Growers who want to market their produce beyond this area are encouraged to attend the next Cooperative Marketing Meeting. The group that formed in October to grow and market produce cooperatively will meet 1 to 3 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 11, in the meeting room of the Ozarks Small Business Incubator (OzSBI), 408 Washington Ave., West Plains.
The purpose is to discuss the collection, processing and marketing of produce.
In November, the group tentatively agreed to focus initially on a single crop — tomatoes — to achieve a critical mass product to offer buyers. The goal is to expand later to include other popular fruits and vegetables and eventually animal products. Based on Bob Semyck’s experience selling boxed organic produce and Craig Jennings’ experiences selling blackberries wholesale, the group is comfortable saying, “grow the tomatoes; the co-op will market them.”
Growers are encouraged to attend and commit to growing tomatoes for sale by the cooperative, which must determine who will grow and where they are located before developing a plan for collecting and processing them for market. An estimate of the scale of production expected is crucial to negotiating with buyers.
For further information, contact Steering Committee Chairman Dan Leary (417 284-7222) or OzSBI Coordinator Heather Fisher (256-9724 or coordinator@ozsbi.com). OzSBI is a sponsor of this project.