Erick Smith of Cayuga Pure Organics grew up on a dairy farm outside Jackson, MI, but has been farming some 550 acres in the Finger Lakes region of upstate New York since the 1970's.

You've been farming in New York State for decades, when and why did you decide to join Greenmarket?

We were a traditional field crops farm, focusing on growing feed for the organic dairy industry. Then in 2005 we were approached by the local co-op in Ithaca who was looking for a local source for beans. 'We don't have anyone [growing them] now, would you do it?' they asked. For us it was somewhat new, but we were very excited about the possibility. We started on a small scale, just growing for restaurants. Then, in the fall of 2008 June Russell [Greenmarket's Farm Inspections Manager] stopped in at Regional Access while she was up in the Finger Lakes on a farm visit and asked them if they knew of any sources for regionally grown beans. They gave her our name, so she contacted us. I just liked her from the beginning, and as I came to understand it, I also liked the mission of Greenmarket and that it was about supporting farmers.

This was quite a break from your traditional business plan, what questions did joining pose?

We didn't join right away. There were some logistics to work out-we were 250 miles away, and organizing to go down to New York City and sell in the markets felt very daunting. We almost said no, but because the mission and the organization felt so right, we said yes. We began to sell in January 2009. We now sell in ten markets and because of this, 2010 was the first year every crop we grew was intended for people to eat.

Wow, that's a fast turn-around! So the intention of your business has completely shifted focus?

Now our whole focus is on 'What can we try? What are people looking for?' We're very interested in heritage crops and especially looking forward to growing more varieties of heritage beans. It's been exciting to break out of the traditional crops that go to dairy feed. We are able to offer freekeh now, the next question is 'what could we do with oats?' We have partnered with a flour mill, Farmer Ground Flour, to buy back the flour from the grains we sell them to process. Beans, grains, and flour are basic commodities, but a lot of people would rather buy bread or pasta. We're actively exploring value-added products that we can make from our crops - cookies made from our whole wheat flour and four different black bean dips featuring our garlic and our beans. As soon as the harvest is done this year we'll start evaluating, and see what we might be able to do next.

Find Cayuga Pure Organics all winter long at these Greenmarkets: Manhattan: Union Square, Columbia, 77th Street, 97th Street, Inwood. Brooklyn: Greenpoint, Cortelyou, Grand Army Plaza, Carroll Gardens.