Nov. 16, 2008 — Bringing in a sizable profit at the end of the day is generally the goal of any successful business enterprise, but for many in the territory, the term "successful farmer" doesn't necessarily apply to the person who makes the most money — according to local experts, successful farmers are the ones who work through the everyday challenges and use their limited resources in the best and most efficient ways possible.
If that's true, then the Virgin Islands is really chock full of successful farmers, from those residents who cover every inch of their balconies with box gardens full of thyme and rosemary, to those part-time schoolteachers and construction workers who use the half acre of land attached to their house to harvest everything from collard greens to sweet peppers for the annual agricultural fair. In every scenario, the frustrations voiced are the same — a lack of water, land and subsidies from the government. But through it all, there are still many that say they would like to be able to farm on a full-time basis and see agriculture in the territory restored to its former glory.
Alphonso Wade III, owner of Organic West Farm and Catering, has two half-acre plots of land on St. Thomas — one in West Caret Bay and the other in Estate Dorothea — on which he grows everything from spinach to Suriname cherries. He works every day from sunup to sundown and invests about $15,000 a year into his full-time business. At the end of a good year, he grosses up to $45,000. But that figure — which is dependent on a variety of factors, such as good weather and a reliable source of transportation — can sometimes fall as low as $20,000.
But Wade remains optimistic, still working toward his goal of expanding the business and continuing to provide a consistent supply of produce, local juices and homemade vegan dishes to a wide network of loyal customers, all the while keeping a few tricks up his sleeve to make sure this dream becomes a reality. These include a variety of farming techniques — such as multi-cropping and using the large trees on his land as natural trellises for fruit-producing vines — and making sure that there is a demand for what he tries to grow in abundance.
"To be honest, fruit is where you make your money, but I can only really do that on a seasonal basis," he explained, pointing to small groves of mango, lime and banana trees. "Now, if I had two acres of land, divided into half-acre plots, I could grow more of these things, and maybe concentrate on specific crops, but I don't have the land, and I have to be realistic. So keeping in mind what I do have, I look at what I could grow that could supply one to two restaurants on a consistent basis. You see, farming should be much more than just a cultural thing. It's got to be a business, and you have to be able to think about it in those kind of terms."
What Wade does consistently is supply the island's Subway restaurants with its bush tea, head out to the Donoe Bypass every Friday to set up his small produce stand and deliver his home-cooked food every Tuesday to residents downtown. The produce stand can bring in about $500 to $600 in a good week, or about $200 to $300 in a slow week, he said.
"So what I do is balance everything out with what we call value-added products," he said. "I make my own pastries and juices from what I grow. With certain produce, like cucumbers or eggplants, I go by poundage — that's where you see your money. A pack of hot peppers is $8 a pound, while a pack of pigeon peas is $4 a pound. Now that may seem like a lot of money, but people generally don't buy a whole pound worth of peas — so I divide my bags up into half or one fourth of a pound, weigh it, put the price on the bag and people just pick them up."
Instead of going to one of the many food vans parked around Charlotte Amalie for lunch, residents can instead call Wade up on Tuesdays for a plate of his home-cooked vegan cuisine, with dishes ranging from tofu in lime butter sauce to lentil loaf. Wade delivers the food — for which he charges $10 a plate — himself, working from Hospital Ground to the UVI Sports and Fitness Center.
"With Organic West Farm and Catering, our goal is to take the all the freshness from the farm to the pot and then to the table," he said. "So you're only really getting organic stuff, which is also in demand. People like to have fresh food."
Using what he's learned about his customers in the 20 or so years he's been in the farming business, Wade plans to expand into other areas of value-added production, such as brewing and bottling local juices.
"Look around the island — you always see a lot of fruit dropping off trees in people's yards and going to waste," he said. "But instead of picking them up and washing them off, it's easier for people just to go into the grocery store and buy a box of juice — juice that's not even organic — for $5 or $6. Why not sell fresh, healthy juice at the same price? I would like to be able to produce juice on a larger scale, and to do that, I have to look at the number of trees I have in production, like lime or mango or cherry."
The Government's Role
To be able to farm successfully in the territory also takes a strong commitment from both the farmers and the government, according to Errol Chichester, deputy commissioner of Agriculture on St. Croix.
"It is not easy work, and the farmer must be willing to invest the time, effort and resources needed to run the farm," he said. "Also taking the time to learn, to get the training and take advantage of the available educational programs will help a farmer to be successful. You must do the research to know the answers to the basic questions and basic tenets of farming here."
Knowing the lay of the land and what types of crops to grow is also important, Chichester said.
"Part-time farmers can make some money with the right crops," he said. "With an eighth or a quarter acre, you can have 800 pounds of cucumbers in just 40 to 45 days. So a part-time farmer can do well if they are willing to do what is required. The nature of the business requires sometimes that you stop everything and focus all your energies on fixing a problem, so the ability to be flexible is helpful."
