Natural Farm Takes a Stand: a step into the past, a step into the future
By Mary Eister
Situated near the southern edge of Arroyo Grande, bordered by homes, is a 30-acre farm with an old-fashioned farm stand surrounded by a bustle of joyful activity. Baskets of artfully displayed vegetables, herbs, berries and flowers in shades of reds, oranges, yellows, greens, blues and purples suggest an artist’s palette. Stop your car and walk onto the farm. You will probably meet the farmer, Jerry Rutiz. While he most likely will be busy replenishing the baskets with fresh produce from the field, he will be happy to talk with you about the use and preparation of his more than 50 varieties of vegetables and herbs. All produce is grown sustainably, with organic fertilizers and practices that enrich the soil, and without pesticides.
Rutiz had his introduction to farming as a child, tending a garden in his backyard in Woodland Hills. Seeking to escape LA, he attended Cal Poly, studying crop science. On completing his degree, he worked as a crew manager for a large agriculture company and then as an agriculture sales broker. Neither appealed to him. So when some land east of Arroyo Grande became available for lease, he decided to farm, which he has been doing now for over 20 years.
In the business of agriculture, things constantly evolve. “If you stay the same, you don’t make it,” commented Rutiz. He started by selling wholesale. That worked for a while, but he soon realized that unless he got big, he wouldn’t survive. A phone call from his mother changed the direction he was taking. She suggested he come down to the farmers’ market in Santa Monica. Skeptical, he took a truckload south and sold everything within an hour. Driving home with $300 in his pocket, he wondered where this was taking him. While most farmers were planting and selling one or two main crops at the markets, he decided just to plant a big garden and started selling a variety of vegetables. As multiple crops became common, he diversified further, teaching himself how to grow flowers. In time, flower sales dropped off, but restaurants started showing interest, so he tailored his crops to meet their needs. At this point Rutiz was selling retail at four farmers’ markets. His dream was to serve the immediate community by selling from his farm. When the acreage on which he now grows became available, he decided to move to this land which has an urban-rural interface. He now attends one farmers’ market, with most of his energies focused on maintaining a successful farm stand.
Rutiz Family Farms offers a weekly harvest box. Each week in his e-mail newsletter, Rutiz reports what will be in the box and what is available at the stand that week. The customer can then choose whether to purchase a box or to make specific selections from the stand.
In farming, there are the usual challenges of weather, pests and diseases. For Rutiz, his greatest challenge is also his greatest reward—keeping the customers happy. He wants a customer to tell him if, for example, a head of broccoli is full of bugs or if a product doesn’t work out. When there’s a complaint, it means the customer cares enough and wants to come back. Rutiz gives the customer his money back and invites him to the field, explaining that, without any pesticides, occasionally the quality isn’t perfect. Sometimes Rutiz hears from a customer that the family loves the produce and now the kids are eating vegetables when they didn’t before. When people are happy and return to the farm, Jerry has met his greatest challenge and reaped his rewards.
Rutiz has a history of collaboration with the community. He invites schools to take field trips to his farm, sharing information about plant structure, growth and sustainable practices. Depending on the season, the children get to pull a carrot from the soil, pick a strawberry or choose a pumpkin to take home. Every summer he invites his customers to take a moment, relax, and enjoy an ear of fresh-roasted corn. Last Halloween he gave away home-baked sweets to all who came to his stand. Rutiz also invites businesses to his stand to share information and their wares. He has had pizza dough demonstrations by Full of Life Flatbread chef, Brian Collins; cookbook authors Amelia Salzman and Cathe Olson have each given food demonstrations and offered samples. All of these events are free. Rutiz routinely features local products and produce from other sustainably-operated farms. In these and many other ways, he contributes toward building community. He says, “It’s what I like to do, to have fun.”
Rutiz’s hope is for people to learn to buy locally, to buy what is available and in season locally; to know where their food is coming from and to be connected to its source; to support the farmers who preserve the open space and the small agricultural way of life; and to demonstrate to others who would farm, that small scale farming can be financially viable.
Many consumers have first come to Rutiz Family Farms to taste Jerry’s famous strawberries. Picked at their peak, this variety is the sweetest he has found. He states, “A lot of things we grow, it’s not the variety that we grow, but more the way we grow it and that we harvest in a more ripe state. We use no pesticides. We’ll pick it in the morning, and people are eating it that night. The freshness, that’s 90% of it.”
Visit this passionate man with his traditional farm stand, and you most likely will return again and again. He welcomes visitors to his farm any time the stand is open for sales, which is Tuesdays and Fridays, 1 to 6 p.m., and, beginning in April, Saturdays 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Rutiz Family Farms is located at 1075 The Pike (between Halcyon and Elm Street) in Arroyo Grande. For more information, see his website at www.rutizfarms.com.
