As the shadow of the pandemic wanes, Coke Farm, an organic food hub based in San Juan Bautista, California, has observed some changes in the organic produce market.

Coke Farm offers organic specialty items such as Meyer lemons, romanesco, purple cauliflower, shallots, and sunchokes (Jerusalem artichokes)

Coke Farm, which represents more than 100 growers and offers as many as 160 organic produce SKUs depending on the season, is well-known for its specialty items in addition to its core commodities.  

“Specialty offerings and niche crops are our passion—and we are seeing an uptick in interest again as we come out of ‘COVID times,’” said Sales Manager Olivier Griss.

Olivier Griss, Sales Manager, Coke Farm

Organic shallots, celery root, sunchokes, frisée, and chicory are all items that are now seeing greater demand, said Griss, noting that Coke’s organic Meyer lemon program, one of the longest-standing in the country, is also seeing increased interest.

Some core commodities, on the other hand, aren’t faring as well. “Since mid-January, demand appears flat or even down for several organic row crop veg items,” said Griss, citing herbs, bunching greens, and broccoli, in particular.

The softer market for these commodities is something Griss attributes to a couple of factors. He said product out of Mexico during the winter months is cutting into demand for domestic-grown items, plus markets have often been flooded due to the overplanting that occurred in the wake of the COVID demand surge.

“Since mid-January, demand appears flat or even down for several organic row crop veg items,” said Griss, citing herbs, bunching greens, and broccoli, in particular.

Griss did note that the weather-related tight veg market this past October–December brought some very welcome relief to Coke’s farmers. “For our grower base who had quality product, it was a much-needed shot in the arm after what was a tough year and a half of lower FOB returns following the COVID boom purchasing,” he said, though he added that on the sales side of the equation, the sky-high prices led to some difficulties. 

Coke Farm's organic Meyer lemons are available December–March

“For our customers, tight veg markets bring a whole other set of challenges that they must manage,” he said. “We truly care deeply about both our growers and our customers, so as challenging as it can be, we do our best to manage a middle place for each of them. Deep down, I think both customer and grower are trying to make sense of these extreme high and low veg markets and how we can manage better together as an organic industry.”

The overall inflationary environment is, of course, also an issue right now. “Undoubtedly, inflation is putting pressure on the grower and customer as margins on both sides are being negatively affected,” Griss said. “Growers are looking to fetch the highest possible return as the costs to operate are becoming untenable at times. Our customers’ feedback is that they are feeling some slowdown on demand with some of the recent sticker shock on organics at the retail level, all the way to foodservice and beyond.”

Deep down, I think both customer and grower are trying to make sense of these extreme high and low veg markets and how we can manage better together as an organic industry.” - Olivier Griss

Despite these headwinds, Griss said Coke continues to expand into additional markets. “We are increasing our footprint with many local food outlets and systems (i.e., schools, hospitals, universities, corporate properties, etc.). There are many untouched areas we want to explore further for our grower base.”

Recently, Coke Farm has expanded its efforts to get organic product into schools and is focusing on building more connections to support that endeavor.

Coke Farm's organic purple daikon radish

“We are further aligning with the local school districts,” Griss said. “This includes grant funding, direct-to-school orders, and co-partnering with logistics arms to work as a delivery point for multi-drop locations within a school district. This is a slow process that has a large network of people—USDA, CDFA, school food program directors etc. We’re all trying to step outside of the box to create more farm-to-school activity. The kids deserve it!”

“We are increasing our footprint with many local food outlets and systems (i.e., schools, hospitals, universities, corporate properties, etc.). There are many untouched areas we want to explore further for our grower base.” - Olivier Griss

Another long-term, high-priority effort of Coke Farm is to support sustainable packaging. “We continue to push as hard as we can on the compostable/sustainable packaging efforts,” said Griss, noting that the company offers a number of items in the Sambrailo ReadyCycle packaging. “It has been a work in progress with some challenges but mostly incredible successes. Having sold ReadyCycle-packaged products for several seasons now, one thing is undeniable—the consumer really wants this! We must convince the bodies in between that it can work.”

Sambrailo's ReadyCycle packaging is available for Coke Farm's organic berries, tomatoes, peppers, snap peas, and more

Looking ahead, Griss said he believes the organic produce industry will flourish. However, he noted that this may not be “in the traditional sense we know today. Wet racks may shrink some, and retail grab-and-go items will continue to grow as a category. I also expect the fresh cut sector—which has been going crazy recently—to show no sign of slowing down. Small and medium-sized farms, distributors, and retailers will continue to be challenged to compete with the larger entities. It would be beneficial to initiate some kind of coordinated strategic alliances to ensure that smaller companies can thrive together.”

Reflecting on organics as a whole, Griss said, “Call me a dreamer, but organic farming and the organic marketplaces are truly special. That’s why we at Coke Farm love it. It’s dynamic, challenging, and as hard as it is to admit, sometimes pretty fun! Let’s work hard as an industry to preserve this special privilege we all share.”