Steve Murray of Heart Beets Farm, in his greenhouse.

Dear Friend,                                                                   

          Your gift to The Carrot Project supported major changes in this tumultuous year. I’d like to share how farmer Steve Murray rolled with the punches to adapt to the pandemic, and explain why farmers need your help this winter.

          Steve and Sarah Murray operate Heart Beats Farm in Berkley, MA. Heart Beats is a 36-acre diversified vegetable farm in southeastern Massachusetts. Your past support helped put Steve in a position where he could adapt in the face of uncertainty. When demand for safe and local food exploded this spring, he was able to make a rapid, confident pivot.

To protect themselves and their customers, Steve and Sarah made the risky decision to drop their farmers’ market, and close their farm stand. Instead, they almost doubled the number of farm shares offered from 120 to 210 — and sold out. This huge decision was possible because Steve has been tracking his numbers carefully for years; thanks to support from The Carrot Project, he knew exactly which parts of his farm were most profitable.

          Farmers without Steve’s years of experience and financial stability are now facing a winter of uncertainty. Most of our clients — 89% — are farm and food business owners who are just getting started, and have low-to-moderate incomes. Already operating on razor-thin margins, this winter may be make or break for many vulnerable businesses. They can either find a way to take advantage of the boom in demand for local food, or they could lose the businesses they’ve poured their hearts into — and which you helped start.

Can you step up to help more farmers like Steve access resources from The Carrot Project, respond to the pandemic, and pivot their farms successfully in 2021? Our clients urgently need your support as they evaluate what happened and decide how to move forward. We’ve adjusted our services to address the questions and needs they have now. Your gift will help them access the resources they desperately need, making it possible for their businesses to survive — and even thrive — during the pandemic.

Steve Murray picks a turnip in his field
 

          I’m also reminded that while we’ve all been focusing on the pandemic, and rightly so, there are other crises affecting farmers, too. We faced a severe drought this year; climate change is slowly but surely shifting our ecology; and our clients are often working to overcome systemic barriers threatening to limit their potential, as low-income, beginning business owners without generational wealth or inherited access to land. Now, our clients need your support more than ever.

Please make a gift to The Carrot Project again this year. We have only $6,000 left to raise to meet our $140,000 goal. Your gift will ensure that farm and food business owners can access our trainings, workshops and one-on-one business assistance this winter. They will have a better chance to take advantage of the booming demand for local food  — something we hope is here to stay long after the pandemic has receded.

This work is impossible without you: please send in your gift today. We will put it immediately to work with 60 farm and food entrepreneurs. Please contact me with any questions at dsuput@thecarrotproject.org or 617-674-2371x5.

We are facing a moment of transformation. These uncertain times are so challenging, yet offer tremendous potential for local, sustainable agriculture. Please join me in supporting these incredible entrepreneurs, and help build a new path toward vibrant, resilient, local food systems, by making a contribution today. Thank you!

 
Sincerely,
 
Dorothy Suput
Founder and Executive Director
 
P.S. We’re really close to meeting our goal to support farmers in the aftermath of the pandemic in 2021. Can you help us get there?

The Carrot Project
89 South Street Suite 700 | Boston, Massachusetts 02111
(617) 674-2371 | info@thecarrotproject.org

 

Follow Us

Having trouble viewing this email? View it in your web browser

Unsubscribe