What the rules say, what it costs, and how to get there.
Written for farmers, not auditors. Every guide is sourced to the regulation or the agency, dated, and ends on one thing you can do today.
- Food safety9 min read
GAP certification: what it takes to sell greens to schools and stores
What a GAP audit is, which buyers require it, what the FSMA Produce Safety Rule demands separately, and how a grower gets from no paperwork to a district's approved-vendor list.
Reviewed September 11, 2026Read the guide - Economics10 min read
What a greenhouse actually earns, per square foot
The revenue math behind a year-round greenhouse: growing area times yield times price, crop by crop, in honest gross dollars, and why the mix and the buyers matter more than the structure.
Reviewed September 11, 2026Read the guide - Winter10 min read
Winter growing in the Midwest: how greens get harvested in January
The four levels of winter growing, from high tunnels to full climate control, the crops that love the dark months, and the eight-month market that only exists when the fields are under snow.
Reviewed September 11, 2026Read the guide - Buyers10 min read
Selling to schools: how farm-to-school buying actually works
Who buys a district's food, the three doors in (direct, distributor, DoD Fresh), the paperwork gate, the half-year-ahead calendar, and an honest accounting of the sales job behind the accounts.
Reviewed September 11, 2026Read the guide - Funding9 min read
USDA grants and loans that pay for a greenhouse
The federal funding stack in working order: the loans that carry the structure, the energy grant that covers up to half the lighting and heat, and the calendar traps that cost applicants a year.
Reviewed September 12, 2026Read the guide