U-Pick operations are a critical direct marketing approach for many farms in Kentucky and provide customers with a unique hands-on connection to fresh produce grown locally.
Key points to keep in mind:
Communicate with your staff about
sanitary guidelines;
emergency information and procedures;
management of customer counts for social distancing; and
about the necessary steps to take before you can open for the season and each business day.
Communicate with your customers about
any new precautions you are taking;
proper sanitation and personal hygiene;
first come, first serve for product availability; and
if you will be offering pre-picked product for sale.
Encourage online pre-orders for pre-picked berries, have outside checkout lines, or offer specific time slots that people can register for when they can come to the farm.
Keep in mind social distancing and sanitation recommendations with ALL interactions. To stay up-to-date on current Covid-19 recommendations for Kentucky, visit https://govstatus.egov.com/kycovid19.
Check out the U-Pick resources at https://smallfarms.cornell.edu/resources/farm-resilience/best-management-practices-for-u-pick-farms-during-the-covid-19-pandemic/. The Kentucky Farm Bureau Certified Farm Market Program has more resources on their website for you to use to guide you in opening your U-Pick operation now, you can also contact Fran McCall, Commodity Specialist, at Fran.McCall@kyfb.com.
This is not going to be a normal season. As always, give KCARD a call if you want to discuss practices your market can take during this time. You can reach us at 859-550-3972 or via email at kcard@kcard.info.