What Makes A Healthy Farm?

1. Access to land:

Finding available farmland is probably an obvious barrier. But this is especially true on the San Mateo coast; an area where agricultural land can sell for ten times the national average and four times the state average.

We’re doing what we can to provide local farms with the room to grow by leasing protected farmland to qualified agricultural operations at an affordable rate.

We’re also selling our protected farmland at market value, subject to affirmative agricultural easements (assuring farms stay protected and in agricultural production). It’s not about profit for POST, it’s about securing farms that will be operated by good stewards of the land.

2. A workforce:

It takes a lot of hands to run a farm and in recent years many farms have struggled to find and retain enough workers. Availability of affordable and suitable housing is one of the reasons.

Last year, San Mateo County commissioned an Agricultural Workforce Housing Needs Assessment that identified an unmet need for over 1,000 affordable housing units for agricultural workers and their families.

Where we can, we are partnering with San Mateo County to build farm labor housing on POST-protected farmland. Farm centers that allow space for worker housing are also now a key consideration in our agricultural conservation easements.

3. Reliable Water Supply:

Many of the farms on the San Mateo coast rely on surface water to irrigate their fields. In the summer months, when regulated creeks have low flows, that use is restricted to protect endangered fish like steelhead trout and Coho salmon.

You need a reliable supply of water to grow food, of course. On two of the farms we’ve protected POST has invested in new wells so our farming tenants could diversify their supply, which reduces pumping from creeks and improves water security.

We’ve also designed two new off-stream reservoirs to further reduce pressure on creeks and groundwater resources – and that means more water for fish too.

4. Safe, functional structures for storage, operations and processing:

There’s a lot that needs to happen indoors on a farm. Products need to be stored and prepped for shipment, equipment needs to be repaired, seed and livestock feed needs to be stored from the elements and that’s just to name a few.

One of our greatest investments in farm infrastructure was in the restoration of the historic barn at Root Down Farm. This is just one example of the numerous farm buildings we’ve restored, rebuilt or just flat-out replaced.

5. Healthy Soil:

All farms need healthy soil; this isn’t something that just veggie growers are worried about. The soil is what sustains all life on a farm – from cattle to cauliflower to…well, you name it.

We’re committed to working with tenants who are as devoted to building healthy, living, carbon-sequestering soils as we are. This is as much an investment in the future of their business as it is in the health of the land.

6. Access to sales outlets:

One of the greatest benefits to farming on the San Mateo coast is its proximity to communities that care about what they eat.

From San Francisco to San Jose there is a cornucopia of farmers’ markets, natural grocers and community-support agriculture (CSA) options. With increasing demand for sustainable food, local farms will continue to thrive.