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Small Bites
May 21, 2024
Creating opportunities to amplify Vermont products to buyers in the northeast & beyond through regional relationships while also sharing big picture insights affecting local food sales.
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This issue is in memory of Drew Lalumiere, a farmer, fisher, hunter, all around fabulous young man who on May 9th was killed by a family member on the farm he managed. Drew was the quintessential Vermonter who specialized in attaining high level accomplishments in everything he embarked on, including farming. His skill in building quality hay was well respected in the state. Managing the land & building soil to produce quality feed hay was one of his passions. Hay is an under-valued crop in the food supply chain; it should land in the forefront of practices & support as quality hay, begets quality feed which begets high quality meat, animal by products, fibers, milk & dairy products. Among his many accomplishments in his young life, Drew was a hayman, with connections to our land, water, & people.
Drew's gifts to agriculture & land management, are the heart & soul goodness we all strive to hold dear. Small Bites sends condolences to his family & friends, & the farm fields & landscape he leaves behind.
Read on for info on "supply chain" grants, our Warehouse Tour & digging deep into distribution conversations at Provisions & Blake Hill. Learn about our amazing companies holding spots as winners of national awards & of course grab some ideas to improve your sales & understand supply chain network variables.
Farmers with retail, please note we are working on a one-off online session around POS systems, pricing, product bar codes to streamline self -serve cash-out, & a chat about cash-out systems. It is looking like something may happen soon!
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What's in Store? Summer Food, Fun, & Community
Brownsville Butcher & Pantry is one of our many stores gearing up for summer recreationalists. Their product line says "picnic" lunch around Mt Ascutney & dinner on a porch listening to the sounds of nature. The store is a key spot for community events aligned with area non-profits including the Ascutney Outdoor Center. Their socials are legendary for adventurers of outdoor fun & food.
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Up in Vermont's northwest corner in what we call 'The Islands', Keeler's Bay Variety is poised for all things fishing, boating, swimming & camping. In summer campers roam the aisles filling carts & baskets with the ultimate in summer food.
Since 1974- that's 50 years! - The
Horne family has been increasing local food from area artisan makers, farmers, & distributors. The summer folks love Vermont food & beverages swarming the store gathering vacation provisions while locals stop in for their basics & freshly made meals from the deli.
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In our "Lakes Region" the Wells Country Store near Lake Catherine is another stop fulfilling the needs of summer adventurers. There has been store in the center of town since 1832. Currently it is a haven for fabulous meals to go, fresh goodies, wine, & of course the ubiquitous gifts from local
producers. The store is in the heart of rolling hills & steep cliffs where
valley farms reside. Farm stores dot the area landscape, including The Wellsmere Farmstand with its invitation to meet farm animals & The Larson Farm selling its organic grass fed A2 milk & loads of VT food products.
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B2B Raving Encourages
Store Sales
Promotions matter. When stores rave about products it adds personality to the customer experience while showcasing relationships among complimentary businesses.
"Staff Favorite" with explanations & staff name is one way, another as
seen at Butcher & Pantry, a sweet info sign about the teas helps drive
connections through the retail supply chain. It informs the shopper that local relationships matter & the multiplier effect is strengthening the regional economy directly through its supply chain network.
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Back Country Roasters & Big Jay are dedicated to roasting & selling the highest quality organic fair trade arabica coffees from around the world in a manner that supports & respects the people & the land.
Coffee is roasted to order & shipped the same or next day to guarantee the freshest coffee possible. Available to stores & farmstands it is shipped direct. Contact the team for details for standard or even custom blends.
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Increasing Store Sales
Increasing your SOW or "share of wallet" means increasing the amount of money a customer spends on a brand or for their total purchases. It is one of the sales metrics to measure a consumer's average spending at your store (or for vendor suppliers, increasing sales to stores via SKU tracking & engaging with buyers to land more products at fewer accounts)
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Refreshing Bevies for Stores, PYO, & Farmstands
(An ongoing short list!)
Sarilla Sparkling Tea
Local Sweet
Snow Cap Cold Brew
KIS Kombucha
Savoure Artisan Soda
Chug Water
Shrubbly
River Pirate Ginger Beer
Upstate Elevator CBD Bevies
Products are available DSD, along with other distribution options including but not limited to Farrell, Pumpkin Village, VT Roots & non-alcohol bevies through the Baker & the VT Beer Shepherd.