But there are still several hurdles to overcome, Chichester said.
"Availability of water and proper irrigation are big hurdles," he said. "In the Virgin Island there are no regularly flowing rivers or lakes, so water must be thought out carefully. It's possible if the farmer is willing you can invest in a well, but many are not willing to make the extra investment. You have to be interested enough to invest your time, effort and resources, to spend money on things like a well, water tanks and the labor. Labor is a big issue, too. The day begins before dawn, the hours are long and the work is hard."
Being separated from the mainland, many of the resources needed to cultivate the land is more expensive, he said, adding that much of the necessary supplies, such as fertilizer, has to be shipped in.
"The majority of everything we need has to be shipped — virtually everything but some animal manure," he said. "But we could do more. There is room for successful farming here because when given a choice, people prefer fresh local produce. It's fresher, better-tasting and better for you. Take tomatoes — the ones we ship in are bland and flavorless, and people flock to the roadside stands to get fresh local ones instead. That's something that we can definitely tap into and invest in."
Farmers and livestock owners are eligible for excise-tax exemptions on any animal feed or commercial fertilizers brought in the territory. Agricultural land producers bringing in less than $225,000 a year can also qualify for a monthly gross-receipts tax exemption, according to Bureau of Internal Revenue off
icials.
Farming as a Business
Changing the mindset of local farmers and getting them down to business is the first step in the successful farming process, according to Dale Brown, president of the V.I. Farmer's Cooperative on St. Croix..
"In order to make the transition from part time to full time, one must decide to embark on a business venture and plan it out to make sure the operation will generate the kind of income he or she needs, and work out how to do it efficiently," he said. "Before beginning, you should get a business plan together and whatever capital is required to make happen. It is not an easy transition, though. You have to make up your mind, put a plan together, get the right equipment, machinery and materials you need to get going and can actually see an income, instead of just jumping into the blue and doing it."
After putting together a business plan, the next step is acquiring land, he said. Hundreds of acres of land throughout the territory are available for lease from the Department of Agriculture, but farmers are now being required to submit a business plan beforehand to be eligible for a lease.
"The farmer would have to determine what type of farm production he or she wants to get into, whether livestock, food crops, oil trees, whatever it is, and look at some of the markets he or she would like to target," Brown said. "They also have to look at what type of employment you will need, look at whether it is a single-person operation or a partnership, whether to grow one crop or diversify crop and livestock production. Also you can look at whether your income will be higher with value-added products or just producing the raw products. Training is very important, whether it be formal education or short practical courses, they will have to know more about livestock production, crop rotation, irrigation and so forth, and incorporate it into their farm plan."
With land being limited in the Virgin Islands, crop rotation is very important, he said.
"As you rotate crops you have to find ways of building that soil up, every time you have actually finished planting that crop, have to look at how to prepare the soil for the next time, so it is free of pests and disease and is replenished in nutrients," Brown said. "Composting is important, as well as fertilization. While doing all these necessary things, you have to look at how to minimize costs and put together an enterprise budget. So it is not as simple as some might determine. In farming, the startup costs are also really high, just like any serious business. Profits are often slim, but you should be able to look at your plan and be confident of at least breaking even on production. Since land is scarce and expensive, that is a major startup expense."
Marketing agriculture in the territory as a commercial business enterprise is something that can be developed through a long-term sustainable agricultural program, he said.
"People here in the Virgin Islands look to farming as a last resort, not as a profitable business," Brown said. "But it is a business and in order to pursue it, you have to do what is required. Over the years, farming has not been addressed as a business here. Farming has been pursued as a backyard venture, something you do because you feel like growing things. You grow a crop. It's good. Then you forget about it for a season. It has never been promoted as a profitable commercial activity or as means of providing for yourself."
While organizations such as the V.I. Farmer's Cooperative are trying to help provide the type of infrastructure needed to make agriculture grow once again, there are still certain elements — such as educational-outreach programs for potential farmers — that need to be developed, he said.
"The V.I. Farmer's Cooperative is trying to provide an organizing infrastructure so production can be consistent and create a plan with a schedule of production everyone adheres to, so the crops in demand — lettuce, tomatoes, herbs, what have you — are available to purchasers," Brown said. "But to be successful, I can't stress education enough. You have to continue your education. Farming is very technical. One may look at it as putting a seed in the ground and it will grow, but to make it a viable enterprise, there is much, much more involved."
Partnering with local farmers in hopes of reviving the local agriculture industry and cutting down the territory's dependence on imported food is definitely a top priority for Agriculture officials. The next installment in the Source's agriculture series will look at the department's four-year strategic plan and outline some of the initiatives cooked up by its staff and new Agriculture Commissioner Louis Petersen.
Editor's note: Previous articles in the Source's agriculture series are "Back to The Garden: Agriculture in the Virgin Islands," "Homegrown: Agriculture in the Virgin Islands" and "Growing Our Own: Agriculture in the Virgin Islands."
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