Meet the Farmer

When starting his business, Salazar Organic Farms, Alejandro Salazar was able to take a challenging time – the pandemic – and turn it into motivation. Before the pandemic, Alejandro had been a farmworker since arriving in the United States from Hidalgo, Mexico in 1998. He worked in Salinas and Watsonville, gaining experience as a tractor and sprinkler operator. 

In 2019, Alejandro had started working on his own project, Salazar Organic Farms, part time. But in 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic affected the agricultural industry significantly, and the farm where Alejandro worked cut his hours. When his family joked that if he managed his own land, he could decide how many hours he worked, Alejandro became inspired to turn his part-time business into his career. Thus, he started investing more in Salazar Organic Farms, growing vegetables like bok choy and radishes on 7.5 acres.

Currently, Alejandro leases 20 acres in Watsonville where he grows and sells produce such as parsley, cauliflower, cilantro, cabbage, strawberries, lettuce, little gems, green beans, carrots, radishes, and broccolini. Despite the difficulties of farming and owning a business, Alejandro remains motivated to create his own livelihood and offer his kids educational and career opportunities. 

He takes his passion for agriculture off the farm as well by connecting with fellow agriculture workers to brainstorm how to bring healthy food to local students. Complementary to this, he has worked with local nonprofits to advocate for healthy, local produce for schools. All of this conveys how, for Alejandro, growing organic produce is not just about making a living, it’s also about caring for the health and wellness of future generations.