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Defining Local Products
In prior Small Bites, you have seen the clues about what is "local" to Vermont per ACT 129. Here is an example of a complying business:
Made from ingredients not regularly produced in Vermont or not available in sufficient quantities to meet production requirements. They can still be “Vermont” food when it satisfies the “unique food” criteria. Two or more requirements must be satisfied
•The majority of ingredients (meaning more than 50 percent of all product ingredients by volume, excluding water) are raw agricultural products that are “local” to Vermont;
•Substantial transformation of the ingredients in the product occurred in Vermont; and/or
•The headquarters of the company that manufactures the product is in Vermont
Blake Hill Preserves are by Vermont definition a "Local" product as they are headquartered & are produced in Vermont with substantial transformation of ingredients. They also incorporate local ingredients. Store POS systems can add the "local" attribute to this product for tracking sales.
| And the Vermont Winners Are... | |
2024 sofi Gold Award Winner!
The Blake Hill Preserves Mango Pineapple Habanero Chili Jam won Gold at the 2024 Specialty Food Association sofi Awards! They are honored to be among the best of the best specialty food products worldwide. This new spicy chili jam is vibrant & fruity, with just the right amount of heat to tingle your taste buds. They source fresh, local habanero peppers from Honey Field Farm in Norwich, VT to make this sweet & spicy accompaniment for grilled peaches, fried chicken & fish tacos.
Congratulations on this world class collaboration between farmers & makers!
| Vermont had more Good Food Award Winners than the other 5 New England states combined. YAY to all our winners & to all companies who competed | |
NEFNE Spotlight Regional
Food Connects, a food hub based in Brattleboro, VT purchases products from the other New England States. They round out their inventory of beverages with Rhode Island's Granny Squibb's Organic Cranberry Ice Tea for summer beverage sales.
The sales contribute to a stronger regional food system helping to drive sales. The Food Connect platform is designed to easily search by multiple attributes, including state of product origin.
| ACORN celebrates its 14 annual Local Farm & Food Guide! They continue to accomplish much as a network organization. | |
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The Warehouse Tour: Inner Workings of Distribution
The Farm to Plate Grocers Project hosted a warehouse tour in partnership with Provisions International in West Lebanon, NH. This small group event was the first of its kind to delve into the inner workings of food distribution. As a specialty house, Provisions sells many products from the region with an emphasis on retail stores. The day bridged the middle of the supply chain to include operations & sales allowing B2B sharing among the participants.
After the Provisions visit, we had a
product sampling & insights into sales & marketing at the global sofi
award winner Blake Hill Preserves
in Windsor (see side bar for details on sofi). The group of food producers,
food hub managers, freight specialists, farmer & retail food coop liaisons engaged in wide ranging conversations covering getting products from origin through to retail. It was concluded that relationships still matter & there is much to learn when we gather a range of enterprises all with distinct
points on the complex supply chain network. Stay tuned for future warehouse tours through the Grocers Project.
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The Bigger Picture: RSFI Grants "Supply Chain" Support
According to the Federal Trade Commission, over 50% of food retail sales is concentrated at just eight national supermarket chains. Breaking through this miasma requires a new approach. Can small, emerging businesses affect change? Perhaps it is a localized food hub or a farm branching out diversifying its business model. Maybe it is taking a risk to develop new products for new market channels.
Playing in the field of consolidation
is a challenge. For smaller brands, it is notoriously difficult & often
prohibitively expensive to sell into stores & to stay on the shelf between
production, distribution, sales & marketing costs. Catch episode 181 of The Checkout, a podcast from Errol Schweizer (former Whole Foods Buyer) to learn more about the retail & distribution landscape
A brand new round of USDA Grants might support businesses, which include non-profits, to compete in the competitive farm & food products arena through supply chain support. A distributor may seek to improve its warehouse & loading docks, or new trucks to better handle the cold chain, or a farmer looks to new equipment to streamline packaging. These may potentially be projects covered.
