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ekgrows

What are you charging in 2014?

ekgrows
9 years ago

Since we are all over the country, I know pricing will differ among us all. Just thought it would be interesting to see what others are charging. We are in the burbs - about 50 miles NW of Chicago. We are also certified organic, so try to charge more than the conventional vendors. Because we are a very small operation (less than 2 acres) we try to grow things that the bigger growers don't, and utilize high tunnels to have early produce. I also plant intensively - everything is in double rows.
Tomatoes - $3 / lb. We grow heirlooms and odd tomatoes.
Cherry tomatoes (10 types mixed) $3.50 / pint. Might raise to $3.75 this year - we always sell out.
Kale, collards, chard - $3 / bunch. Might have to drop this soon to $2.
Zucchini - $1 each - regardless of size
Peas - $3 / pint
Strawberries - $4 / pint
Cucumbers $.75 each - may do 3 for $2 as market gets saturated.
Peppers - have done $2.50 / lb in the past, may change to $.75 each, or 3 for $2.
Eggplant - $2.50 / lb (pink and bicolored types - can't compete with the black varieties)
Garlic - $9 / lb. About $2.50 for the largest bulbs, $1 for average. We have 11 varieties this year, so sorting by size is not an option. People buy more garlic from us than anyone else, because we have it sorted by type.
Garlic scapes - 6/ $1
Elephant garlic $5 - 6 / lb. haven't decided yet....
Broccoli - still on the fence. $2 or $2.50 / lb
Herbs - $2 / bunch
Baby pink ginger - $14 / lb - most people buy a piece that costs $1.50 - juicers will buy more.
ground cherries - $4 / pint
Mexican sour gherkins - $4 / snack sized ziploc bag
Purple potatoes - $2.50 / lb
Tomatillos - $2 pint
sweet potatoes - $3 / lb
Leeks - $1 each
cabbage (smaller) $2 each
Filet beans $4 / bag (~1/2 lb). Again - cant compete with "green beans" - have to specialize there.
Oasis turnips - $2 / bunch - (4-5 depending on size) Might change that to $.50 each as more produce starts coming in, just to save the bunching time.

New this year are shallots. Not sure what to charge for those - a lady next to us charges $3 for a half pint basket. We only have pint baskets, so might need to figure out a price per pound for those.

Comments (10)

  • randy41_1
    9 years ago

    i sell elephant garlic for $8/lb. eggplant and peppers right now are $4/lb. potatoes are $2/lb. not certified organic. the rest looks in line with what i do. i sell at a small market in a small town in a very rural county.

  • gama_garden_tx
    9 years ago

    I grow on a microfarm, and grow organic without certificate, so here we call that 'sustainable'. I grow mostly specialty heirlooms that no one else grows. I'm a little over 20 miles NW of the market which is about 8 miles west of Houston. Houston is very similar to Chicago, so I may rethink some of my pricing..

    Tomatoes - no longer sell due to pests
    Kale, mustard greens, kohlrabi greens, chard, broccoli greens- $2 bunch. Should probably increase to $3/bunch when no one else has it
    Peas - $4 /quart
    Cucumbers $1.00 each. $2.00 if I'm the first one with specialty cucumbers.
    Peppers - depends on the pepper. Hot peppers are either 4 for $1 (jalapeños), 5 for $1 (habeneros), small hot peppers are 8 for $1 or sold by container, sweet bells are $2 each or $2 pint depending on size.
    Eggplant - $1.00/lb (or a container of 5 white and purple small egg sized, may need to increase to $2/lb or $2/container)
    Garlic - looking to grow this fall, may sell for $16/lb or $1/ea small.
    Herbs - $2 / bunch (certain mints are $1/bunch, parsley is $1/bunch, rosemary $1/bunch or free with purchase)
    Nasturtium flowers $2/pint (when I have them)
    Leeks - $2/ea
    Fennel- $3 each, or $2/each when everyone has it
    Filet beans $4 or $5 / quart
    Radish -$2 / bunch (5 in a bunch)
    Carrots $1/bunch (6-7 in a bunch)
    Artichoke $4 each big, $3 medium, $2, small, $3 for flower
    Lettuce (can't sell it!) :(
    Starter plants $2/each
    Okra $1/lb or free with purchase when I have it

  • Slimy_Okra
    9 years ago

    Tomatoes - $3/lb in season and $5/lb early season
    Peppers - $5/lb
    Eggplant - $5/lb
    Ground cherries - $5/pint
    Tomatillos - $5/lb
    Kale, swiss chard: $2.50/bunch (1/4 to 1/3 lb a bunch)
    Potatoes - $3/lb except new potatoes which are twice the price
    Herbs: $2.50/oz

  • little_minnie
    9 years ago

    This is always very interesting! Our market doesn't do bulk prices but I have scales at my washing station and indoors so I can really see how much something weighs and then compare to all these sorts of prices. I think customers would drive over us if we charged $2 for a small bunch of radish but that must be a local thing. I do green top bunches of almost everything- as much as I can hold in one hand and generally $3 each for most of my stuff. I do quarts of fruiting things still for $3 too. I like $3 evidently. But I am open to reassessing prices and watching what others charge. If I could sell heirloom tomatoes well (which I think will happen this year due to weather) I will charge $4 a quart or pint of cherries.
    I just dug a few garlic yesterday and sold one large and one medium bulb tied together for $3. Previously I was afraid to go so high but it is in short supply at market now.
    I have done little bags of shallots or pints when I have a lot. The price can go very high and since they store extremely well there is no reason to drop it.

  • mossflower
    9 years ago

    Well I am in NY state (not the city) and our prices are definitely way more than yours.

    I am getting $4 a bunch for Kale, Collards, Chard.
    $3 for radishes, broccoli/cauliflower is $8 a lb, $3 a half pint for sugar snap peas, $1.50 for each kohlrabi, $4-5 for gourmet salad mix per bag (1/2 lb), $4 for a bag of sorrel, $2 for herb bunches,

    When our heirloom tomatoes come in they are generally $6-8 per lb and the customers are happy to pay it.

    We are a Certified Naturally Grown farm and do everything by hand.

  • kelise_m
    9 years ago

    ekgrows, Your prices are very similar to what we are getting here in Western Oregon for organic produce. We get more for slicing tomatoes, especially this early in our tomato season. I only charge 3.50 to 4 dollars a pound for shallots, but they are so easy to grow from seed, some of the others may be growing from sets and they are more expensive. Prices on everything are up compared to five years ago when I started, but the differential between organic and conventional is much less, in some cases the prices are the same.

    I happy to see people mentioning ground cherries. I am growing them for market for the first time and was wondering how to price them.

  • Slimy_Okra
    9 years ago

    Kelisle,

    Handing out samples greatly boosted ground cherry sales for me.

  • ekgrows
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Thank you everybody for posting! It sure is interesting to see the differences in pricing. Based on some comments, I think I will raise some of my planned pricing. I can always come down if need be.

    I second the sampling of ground cherries - it really helps. Because they have their own little wrapper, it is the only thing we are allowed to sample without having a washing station at our booth.

  • cole_robbie
    9 years ago

    Tomatoes just dropped to $1.75/lb last week. I kept mine at $2 and still sold out. I'm getting repeat customers because mine taste the best. I put 2 pounds in a quart box, and customers love to buy them by the box. It takes away the work of having to pick out good tomatoes. I may go organic next year and try to get $3/pound.

    Red cherries are $2/pint and colored/artisan cherries are $3. I could probably get $3.50.