshed. Blog and resources for Skagit County.

United Kingdom

• Pick Your Own Farms in the UK. Pick-your-own farms in England, Wales and Scotland.

References