As with any federal grant there is a host of parameters to follow. The intent through these grants administered by the Biden Admin is
designed to help companies compete within the centralized global variables of getting products to market. VSJF & Larkea are offering support services to help navigate the grant process by offering support & technical advice including RFSI application support, capital & financial planning, reviewing concepts & aiding infrastructure investment.
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3 Year Legal Entanglement & 12 Year Run Come to a Close
Sheehan Family Companies members came to a resolution in a deal to “consolidate ownership” of the multi-state distributor after a nasty three-year legal battle among the family empire members.
For twelve years they operated Craft Vermont, a staple in craft brewing distribution. The Vermont & regional vendor suppliers have been calved-off primarily to VT Beer Shepard, Farrell, & Baker.
When changes in distribution happen
there are often temporary out of stocks or gaps in purchase orders leading to back orders.
This can impact sales at stores which have beverage cases not dis-similar to a tetris game. It also impacts the vendors’ production, staffing & cashflow.
Getting sales back on track is always a primary concern in transitions at the
distribution level. There may just be some gaps in product availability in store craft beer caves as things settle into place.
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Farmer as Retailer
We are well into farmstand season!
Bedding plants, early greens, young turnips, asparagus & so much goodness emerges every week. With the heat & sun on tap soil is being worked & future field crops are being planted.
NOFA has resources for farmers to dig into to support food access to all members of our communities. Our farmstands play an integral role in getting food to locals & travelers.
Each farmstand is unique in its
product selection & its methods of payment. The value to farmers in
obtaining "retail" pricing helps them gain margin. Since 2020, there
has been a steady number of farmstands with some famers no longer selling wholesale DSD to stores.
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Below we give a random shout out to some farmstands, many which participated in the 2023 or 2024 Farmer as Retailer online training to help develop retail acumen of their place in the supply chain.
Pete's Stand
Bunker Farm
Root 5 Farm
Cross Molina
Milk Weed Farm
Adams Berry Farm
Maple Wind Farm
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To differentiate & add to the product mix, many farm stores buy direct from supplier / vendors through 3rd party platforms including Faire & Mable (without having to meet high minimum orders from distributors). From cheese to chocolates & stickers to hats, a wide range of products can add to your bottom line for summer sales
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Making Farm Fresh Food
More Accessible
NOFA-VT's Farm Stand Match Program provides customers with a 50% discount on fruits, vegetables, culinary herbs, & culinary plant seeds & starts when they use 3SquaresVT benefits at farm stands. The program aims to support 3SquaresVT customers in purchasing locally grown fresh produce while building stronger relationships between farmers & eaters.
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Networks Matter
Healthy Roots Collaborative, a regional food systems program supporting the growers, producers, & consumers in Franklin & Grand Isle County. Healthy Roots provides programs & services for consumers & producers in the Northwest Corner of Vermont that focus on food education & infrastructure.
They have merged with CVOEO to
strengthen their resolve to get more local food into the hands of our
underserved families, & expanding access to food from local farms.
In Brattleboro, The Retreat
Farm & its Farm Market are a collaborative effort too. The
acquisition & construction of the Farm Market & Food Center was funded through a Senate Appropriation secured by Senator Leahy & administered by
the U.S. Small Business Administration.
The restoration of the historic North Barn was made possible with grant funding from the U.S. Department of Commerce Economic Development Administration, Northern
Borders Regional Commission, Vermont Agency of Commerce and Community Development, a low-interest loan from the U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development, and private donations. Bridge financing for construction was provided by Brattleboro Savings & Loan.
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Business Resources
As your farm & or food business enterprise grows, your need for support services evolves. Consider looking into the Business Management Coaching Services & the new resources of the Vermont Sustainable Jobs Fund. A recently released series of Business Sense Briefs aid the growth of businesses & to identify current & future needs to address growth.
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Special thanks: Provisions International, Blake Hill Preserves, all the attendees for the Warehouse & Blake Hill Tour, Jenny Prince @ Real Organic, Brownsville Butcher & Pantry, Lindsey @ ACORN, James Morrell Columinate Consulting
Small Bites comes to you via grants & is created for farmers, food manufacturers, distributors, & grocers to increase VT food sales. We support the New England State Food System Planners Partnership effort to strengthen the regional food economy
Contact: Annie Harlow
smallbites802@gmail.com
All info is subject to change.
Created with support from the Canaday Family Charitable Trust
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