During these uncertain times, every small business needs to adapt to our changed circumstances so we can continue to operate our business. Three months ago my team and I had a decision with the thought of closing our doors since we lost many of our clients or refocus and help solve a growing problem in our community.
Growing up on a small farm in Maine and having a love for agriculture I have always wanted to build an online marketplace that helps farmers connect with food hubs/ coops, and consumers all online. Over the past two years, we start working on a new site called harvesttoorder.com, and over the past few months that that goal has become a reality.
An Open Platform That Can Support Any Local Food System At Scale
In just a few clicks, consumers will be able to access an interactive map of their local food system consisting of farmers, farmer’s markets, food hubs, and co-ops. Since food is grown, harvested, and bought in cycles, the Harvest to Order system is designed to work in reflective cycles. This allows consumers to view online shopfronts and profiles that are open for ordering and lets them buy in-season produce, just like they would in a weekly trip to a farmer’s market or grocery store.
Harvest To Order was built to tap into preexisting supply chains and support any local food system at scale. By joining this platform, farmers, farmers markets, food hubs, and co-ops will be able to build dynamic relationships with one another, giving them maximum exposure. This will make it easier for farmers to be found in the company’s search or interactive map.
“It was frustrating when I realized that most of the food I was buying at the supermarket was sourced from around the world,”, stated Harvest to Order CEO William Oakes, “But meanwhile, there were local farmers growing the exact same types of food.”
We are inviting you to come and create a profile on harvesttoorder.com. Let build a stronger local food system In Maine, and help boost our economy.
1. Register Your Enterprise
Go to https://harvesttoorder.com/register
Find a comprehensive step by step guide here.
2. List your Products
Go to https://harvesttoorder.com/admin/products
3. Let Food Hubs or Farmers Markets know you’ve completed these steps
4. The Food Hub will connect you via their Enterprise permissions
Are You Ready To Tell Your Story?
Get started with harvest to order today and start selling your products directly to the customer. There is no upfront cost of getting on the harvest to order platform. Let’s build a brighter future for Maine that is more sustainable.
As always, please feel free to reach out to me directly at woakes@pegas.io if you have any feedback. Please forgive us If you have any unexpected bugs in the software, our team is working remotely and doing their best.
Sincerely
William Oakes
