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2020 Producers Changing to address covid-19 concerns
Producers Changing to Address COVID-19 Concerns
KEEPING YOUR FARM, STAFF, & CUSTOMERS SAFE
You have an essential business, and it is important that you take the steps required to address COVID-19 concerns and protect everyone involved. We have compiled a list of tips to get the ball rolling. These tips fall under the following categories:
General Hygiene:
Protecting Customers and Staff:
Using Public Transportation:
Social Distancing:
Maintain Your Health and Family:
Sources:
https://www.abc.net.au/news/rural/2020-04-13/how-farmers-are-protecting-food-security-during-covid-19/12139044
https://www.hutchnews.com/news/20200409/farmers-markets-can-be-safe-amid-covid-19
https://guardian.ng/features/agro-care/how-farmers-can-survive-covid-19-pandemic/
https://www.agrobusinessngr.com/how-farmers-can-survive-covid-19-pandemic/
- General Hygiene
- Protecting Customers and Staff
- Using Public Transportation
- Social Distancing
- Maintain Your Health and Family
General Hygiene:
- Stay connected to the Center for Disease Control (CDC) (https://www.cdc.gov/) and World Health Organization (WHO) (https://www.who.int/) for the latest COVID-19 developments
- Wash your hands with soap as often as possible for 20 seconds or more. Sing “Happy Birthday” while you wash your hands to confirm that you are doing it for the appropriate amount of time. (https://www.cdc.gov/handwashing/when-how-handwashing.html)
- Wash your hands before touching your eyes, nose, mouth, or any other part of your face.
- Frequently clean and disinfect high touch surfaces, like tables and door handles
- Perform daily temperature checks on yourself and your workers for signs of fever
- Have workers wear masks when working in the field
- Let your customers know if you are a farm with GAP Certification (Good Agricultural Practices)
- Wearing gloves may help, but is not a substitute for hand washing. Learn how to properly remove gloves to avoid contamination. (https://www.cdc.gov/vhf/ebola/pdf/poster-how-to-remove-gloves.pdf)
Protecting Customers and Staff:
- Practice social distancing with your workers and customers by maintaining 6-foot distance and using contactless delivery to transfer your goods
- Have customers call to order ahead. This will reduce the time they need to be on the farm and the number of items they can touch.
- Do not provide unpackaged produce as samples or for purchase. Prepackage your produce to reduce exposure.
- Limit customers from touching produce they do not intend to purchase.
- Establish a designated location for customers to purchase produce.
- Encourage customers to wear a mask or face covering when they come for their produce
- Schedule separate pickup times for farmer’s market customers. You may also encourage customers to stay inside their vehicles and have their purchases delivered to their vehicle.
- Offer designated shopping hours for high-risk customers, such as the elderly or immunocompromised.
- Provide consumers and employees with alcohol-based hand sanitizer at the farm entrance
- Start using credit card to process payment instead of cash
- If you still have to accept cash, round off the cost of items to the nearest dollar to avoid dealing with handling loose change (coins).
- Anyone handling money/cash, should sanitize their hands between each transaction.
- Instruct your customers to wash produce with clean running water when they get home as an added safety precaution.
Using Public Transportation:
- If you have to use public transportation, which requires you to touch handles, seats, handrails, and ticket machines, minimize your exposure by wearing a mask and gloves during your transit.
- After you arrive at your destination, remove your gloves and wash or sanitize your hands and anything clothing or bags that came in contact with the seat or floor.
- To reduce the spread of COVID-19, throw away used gloves in a trash can, not on the ground.
- While you are out, do not touch any part of your face with your hands, even if you are wearing gloves. Instead, use a clean tissue and then discard in the nearest trash can.
- Make sure to sanitize the bottom of your handbag, which is often placed on a variety of surfaces, including tables, chairs, and floors.
Social Distancing:
- Do not attend or host large social gatherings. We would not want our loved ones to put their health at risk.
- Do not shake hands, hug, or stay within 6 feet of someone else.
- Prevent on-site food consumption and customers from sitting at your farm.
- Use this time to make improvements on your farm
Maintain Your Health and Family:
- Make sure you eat well and get adequate rest for your immune system to recharge.
- Make sure you have the medicine you need to maintain proper health.
- This can be a stressful time. Make a list of self-care activities your like to do to help manage your stress and maintain a proper blood pressure, like reading, talking with loved ones, watching a comedy, playing with pets, or exercising.
- Check on your loved ones by phone or a video call to stay connected.
- Sanitize your cell phone by wiping it with a disinfectant as often as possible. You use your cell phone to track orders, schedule deliveries, and everything in-between. When you touch your phone, viruses can transfer from hands or gloves to the surface of your phone.
- Use the speaker or headphones to answer calls and minimize your phone touching your face.
