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market-farming - Re: [Market-farming] Certified scales

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  • From: road's end farm <organic101 AT linkny.com>
  • To: Market Farming <market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [Market-farming] Certified scales
  • Date: Tue, 28 Nov 2006 20:42:54 -0500


On Nov 28, 2006, at 11:27 AM, cjmaness AT juno.com wrote:

I don't know what the deal is with the scales. I know that out of 32
vendors, NO ONE sells by the pound. When I worked for the research
station we had those scales certified every year. It was an all day
process. The guys would clean them up and re calibrate. We would have
to set up an appointment with them and it seemed like it took weeks
before they could get to us. That meant making sure we called in
winter so that we were ready to go by the growing season. Every time
I mention it to anyone at market they act like it's torture. So, we
don't weigh anything. We have scales here at home that we bought.
About a hundred bucks or so if I'm remembering right.
We just use those green pulp quart containers for everything we sell.
I have on occasion weighed out some things just to see, like the
green beans. Our customers ask from time to time how many pounds
something is, and so it's nice to know from that perspective.
Carla


In New York State, or at least around here, there is no charge for certifying scales. The inspector for this county has been showing up on the farm automatically every year since the year I first called him. I think there may be some variation in service county by county, maybe some counties have a wait time.

The first year I went to market I brought scales. Nobody at that market was expecting them and it confused people; plus which, weighing everything really slows things down. I'm often alone at market and haven't time to weigh; I do what everybody else does there and sell by the each or by pint, quart, peck, bunch, etc. I couldn't prepackage most things by weight (as one grower mentioned) because customers often want e.g. half a bunch of basil or one tomato, and because I never know whether a given item will sell fastest in pints or quarts, or whether someone will want a peck or a half bushel, or a mixed-lettuce bag that's all reds or all romaines or none of either; and so much of the packing gets done at market.

I do often weigh some samples before going to help me decide on pricing, and sometimes to help get bunches around the same size. I also often sell on farm by weight, and most things going to a store or wholesale are sold by weight. It does save trying to figure out, "Is this a large or a small melon?" when it's somewhere inbetween. For really drastic size variations on large fruit that I don't usually sell lots of, such as Hubbard squash, I'll sometimes decide the price by weighing them on the farm and then tag each one with a sticker; but this would take forever for most of what I bring.

-- Rivka; Finger Lakes NY, Zone 5 mostly
Fresh-market organic produce, small scale



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