Meet Ted, a MyPick® Verified Local Farmer®
Ted Smith, owner of Gypsy Family Farm in Evansville, Ontario, has been a MyPick® Verified Local Farmer® since the program started.
At Ted’s market stall, he offers a complete range of fresh garden veggies, culinary herbs and fruits, sweet honey, jams, pickles, relishes, maple syrup, mushrooms and more all grown at his farm, which he has owned for about 16 years.
Why did Ted join the MyPick® Verified Local Farmer® Program?
“With the number of resellers, it’s important to set myself apart as a MyPick® farmer,” Ted says. “It triggers a really great conversation with customers when they ask if I grow everything myself because I can show them my verification.”
Ted currently sells at Gore Bay Farmers’ Market in Gore Bay, Ontario where there is no reselling allowed. He also sells his products at NEMI Farmers’ Market in Little Current, Ontario. Both markets are on Manitoulin Island.
Especially in small communities like Manitoulin Island, Ted thinks it’s crucial to the future of Ontario farmers and farmers’ markets that customers know and understand the difference between farmers who sell their own products and resellers. Ted says this is important to him and that’s why he will always support the MyPick® Verified Local Farmer® Program.
The MyPick® Verified Local Farmer® Program adds credibility.
Ted thinks it’s important for local farmers to get the MyPick® verification because the more farmers who do, the more customers will understand the importance of farmers who grow and sell produce from their own local farms.
“The more farmers on board with MyPick®, the more credibility it will have,” Ted says.
Ted says customers benefit from buying from MyPick® farmers because it creates a connection between people and their food; MyPick® farmers know exactly where the product came from, how it was grown, how to enjoy it at peak freshness and how to bring out its richest flavour as well as all the right tips and tricks to get it safely from the farm to the customer’s kitchen.
“We have a lot of tourists and out-of-towners at our markets who aren’t sure what’s local and what’s not, so flying the MyPick® colours is important.”
Click here to learn more about the MyPick® Verified Local Farmer® Program or check out some other useful info below:
MyPick Associative Agreement FAQs PDF
25 Tips on food trends and selling to today’s consumers
Community benefits of farmers’ markets