During the winter, farmers have fewer places to sell products.
Bloomington has one winter farmer’s market, compared to five in the warmer months. But one local service hopes to give farmers an extra source of revenue.
Farmogic is a farm-to-door delivery service based in Monroe County. IU students and graduates teamed up to create the business this year. The company delivers its products directly to consumers, which it says benefits both the farmers and the consumer.
“Everyone's willing to DoorDash McDonald's, but what if you want to DoorDash something local from a farm that you can cook yourself?” said Jonathan Frazier, one of the founding members of Farmogic. “So that's where we try to fit ourselves into the market.”
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Amanda Hand, owner of MKONO Farm and one of Farmogic’s partners, sells pork products from kunekune pigs. She said her farm sees a drop in meat sales from January through April. Her main sales in the winter come from her farm’s charcuterie boards.
“Winter is difficult, so like during the holiday season, people are buying salamis and things, but for some reason our meat sales just kind of fall off,” she said.
The winter farmer’s markets can also be a hit-or-miss revenue stream. Hand said she makes four times the sales at the Broad Ripple Farmers Market in Indianapolis compared to the Bloomington Winter Farmers Market.
“All of the customers that would, that shop with us in the summertime, don't shop at the indoor winter farmers market,” Hand said.
Frazier said Farmogic is seeing a 17 percent increase in pork sales going into the holiday season. In addition to pork, they also sell beef and dairy products.
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Frazier said Farmogic pork is top quality no matter what time of year it’s bought. That’s because of how the animals are fed.
Hand said rather than increasing grain feed, she opts for the pricier option of importing legume hays like clover and alfalfa.
“The kind of hay that you buy does matter; not all hays are equal,” she said.
Frazier said choices farmers like Hand make for their farms means the final product stays the same, even through a less-profitable season.
“The fact that nothing really changes for us in the winter is like a huge green light. It's like, okay, they're doing it the right way,” Frazier said.
