Manure Hits the Fan as Big National Ag and Little Local Ag Struggle With Recession

Bloomberg reports that farm profits are way down. It's a perfect storm of plummeting prices and a tight lending markets that make it tough to borrow money and keep the big farms running. This national story hits close to home when you read about the Courchaine family of Spokane Valley shutting down their small dairy operation that started in the 1940's. Steve Courchaine speaks for many farmers when in response to questions about the viability of future farming options he says, "Who the hell knows anything anymore."

I've been trying to get a read among our Farmer's Market farmers to see how the economy is impacting them. The word on the street is that sales are down on the East Side of the state at all of the markets, although I don't sense an air of desperation about it. West side farmers' markets are apparently going gangbusters. The Millwood Farmers' Market has been able to sustain more farmers' this year but with construction on Argonne it's really hard to get a read on it. UPDATE: Sometimes the word on the street isn't so reliable. For some hard data on Farmers' Market sales in Washington and a little perspective on what's going on in Spokane County here for Angela Pizelo's helpful comment. Angela is on the board of the Washington State Farmers' Market association and runs the Liberty Lake Market. Thanks Angela.

I'm not sure if there is a connection with the economy but the Spokane Valley Fresh Abundance store has shuttered operations.

Comments

[Angela Pizelo]

Craig-

As of the middle of August total sales at the Liberty Lake Farmers' Market were up 14% from last year, and total farmer sales were up 11% from last year.

The Washington State Farmers Market Association is noticing a trend that sales are up about 20% at markets across the state, pretty good considering the rest of the food industry can't boast increases like that.

Sometimes when farmers are saying that sales are down they are actually referring to their profits. There are a lot of inputs, seed, feed, fuel etc. and the cost of some of those inputs has gone up.

It is the responsibility of the market farmers to tell their own stories, to get to know their customers, to reevaluate their prices, to look at their sales and marketing. A drop is sales is not across the board. Some vendors have doubled or tripled their sales from last year, while others have seen no change or even a decline. Being stagnant is easy, but it isn't a good option.

And with at least 3 new Markets in our county this year, I'm guessing that total sales at Farmers Markets are UP. Well over a million dollars by the end of the season is my prediction.

-Angela

[Craig]

Thanks for chiming in Angela. I'll be interested to see how downtown is doing. Do they release sales information?