Verónica Mazariegos-Anastassiou is a first-generation American and first-generation farmer. During her time serving in the Peace Corps, she discovered her love of farming while working closely with rice farmers in Togo, where she supported them to test various practices to increase yields and decrease inputs. Mazariegos-Anastassiou brought this knowledge and appreciation for farming to fruition in 2018, when she launched Brisa Ranch with her two co-owners and partners, Cole Mazariegos-Anastassiou and Cristóbal Cruz Hernández, in Pescadero on the Central Coast of California.
Mazariegos-Anastassiou farms organically for three main reasons: responsible stewardship of the land, commitment to healthful foods, and an understanding that extractive practices have ripple effects throughout generations. She explains:
First, organic farming is a form of land management that takes into consideration the ecosystem in which the farm is located. It tries to disturb this ecosystem in a way that is beneficial to the system as opposed to destructive. We currently farm in a property that was managed with conventional practices for many years and it is easy to see the degradation of the land and the surrounding fauna.
Second, the quality, nutritional value, and safeness of the food we grow organically is of utmost importance to us.
Finally, I want to see a new generation of organic farmers that continues to grow, and for that [to happen], we need to continue transitioning land so that future operations don’t have to do all the heavy lifting, since businesses like ours are making different choices than those that came before us.
Going organic benefits the health of land and people. Brisa Ranch, with 40 acres and over 40 diverse fruits and vegetables, embodies both the management practices and values-driven approach that most organic farmers demonstrate.
The CCOF Foundation’s Organic Transition Program grants support farmers and ranchers like Mazariegos-Anastassiou, who seek to transition to transition their farms or ranches into certified organic production. Participants can receive $10,000 per year for the three-year transition to certified organic for a total of $30,000 (with a possibility of an additional $1,000 per acre up to 30 acres for qualifying practices). To learn about this opportunity please visit our website or apply directly here starting October 7. This program is funded in part by the California Department of Food and Agriculture’s Organic Transition Pilot Program.
Applications for the Organic Transition Program grant are open October 7 – November 1, 2024. Additional cycles to be announced for 2025.
Visit our website for more information.
Please contact Larissa Hernandez at grants@ccof.org or (831) 346-6324 or Hanali Lopez-Tapia at (831) 824-6123 with any questions or for support.
—
Want to fund a world where organic is the norm? Visit our donate page for ways to contribute, including donor advised funds and gifts of stock, and to learn about the CCOF Endowment!