Watch: Galway organic farmer issues plea to buy produce amid bumper harvest
A Co. Galway organic farmer is pleading with the public to buy his organically grown fruit and vegetable produce following a bumper harvest.
Kenneth Keavey is the founder of Green Earth Organics which is a 100% certified organic fruit and vegetable farm located in Corrandulla, Co. Galway.
Kenneth and Jenny Keavey started a box delivery scheme in 2006 and employ 40 people.
Currently, the pair are farming 40ac of organically certified land with another 10ac split between a wildlife biodiversity area, native woodland forestry, and red clover/grassland.
The organic farmer said "conditions were just perfect" for this year's growing season and that "everything was aligned", leading to an excellent harvest of fruit and vegetables on the farm.
Speaking to Agriland, Keavey said: “A couple of weeks ago, we gave away 600 heads of lettuce to people because we had so much we didn’t know what to do with it.
“We also gave away 700 bags of kale because there was that much and orders were dropping.
“We did this to give value back to our customers as a 'thank you' for ordering, and maybe to incentivise them to order again next week.
“At the moment we’re harvesting a bucket-load of broccoli. We even had onions two weeks ago - that’s unheard of in Ireland at the beginning of July."
Unfortunately, Keavey stressed that these efforts have not been enough and orders are still dropping. The business experienced a similar scenario during Covid-19.
He explained: "During the Covid lockdown, our customer levels expanded, then the restrictions eased and our order levels collapsed.
“That year we were forced to plough stuff back into the fields - it was just devasting to have to do that and such a shock to see. This year we had a glimpse of that again."
Keavey started growing organic vegetables in 2004 on a third-generation family farm in Co. Galway.
He said: "I wanted to do something that was environmentally sound, something in line with my values and passion to do something positive for the environment.
"Our aim was to grow organically, sustainably, no chemicals, and deliver direct to the customer.
"We started off with a quarter acre of vegetables and one polytunnel, when nobody had polytunnels in the west of Ireland. Everybody thought we were mad."
The business now sells fruit and vegetables to homes around the country, with delivery to roughly 1,700 homes this week alone.
Next year, Green Earth Organics will be in its 20th year of production, with Keavey highlighting that it has not always been plain sailing.
He said: "During the recession, the business had to adapt and started selling to supermarkets. However this didn’t remain sustainable for the business and we went back to focusing on home delivery."
The organic farm also allows customers the opportunity to buy a "charity box", which means all the produce in the box will be sent to St. Vincent de Paul.
Since issuing the plea, Keavey has thanked the public for their kind words and thoughts in response.
He said: "The orders, the words, and energy, every single one meant a great deal."
