Why Farmers Must Always Have a Plan B at the Ready

Michael Hirakata, Co-Owner of Hirakata Farms and Produce, Rocky Ford, CO, has been growing the same cantaloupe variety for more than 10 years. It hits all the points he needs — it tastes great, has good yield, and performs well.

Even though he has a winner, he trials several varieties each year. It’s not just to see if he can find a better melon — he’s happy with what he has, after all. It’s more to have the best possible backup plan.

“We keep constantly looking because sometimes you lose the genetics,” he says.

In other words, a great melon can slowly stop being so great.

“So we’re constantly looking to see what we can do to improve or have our Plan B,” Michael says.

I’m a big believer in having a Plan B. And a Plan C, D, and all the way to Z. I think most growers are, too. When a late freeze or hailstorm can upend your livelihood, it’s good to have contingency plans in place.

My family finds my backup plans amusing. Even though I’ve worked steadily since I turned 16, I’ve always planned how I can make ends meet if I lose everything.

Plan B thinking applies to even small things. Since I was a kid, I haven’t gone to the doctor without something to occupy my time just in case I’m stuck in the waiting room.

Ironically, I’m not someone who worries about how things will go. I do what needs to be done, and if something happens that changes things, I usually have a fallback plan to execute.

Every business, especially farms, need backup plans. Is your area prone to hail? Then make sure your fields are spread out over a large area so if hail takes out one, the rest are viable.

The pandemic was one disruptor that few had backup plans for. But I’m guessing years of Plan Bs helped most of you pivot to new customers and take advantage of consumer demand when food service markets dried up.

I’m curious to see how the next couple of years will play out. Many of you began packaging your crops for the first time. Others created innovative updates on the CSA model. Will these pandemic-induced Plan Bs be the new norm?

I urge you to follow Michael’s lead in developing backups to even your most successful crops or areas in your operation. Sometimes the backups are better and become the new Plan A.