For over 20 years, deliberate thought and effort have been put into planning, designing and constructing the Farm Store at Chico State’s University Farm. Students, faculty and the community can browse the store’s selection of farm fresh products at its grand opening on Thursday at 11:00 a.m.
Once opened, the store will operate Tuesday through Thursday from 10:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. and Friday 10:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. This is convenient for students who rely on the university’s shuttle to travel to and from campus — which operates every few hours during the day.
Students will now have a designated space to spend their time in between classes at the farm.
“We’re catering for the students that take classes out here, and we’re also catering to the campus community and the community at large,” said Kevin Patton, College of Agriculture Interim Associate Dean and Director of the University Farm.
Although sandwiches, salads, drinks and other on-the-go snacks are expected to be popular selling points among students, the store will also feature the University Farm’s products.
Meats prepared at the farm’s USDA-certified Meats Lab, cheeses sourced from the Organic Dairy Unit, yogurt, butter, vegetables grown from the Organic Vegetable Unit, plants from the Greenhouses unit and merchandise will be sold at the store.
“We grew pumpkins this fall, and we probably have 10 different varieties of pumpkins,” Patton said.
The Farm Store will also be partnering with local businesses and Chico State alumni. Sohnrey Family Foods has alumni ties to the College of Agriculture and will be selling its signature almonds. Lundberg Family Farms, another family business with alumni connections, will be selling rice products. Sierra Nevada uses the milk supplied from the University Farm to process the cheese currently sold in Urban Roots on campus, which will also be sold at the Farm Store.
Construction of the 600-square-foot store within the new 9,500-square-foot Jay Gilbert Center began on Sept. 20, 2024 and was completed this September. The facility can accommodate up to 200 students for club activities, classes and other events due to its movable walls, HVAC system, kitchen, wellness room and restrooms. This is an upgrade for the farm, which until now has solely hosted its events in the Farm Pavilion, which has ventilation challenges during the hot summer months.
“So we were very fortunate about four years ago. There was an appropriation from the governor’s office, the California Governor’s office, and they gave money to each of the four CSU farms,” Patton said. The other universities that received money include Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, Cal Poly Pomona and Fresno State. $18.7 million was granted to Chico State.
“The budget is a challenge, so we were very fortunate to get this extra money to upgrade the farm,” he said. The Jay Gilbert Center and Farm Store project cost $11.5 million and received extra donations, according to a Chico State Today article.
Patton does not foresee any other building additions to the farm and instead anticipates the remaining funds being used to renovate the Meats Lab and irrigation system.
The Farm Store will also be a learning experience, employing students to run the store. The store’s marketing plans were executed by a student marketing team, allowing them to apply their studies to a real-life business.
“The farm store gives students the ability to experiment and to try new things and maybe step out of their comfort zone, or to put their ideas that they have into practice,” said student marketer Margaret Pekarek.
Given that the store will be just starting out and establishing its place in the local market and community, Pekarek’s current hopes for the store are ensuring a smooth opening and gaining as much foot traffic as possible.
Pekarek spoke about the store’s outreach goals through mailed fliers and local radio and news. She also hopes to jumpstart a store holiday campaign for the upcoming Christmas season to draw more customers in.
“For future ideas we’d like to expand some of the offerings of things produced at the farm, but we would also like to incorporate student products if possible,” Patton said. Some of these ideas include ice cream sourced from the farm, gift baskets and a line of meat seasoning and sauces.
The store’s grand opening this Thursday is only the beginning of a new learning experience and business endeavor for the College of Agriculture and its students.
Elena Mendonsa can be reached at [email protected] or [email protected].
