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Articles : Winter 2004
- 5005 Newsletter
Winter 2004 - 5005 Newsletter
 Happy
Holidays!
The summer and fall are now a memory and Farm to Chef Express
(FCX) is finishing its 6th month of orders and deliveries to
NYC chefs. It has been an exciting project for our area and
many good things have been happening.
In October, farmers were invited to a meeting to discuss FCX
and it was clear farmers would like to see FCX continue for
the long term. A steering committee of farmers was identified
and has started to meet to develop and mold what FCX will look
like for the future and to establish a new business entity.
The steering committee includes Kevin Bowman, Alan and Nancy
Brown, Art Place, Glen Rowse, Lisa and Keith Saunders, and Mike
Yezzi with assistance from Judith Kleinberg, Marketing Liaison,
Remus Preda, driver, and Paula Schafer.
The committee formed two initial sub committees - Business
Plan/Finances and Website. These two subcommittees will be meeting
in January and the whole steering committee will meet again
at the end of January.
We are very excited of the enthusiasm of FCX farmers and their
desire to make FCX a long-term possibility. Thank you to all
farmers who took a chance and who were willing to venture in
to this new marketing territory.
Monthly Sales Update
An important part of the FCX project has been to track the
weekly and monthly sales of product farmers have been selling.
As the business plan develops, these numbers are key to determining
the future of the project. It is very exciting to see the increase
in sales, farmers and chefs.
Sales by Week and Month for FCX
| Date of delivery |
Farms Selling
|
Restaurants Buying
|
Total Sales
|
| 23-Jun |
7
|
4
|
$793.95
|
| 30-Jun |
8
|
4
|
$666.99
|
| 7-Jul |
5
|
2
|
$513.54
|
| 14-Jul |
7
|
5
|
$1,263.80
|
| 21-Jul |
7
|
4
|
$629.21
|
| 28-Jul |
7
|
6
|
$1,279.40
|
| 4-Aug |
9
|
5
|
$1,878.85
|
| 11-Aug |
9
|
6
|
$1,982.34
|
| 18-Aug |
10
|
7
|
$2,252.14
|
| 25-Aug |
11
|
5
|
$993.65
|
| 1-Sep |
10
|
7
|
$1,729.18
|
| 8-Sep |
10
|
6
|
$1,087.01
|
| 15-Sep |
12
|
7
|
$2,564.31
|
| 22-Sep |
11
|
7
|
$2,976.47
|
| 29-Sep |
10
|
5
|
$1,904.09
|
| 6-Oct |
13
|
9
|
$3,473.68
|
| 13-Oct |
10
|
9
|
$2,753.69
|
| 20-Oct |
12
|
10
|
$3,239.64
|
| 27-Oct |
11
|
6
|
$1,989.69
|
| 4-Nov |
12
|
10
|
$2,802.22
|
| 10-Nov |
12
|
13
|
$4,140.64
|
| 17-Nov |
15
|
10
|
$5,324.78
|
| 24-Nov |
16
|
9
|
$4,511.36
|
| 1-Dec |
12
|
6
|
$3,376.68
|
| 8-Dec |
12
|
8
|
$5,444.43
|
Total Monthly Sales
|
June
|
1,508.94
|
|
July
|
3,685.95
|
|
August
|
7,228.59
|
|
September
|
10,843.15
|
|
October
|
11,936.79
|
|
November**
|
16,803.00
|
|
Grand Total Sales
|
$52,006.42
|
** waiting on some figures
FCX Membership
FCX offers farmers a variety of services:
- Vigorously markets individual farms and farm products to
chefs in NYC.
- Provides guidance and technical assistance to farmers regarding
wholesale pricing, packaging, quality standards, chef's' expectations,
etc.
- Provides weekly web-based and/or faxed transmittals to chefs
of farm-specific products available for sale.
- Provides printed packing slips to each restaurant and each
farm.
- Provides cost subsidized product transportation to NYC chefs
for the duration of the grant.
- Works with farmers and transporters to minimize transportation
inconvenience.
- Features each farm on an individual page on the Farm to
Chef Express website.
- Provides or helps access technical assistance and marketing
guidance for development of website information/advertising,
etc.
All participants must pay the membership fees to participate
in FCX. Membership fees are $40 up front and signing the commitment
form and then an additional $60 after you sell $500.
Visit http://www.farmtochefexpress.org/fcxfarmer.html
to hear what FCX producers say about FCX. Also the commitment
form is available on the website to download. Farmers need to
pay their $40 before product will be marketed to NYC
Chefs.
If you are one of the few who has not paid their $40 or is
due to pay your additional $60, a separate note and form has
been included with this letter. Please support the project that
is helping your farm business grow and expand.
If you have any product to sell to NYC please call Judith.
Weekly deliveries are still being made during the winter season.
2005 Growing Season Planning
This is the time many producers are starting to order seeds
and plan for next years growing season. We hope those of you
who could not participate in 2004 due to lack of product, will
seriously consider marketing with Farm to Chef Express in 2005.
A produce survey plans to be sent to NYC chefs on their needs
for local fruits and vegetables. We are looking for input from
farmers for the survey and if you have specific questions you
would like answered, please let Judith know. We will share the
results of the survey as soon as we have it.
Mark your calendars for Saturday, February 19. Nina Planck,
of Local Foods, has agreed to speak to producers about farmer
markets in the morning and about marketing to NYC chefs in relation
to the Farm to Chef Express project in the afternoon. Time and
place will be announced.
Website
Uploading product for orders and chefs ordering from the
website has now begun. It is helpful for producers to input
their product information themselves. If you are having any
troubles, please contact Judith. Only participants, both producer
and chefs, have access to the ordering system.
NYSDAM Grant
In August, CCE applied for another NYS Ag & Markets
FAID grant for Farm to Chef Express. We hope to hear very soon
if we have received the funding. If we receive the grant, it
will take FCX through the steps necessary help it become a free-standing,
viable business enterprise.
Best wishes for a happy and healthy new year! We look forward
to working with you in 2005.
|
Paula Schafer
885-8995
746-2560
|
Judith Kleinberg
371-5592 |
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