Help Us Recover To Continue Our Farmers Markets

Hello all,

The past six months have been quite tedious. The recent flooding caused issues from equipment getting stuck in the fields to feed unable to be delivered due to the flooding on our poultry farm. Our immediate family also had some health issues during the last year. The drought also caused one of our wells to go dry for the first time in 50 years. Many small farmers currently struggle to continue doing what they do. Infrastructure is costly and like most small farmers, the pandemic along with inflation has only made things worse. We always continue to adapt to continue farming, but sometimes it’s not always enough.

We recently took over a poultry farm which has its risks as feed costs have tripled and debt continues to pile up. But succession to young farmers is important especially as the median age of farmers in this country is over 60 years old. Young along with BIPOC farmers can’t afford to make it into sustainable farming with the extremely high cost of land. We don’t farm to become wealthy. Small-family farming is a lifestyle we want to continue and preserve. We want to protect farmland and believe farmland should be for farmers. It should not be for wealthy land investors wanting to sell it for costly unaffordable housing developments that wreak havoc on the environment. We wish to continue forward and remain on our property in Winters, CA. As many of you know, our Winters, CA farm is surrounded by the middle of town and we've had many hardships in the last 50 years trying to save the last six acres.

All of these issues were exacerbated when one of our vehicles was stolen for a second time in Oakland in September 2022 during a Farmers Market in Temescal.

On Sunday, February 5th, 2023 another vehicle of ours was stolen in Oakland, while also working a Farmers Market. In the last two years, 3 of our vehicles have broken down while two have been stolen (one being stolen twice).

In January we received a call from Oakland PD that our vehicle that was stolen in September was found. Believe it or not, when vehicles are stolen, the owner has to pay for towing expenses and to get the vehicle released or scrapped.

The second vehicle was found by a fellow business owner who emailed us right away on Monday, February 6th. Unfortunately, the vehicle had the catalytic converter removed, a hole in the gas tank to drain the gas and the steering wheel tampered with. The worst part of it is that it was filled with complete garbage. Both vehicles were stripped and in order to continue going to Bay Area Farmers Markets, we need a replacement.

It is a major loss for us, but the sad part is that people are forced to resort to stealing because they have no other way to survive.

We never ask for help, mainly because Phil Sr. & Carmen are old-school farmers who believe we can overcome hardship by ourselves. But that can only last for so long. We are not looking for much but would like to purchase a new vehicle to continue doing our markets, invest in security systems for our vehicles and pay off farm debts that continue to pile up.

We appreciate our customers and we honestly wouldn’t be here without all of you. We never forget when a customer tells us they are glad we are at the farmers market or their genuine concerns for the future of the farm. We have considered quitting farming many times, but we keep going because it's a way for us to preserve the land, our history in California and provide food for the people around us.

Thank you,

*All donations will be used to put a down payment for a new/used vehicle & to stabilize our feed costs*