Erica Bergere is a farmer, albeit on a very small scale. In 2023, the Santa Rosa mom of two launched a microgreens farm in her garage and began selling them at the farmers market near her home. Her core six greens include arugula, broccoli, red cabbage — even cantaloupe. "It's the essence of cantaloupe when you first put it in your mouth, then it finishes like a cucumber, so it has a very refreshing flavor to it," says Bergere.It wasn't long before Oliver's Market took interest in her nutrient-packed, pint-sized plants and now she harvests and delivers about 100 jars to the county's four stores, with plans to expand as much as her garage will allow.
Bergere takes the term "green" seriously, having recently become certified organic. Her proudest achievement is being plastic free. "My baby is the jar. I don't know if I would have kept going if it were in clamshells," she says of the $3 jar deposit program she modeled after Straus Family Creamery's bottle return.
So far, it's kept more than 8,000 glass jars out of landfills. "People might not like it at first, but we have to change — even if it's little tiny things like microgreens." Source: Sonoma Mag