By Jesse Sanford
With her rosy cheeks and red checkered shirt, Judith Sedor grinned as customers milled around her tent at Columbia University’s GreenMarket. Little did the customers know that all the produce, ranging from Roma tomatoes to the purple tinted arugula, were grown on a three generation family-owned business named Newgate Farms.
The 33 acre and growing Newgate Farms has a long and rich history of supplying produce to locals.
“My husband’s grandfather bought the place in 1933 and they built a house there,” said Judith Sedor, owner of Newgate Farms. “My husband’s father was 17 year old when his father died, so in order to keep the family afloat, he raised vegetables and sold them wholesale.”
Originally operated as a wholesale and pick-your-own farm, Newgate Farms fell on tough times when the demand and market of fresh food began to change.
“When it cost two bucks a [box] and it cost three or four dollars a bushel, it cost more than the produce was generating and I said, ‘There’s something wrong with this picture … we aren’t making any money here and we gotta do something different here,’” Sedor said.
Starting in the 1980’s, Newgate Farms began participating in local farmer’s markets and was one of the first to participate in this new trend of growing, selling, and buying local foods. In fact, East Granby is very close to Hartford, Connecticut, which was the site of one of the first farmer’s markets in the country.
“It was right about the time farmer’s markets started to evolve and get popular and we lived near Hartford, CT. In those days, there were 25 farmers, they closed off a whole street for us, and we sold out every time,” Sedor said.
Since then, the Sedor family has expanded their presence and currently participate in 18 different farmer’s markets in Connecticut and New York.
According to Sedor, one of the most successful farmer’s markets is the Columbia University’s GreenMarket.
“It’s great when the students are around because they have to eat right?” Sedor said. “And, they buy our baked goods, a lot of vegetables, and our fruit especially.”
Additionally, Sedor is excited that university students are able to experience fresh and local produce. In fact, the process of harvesting and delivering local foods is quite elaborate and labor intensive.
“I give my son a list of what I need and he gives me a list of what is ready to be picked,” Sedor said. “We go out to the field and we ascertain what is ready to be picked and he makes sure that that amount gets loaded on my truck to get loaded down here”.
Additionally, traffic can negatively impact Sedor’s transportation of goods to various farmer’s markets.
“Two weeks ago, I got stuck in the George Washington Bridge accident and I was sitting for five hours on Route 95 with no way of getting off because the traffic was stopped,” Sedor added. “Those are the challenges and logistics of trying to [transport produce] down here for people to enjoy and eat healthy.”
But with any challenge, there comes rewards and not only has this 81-year-old family business been able to survive, but today, it is thriving.
Sedor’s family is confident in their approach to managing and running Newgate Farms and is ultimately proud of their accomplishments and all of the heart and soul they’ve invested into the farm to yield the best results.
“I’m glad we have a place to bring our produce and I’m glad people here are interested in eating healthy and buying fresh from the farm,” Sedor said.
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