Fulton County’s farmers keep small businesses thriving

Small businesses in Fulton County heavily rely on agricul- ture and farmers for their livelihoods. With a population of around 20,000, Fulton County is largely rural, and agriculture is a major industry in the area. Farm- ers are often relied upon for the supply of produce and goods to local businesses.

Arinder Cheema is the new

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Fulton County’s

Continued from page 12 owner of Viking Foods in Akron. Being the new owner, he has spent his first month there removing expired items and said he is just now attempting to reach out to vendors to get better prices. At the top of his priority list is connecting with local farmers for his produce.

Right now he acknowledges pricing is a bit of an issue for them, because he is importing all his produce from Indianapolis, and transportation costs are driving the prices up in the store.

Their biggest issue is that the “big companies” require a certain amount of product to be ordered. Being a small business, Viking Foods ends up buying more food than it can sell.

Cheema said he would much rather work with a local farmer to cut a lot of the transportation costs and have better, fresher and cheaper produce for his customers.

His goal for the future is to only order products from Indianapolis if something is unavailable through a local farmer. He would also like to find a local supplier for their meat.

“Obviously we’re not going to compromise onthe quality of our meat,” said Cheema.

Right now Viking works with

Miller Poultry out of New Paris and a company out of Ohio.

Peggy Burtner, an employee who works in Viking’s deli, added, “Last year we got cantaloupes and watermelons. In the past, we have gotten apples and things like that. That kind of fell to the wayside with the last owners. Cheema is going to see if perhaps they’ll work with us again.”

Cheema said he will attend the farmers market to work with local farmers who might supply the grocery store with fresh produce and meats.

Farmers are a key source of employment, as many small businesses in the area are involved in processing, packaging and distributing agricultural products. Without the support of local farmers, many small busi- nesses in Fulton County would struggle to survive.