- If there are children in your family who need additional food during this time, you can look at this website to find nearby locations providing free meals to kids 18 years old and younger (call ahead to confirm hours of operation): https://summerbreakspot.freshfromflorida.com/
Sources:
https://www.abc.net.au/news/rural/2020-04-13/how-farmers-are-protecting-food-security-during-covid-19/12139044
https://www.hutchnews.com/news/20200409/farmers-markets-can-be-safe-amid-covid-19
https://guardian.ng/features/agro-care/how-farmers-can-survive-covid-19-pandemic/
https://www.agrobusinessngr.com/how-farmers-can-survive-covid-19-pandemic/
Proactively Responding to Change
With news of the novel Coronavirus, communities and businesses have been forced to change how they operate and incorporate strategies that support social distancing to protect their customers and employees. Tamara and Jerry Renick of Ecotone Farm were also challenged to adjust to this new circumstance in the peak of their growing season. Ecotone Farm is a family operated hydroponic farm, sustainably growing a variety of lettuces, vegetables, herbs, and microgreens in Fellsmere, Florida.
They supply fresh locally grown produce to fine restaurants, country clubs, grocers, and support their local CSA through their on-farm farmer’s market. In addition, they also educate the community by providing tours of their facility and hosting other organizations, like the North South Institute, who offer agricultural workshops and training events. Tamara and Jerry decided to take a proactive approach to protect their customers and farm by limiting the foot traffic on the farm. Instead of their usual On-Farm Farmer’s Market providing weekly produce and value-added products, they instituted a drive by system with their daily “over the fence” delivery. Customers can call to place an order for pickup. Their order will be picked fresh and packed before their scheduled pickup time at Ecotone Farm’s front gate.
By reducing foot traffic on the farm, packaging each order, and scheduling separate customer pickup times, Ecotone Farm is protecting their customers and staff by:
In addition to these measures, Ecotone Farm frequently sanitizes common areas, surfaces, and tools. To protect their business clients, Ecotone Farm ensures that drivers wear masks and gloves when delivering orders to grocery stores and restaurants.
“We know that by pulling together and doing the right thing, we will get through this and hopefully be even stronger on the other side.” - Tamara & Jerry Renick, Ecotone Farm
They supply fresh locally grown produce to fine restaurants, country clubs, grocers, and support their local CSA through their on-farm farmer’s market. In addition, they also educate the community by providing tours of their facility and hosting other organizations, like the North South Institute, who offer agricultural workshops and training events. Tamara and Jerry decided to take a proactive approach to protect their customers and farm by limiting the foot traffic on the farm. Instead of their usual On-Farm Farmer’s Market providing weekly produce and value-added products, they instituted a drive by system with their daily “over the fence” delivery. Customers can call to place an order for pickup. Their order will be picked fresh and packed before their scheduled pickup time at Ecotone Farm’s front gate.
By reducing foot traffic on the farm, packaging each order, and scheduling separate customer pickup times, Ecotone Farm is protecting their customers and staff by:
- reducing large gatherings
- limiting the number of hands that have touched the produce
- ensuring that produce is only handled with clean gloves to limit cross contamination
- washing or sanitizing hands between servicing customers, and
- enforcing social distancing
In addition to these measures, Ecotone Farm frequently sanitizes common areas, surfaces, and tools. To protect their business clients, Ecotone Farm ensures that drivers wear masks and gloves when delivering orders to grocery stores and restaurants.
“We know that by pulling together and doing the right thing, we will get through this and hopefully be even stronger on the other side.” - Tamara & Jerry Renick, Ecotone Farm
Urban Farms and Farmer's Markets
Partnership in Urban Farms and Farmers Market
North South Institute (NSI) in partnership with USDA has established and expanding establishment of five urban farms and farmers’ markets in the tri-county region of south Florida. An urban farm is simply a farm in an urban peri-urban setting. Norland Seventh-Day Adventist (SDA) Church located in North Miami is one of these farms. NSI has extended the program to include a local farmer’s market for most of these urban farms.
Overcoming Barriers and Challenges
As our programs grew, so did the barriers and challenges, we faced, but nobody was expecting a challenge like COVID-19. We needed to expand our circle of partners to help spread the word about our programs at Norland SDA. So, we decided to use this crisis to help the community and make a positive impact.
The Norland SDA Urban Farm and Farmers Market rose to the challenge, and is a success story of the involvement of their entire community during this time of crisis. Their urban farm has been a haven for the volunteers who are otherwise restricted under the COVID-19 quarantine. The volunteers have assigned days due to social distancing, and most of them use this as an outdoor activity for their entire family. Fortunately, the type of strawberry grown was a late variety and is in full reaping season, hence why the children are enjoying the farm. The other vegetables such as kale, squash, greens, carrots, watermelons, and herbs are reaped weekly and left on a table on the farm where patrons come to purchase.
