BRIAN REEVES OF REEVES FARM
​Brian Reeves owns a large tract of land in Baldwinsville, New York—2,100 acres including woods and ponds, to be exact. The farm has been in his family for five generations and Brian is part of the fourth generation to work the land. When Brian’s great-grandfather arrived in Baldwinsville from England over 100 years ago, he grew vegetables and raised livestock. His grandfather followed with what was primarily a dairy farm. Brian’s own father returned to mostly vegetable farming.
 
Brian and his brother, Mark, actively and sustainably farm 500 acres with over 300 in crops that include fresh market vegetables and berries, 40 acres in rye grain, and another 100 acres in cover crops. The Reeves Farm also employs a seasonal workforce of 50 to 65 workers. Their commitment to healthy crops and healthy soil includes employing Good Agricultural Practices or GAP (Global GAP certified), the use of Integrated Pest Management (minimal pesticide use), organic certification (Northeast Organic Farming Association of New York or NOFA-NY) for their blueberries and a number of their vegetable crops, and thoughtful crop rotation and cover crop planting. 
 
To continue to farm sustainably Reeves Farm also needs to operate sustainably by financial measures.  The farm now sells its bountiful produce, not only at its farm stand, but also across New York State to large supermarkets like Wegmans, Hannaford, and Price Chopper, and to New York City retail outlets like Blue Apron, Dig Inn, Fairway, and Sweetgreen. Still, Brian and his brother continue to seek better and more cost effective ways to access their existing markets and to reach new ones.
 
From his informed perspective as president of the New York State Vegetable Growers Association, one of the oldest agricultural associations in New York State, Brian speaks of how his fellow farmers struggle with “last mile distribution,” or the final step in the farmer’s delivery process.  Reeves Farm also belongs to the Upstate New York Growers and Packers Cooperative, a farmer-owned statewide marketing cooperative selling produce to wholesale and retail buyers. The Cooperative is working to address that last-mile challenge, which can in fact range from a few blocks to a number of miles.  “It would be nearly impossible for me to do that last mile on my own,” Brian reports. “You need a critical mass of volume to make it worthwhile to make the trip.  I have my own truck, but no tractor-trailer.”