Opinion: The ROI On Sustainability Is The Long-Term Success Of Your Business
April 10, 2014 Five years ago, a cover story on growers and sustainability might not have encouraged you to pick up and read a copy of American Vegetable Grower. Sustainability was a big media buzzword back then, not just in farming but throughout most U.S. business. Let’s be honest, however — a lot of what was being discussed at the time wouldn’t really help you run a better operation.
There was the basis for a lot of good in those early efforts to bring sustainability into the mainstream. But much of it was clouded in hype. There was a vague understanding that we were all talking about “greener” products and businesses and lifestyles, but I’m not sure anybody was really clear about what we were accomplishing.
That’s not true anymore. Today, everybody’s paying attention to sustainability again. And now that the hype has mostly washed away, we’re left with some solid solutions that make actual improvements to our environment and our communities.
The grower on this month’s cover, Okray Family Farms, is just one of many vegetable operations we could have chosen to feature in this issue regarding sustainability efforts.
That acceptance is a wonderful development for a number of reasons, not the least of which is the possibilities it offers as a marketing tool.
Outside of our industry, sustainability still has a primarily green connotation for the average U.S. citizen. With all the focus on local and safe and organic (and the inherent muddy understanding in your customers’ minds about what these terms mean and how they all work together), there’s probably never been a better time to use the phrase “sustainably grown” in your marketing programs. Your wholesaler, retailer, and customers will respond to the message.
Perhaps a focus on locally grown isn’t as high on your or your customers’ priority lists. That’s OK. There’s an even better — and more important — way to look at the term: making your own business sustainable. Not in some vague green sense, but rather in the long-term survival and success of your operation.
This issue of American Vegetable Grower is full of different aspects of sustainability you can adapt for your own farm. There are examples of high-tech precision techniques and equipment. There’s computer software that helps record and manage food safety practices. There’s a focus on continually enhancing IPM programs as pests, products, and techniques evolve over seasons and years.
True, quite often these new technologies and tools require some up front investment you may feel you can’t afford. But do your best to figure out the return you may expect to get on that investment — not only in cost savings, but in increased productivity in your fields and improved quality in your packing house. You may decide you can’t afford not to try something new.
What steps are you taking to ensure the long-term sustainability of your vegetable operation?
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