Their farmer’s market is only open to their community who will pick up their produce from an unmanned table weekly. Payment is on an honor system, and so far, the system is going well with everyone pleased. Some of the produce is also given away to families in need.
It takes a community in partnership to keep this system going. Last week when the NSI outreach officer checked in for the weekly virtual field visit, there was family of five on the farm weeding, watering, and fertilizing. They were in great spirits despite the unrest that the community is facing due to COVID-19. The mother explained that the urban farm was their only safe outdoor activity. This meeting was done via “WhatsApp video chat” to stay connected with producers while maintaining social distancing requirements.
Our outreach officer gave the volunteers guidelines on how to:
This farm will be expanding and growing more fruits and vegetables for the summer and fall. They intend to work with local veterans and youth to expend their volunteer group, while providing fresh fruits and vegetables for their community. This is an example of the strength of local community when they receive help from partners such as NSI and USDA.
North South Institute (NSI) in partnership with USDA has established and expanding establishment of five urban farms and farmers’ markets in the tri-county region of south Florida. An urban farm is simply a farm in an urban peri-urban setting. Norland Seventh-Day Adventist (SDA) Church located in North Miami is one of these farms. NSI has extended the program to include a local farmer’s market for most of these urban farms.
Overcoming Barriers and Challenges
As our programs grew, so did the barriers and challenges, we faced, but nobody was expecting a challenge like COVID-19. We needed to expand our circle of partners to help spread the word about our programs at Norland SDA. So, we decided to use this crisis to help the community and make a positive impact.
The Norland SDA Urban Farm and Farmers Market rose to the challenge, and is a success story of the involvement of their entire community during this time of crisis. Their urban farm has been a haven for the volunteers who are otherwise restricted under the COVID-19 quarantine. The volunteers have assigned days due to social distancing, and most of them use this as an outdoor activity for their entire family. Fortunately, the type of strawberry grown was a late variety and is in full reaping season, hence why the children are enjoying the farm. The other vegetables such as kale, squash, greens, carrots, watermelons, and herbs are reaped weekly and left on a table on the farm where patrons come to purchase.
Their farmer’s market is only open to their community who will pick up their produce from an unmanned table weekly. Payment is on an honor system, and so far, the system is going well with everyone pleased. Some of the produce is also given away to families in need.
It takes a community in partnership to keep this system going. Last week when the NSI outreach officer checked in for the weekly virtual field visit, there was family of five on the farm weeding, watering, and fertilizing. They were in great spirits despite the unrest that the community is facing due to COVID-19. The mother explained that the urban farm was their only safe outdoor activity. This meeting was done via “WhatsApp video chat” to stay connected with producers while maintaining social distancing requirements.
Our outreach officer gave the volunteers guidelines on how to:
- Fertilize and maintain the crop
- Keep the farm and tools clean and safe
- Protect themselves, other volunteers and customers from COVID-19
- Harvest produce for safe distribution
This farm will be expanding and growing more fruits and vegetables for the summer and fall. They intend to work with local veterans and youth to expend their volunteer group, while providing fresh fruits and vegetables for their community. This is an example of the strength of local community when they receive help from partners such as NSI and USDA.
School Shutdown, Garden Still Producing
Transition to Online Learning as Garden Continues to Produce
North Lauderdale Pre-K - 8 is a Broward County Public School located in a food desert. A food desert is defined as an urban area in which it is difficult to buy affordable or good-quality fresh food. With the materials, training, and time donated by the North South Institute and USDA, North Lauderdale Pre-K – 8 established their Lion’s School Garden as an initiative to provide a fun and educational hands on approach for children to learn where food comes from, the importance of good nutrition, and how to plant and maintain a garden. School gardens are essential, as they are designed to mitigate “food deserts,” where there is lack of available and reasonably priced fresh fruits and vegetables.
“North South Institute plays an integral role in our garden. We are very grateful to them for being our sponsors who provide us with gardening supplies such as soil, biodegradable grow bags, seeds and seedlings, gardening literature among other things. They also provide the manpower to prepare the garden and transition it from one season of planting to another. Thank you NSI!!” – Mrs. Doreen Brown, Lion’s School Garden Liaison
The Lion’s School Garden project gave children a sense of accomplishment especially during harvest time, when they picked, cleaned, packaged, and disbursed the produce amongst their families, faculty, and staff. Students were also able to incorporate what they have learned into their homes during meal preparations. All grade levels utilize the garden for learning in a variety of subject areas such as:
The Lion’s School Garden project attracted so much attention from students, faculty, and the community, that it was featured on Local 10 News in February.
