The Miami Herald had this story today about the growth of niche vegetable farming. For 40 years, the Capote family has grown a Cuban sweet potato called boniato. They’re one of a growing number of family farms responding to the tastes of fast-growing immigrant populations around the country. It’s hard to immagine in my house, but cilantro is on the list of ethnic veggies. Less familiar to me is malanga, chayote and zapote. Rutgers has been following the trends and is developing marketing plans for ethnic veggies, which can bring in more money than mainstream veggies. The Herald cites one example: eggplant sells for $10 a box. But Japanese, Chinese and Indian eggplant can bring in $30 a box. USA Today had a similar story, focusing on New Jersey farmers here.
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Virtual Farmgirl 
The first step in transitioning from ‘virtual’ to ‘real’ farming is to understand your markets. If you have a lot of ethnic neighbors, a large garden full of produce they like might be a great step to the real farm.Rick VanVrankenpart of the Rutgers Ethnics team…thanks for noticing the coverage of our work and good luck!
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Indeed. Excellent advice. It’s a conversation we had last season with my family’s roadside farmstand. We’re already more aware of what our immediate neighbors want…No time to let our tomatoes turn red. The neighbors couldn’t get enough of green tomatoes.
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The first step in transitioning from ‘virtual’ to ‘real’ farming is to understand your markets. If you have a lot of ethnic neighbors, a large garden full of produce they like might be a great step to the real farm.Rick VanVrankenpart of the Rutgers Ethnics team…thanks for noticing the coverage of our work and good luck!
LikeLike
Indeed. Excellent advice. It’s a conversation we had last season with my family’s roadside farmstand. We’re already more aware of what our immediate neighbors want…No time to let our tomatoes turn red. The neighbors couldn’t get enough of green tomatoes.
LikeLike