Prior to the COVID-19 crisis, the Lion’s Garden had safety packaging measures in place, where they used produce bags to package crops such as kale and collard greens. Produce like strawberries, were packaged in sealable bags and then distributed to each grade level. All prepackaged produce was then placed into brown paper bags, labeled, and displayed on a table for pickup. When all the bags were ready, an announcement would be made for staff to come select a bag on a first come, first serve basis.
With the recent Coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis, schools have been shut down for the safety of students, faculty, and staff. Although the garden is closed to the public during school shut down, it still produces a harvest. During Device Distribution Day, a day designated to ensure that all children have access to a computer to continue learning online, the school garden staff made an announcement inviting the faculty and staff to the garden to select produce. The staff was able to effectively and successfully implement their safety, packaging, and disbursement protocols during this time. Strawberries are plentiful at this time but this prolonged period of drought is affecting the plants, as they need watering daily.
It is now the final quarter of the school year, so much of the harvesting will be done by faculty and staff who will visit the campus in small groups, as they did on Monday, April 20, 2020. Staff members are volunteering to read aloud to their students until the end of the school year as a way of connecting with them. Mrs. Brown will be reading both fiction and informational text about gardening and showing pertinent pictures/video segments of our garden.
The School Garden is designed to have a production lull at the end of the school year, which is at the beginning of June. There is much evidence of spring activity in the garden right now, as nesting birds and bugs utilize the garden as a food source for their babies and fledgling young. This is a very good time to see insect and bird life cycles in action. From the beginning of June through the rest of the summer, the garden will be left dormant, so the summer rains can soften the soil and for the insects to continue their work in breaking down the vegetation. The cycle will begin again for next school year.
North Lauderdale Pre-K - 8 is a Broward County Public School located in a food desert. A food desert is defined as an urban area in which it is difficult to buy affordable or good-quality fresh food. With the materials, training, and time donated by the North South Institute and USDA, North Lauderdale Pre-K – 8 established their Lion’s School Garden as an initiative to provide a fun and educational hands on approach for children to learn where food comes from, the importance of good nutrition, and how to plant and maintain a garden. School gardens are essential, as they are designed to mitigate “food deserts,” where there is lack of available and reasonably priced fresh fruits and vegetables.
“North South Institute plays an integral role in our garden. We are very grateful to them for being our sponsors who provide us with gardening supplies such as soil, biodegradable grow bags, seeds and seedlings, gardening literature among other things. They also provide the manpower to prepare the garden and transition it from one season of planting to another. Thank you NSI!!” – Mrs. Doreen Brown, Lion’s School Garden Liaison
The Lion’s School Garden project gave children a sense of accomplishment especially during harvest time, when they picked, cleaned, packaged, and disbursed the produce amongst their families, faculty, and staff. Students were also able to incorporate what they have learned into their homes during meal preparations. All grade levels utilize the garden for learning in a variety of subject areas such as:
- Science – “Plant and Animal Life Cycles”
- Math – “Geometry - Patterns in Nature”
- Social Studies – “From the farm/garden to the kitchen”
- English Language Arts – “Reading and writing about fruits and vegetables”, and
- Other hands on activities.
The Lion’s School Garden project attracted so much attention from students, faculty, and the community, that it was featured on Local 10 News in February.
Prior to the COVID-19 crisis, the Lion’s Garden had safety packaging measures in place, where they used produce bags to package crops such as kale and collard greens. Produce like strawberries, were packaged in sealable bags and then distributed to each grade level. All prepackaged produce was then placed into brown paper bags, labeled, and displayed on a table for pickup. When all the bags were ready, an announcement would be made for staff to come select a bag on a first come, first serve basis.
With the recent Coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis, schools have been shut down for the safety of students, faculty, and staff. Although the garden is closed to the public during school shut down, it still produces a harvest. During Device Distribution Day, a day designated to ensure that all children have access to a computer to continue learning online, the school garden staff made an announcement inviting the faculty and staff to the garden to select produce. The staff was able to effectively and successfully implement their safety, packaging, and disbursement protocols during this time. Strawberries are plentiful at this time but this prolonged period of drought is affecting the plants, as they need watering daily.
It is now the final quarter of the school year, so much of the harvesting will be done by faculty and staff who will visit the campus in small groups, as they did on Monday, April 20, 2020. Staff members are volunteering to read aloud to their students until the end of the school year as a way of connecting with them. Mrs. Brown will be reading both fiction and informational text about gardening and showing pertinent pictures/video segments of our garden.
The School Garden is designed to have a production lull at the end of the school year, which is at the beginning of June. There is much evidence of spring activity in the garden right now, as nesting birds and bugs utilize the garden as a food source for their babies and fledgling young. This is a very good time to see insect and bird life cycles in action. From the beginning of June through the rest of the summer, the garden will be left dormant, so the summer rains can soften the soil and for the insects to continue their work in breaking down the vegetation. The cycle will begin again for next school year.