Many restaurants and hotel kitchens around the world buy microgreens. Restaurants, which offer very popular dishes served with salad greens, microgreens, and some herbs, buy these products every season and offer them to their customers.
Purchasing fresh microgreens plays an important role in helping restaurants offer a wide range of products to diners.
How Much Do Restaurants Pay for Microgreens?
Restaurants buy microgreens for an average of $30-40 per pound. You can make an average of $20 profit from a single tray of microgreens.
This price is almost the same for restaurants. Some restaurants may make wholesale purchases at retail prices by making some agreements with the growers, but the important thing here is to keep the microgreens fresh so that you can demand a higher price.
That’s why restaurants usually buy these microgreens every week.
What Do Chefs Pay For Microgreens?
Restaurant chefs can buy microgreens at a more affordable price than some other companies.
This is especially true in luxury restaurants, by purchasing the best quality product at the most affordable price they can stay ahead of the competition and they are willing to pay more for the freshest greens.
his is a very profitable business model considering the overall costs of growing microgreens.
What Microgreens Do Restaurants Want?
Restaurant chefs offer a wide variety of microgreens to their customers. Aiming to offer different tastes and dining experiences, many restaurants enrich their menus with different types of microgreens.
The most commonly requested microgreens are pea branches and blood beet. In addition, many different microgreen mixtures are offered by bespoke restaurants.
Do I Need a License to Sell Microgreens?
If you are an amateur microgreen grower and produce in a small area, you do not need a license.
Small scale production is done in pots or trays, but if you are growing microgreens professionally on a mass scale and cooperating with other producers, you must fulfill some legal obligations and have a grower’s license.
If you are planting in your garden or the basement of your house and selling your harvest to local farmers’ markets, you do not need any license. A trade of this scale does not have any legal obligations.
Where Can I Sell My Microgreens?
1) Selling microgreens to restaurants
Restaurants are great places to sell microgreens. Many restaurants want to offer their customers a choice of microgreens to make their menus stand out.
Restaurants that offer fresh farm produce or seasonal local delicacies prefer to offer microgreens in particular seasons to their guests.
You should do a good market search to find these restaurants. Many local restaurants prefer microgreens to capture their unique taste.
These restaurants can be one of the most profitable opportunities for the growth of your business. The first thing you need to do is make a list of the needs of the restaurants where you plan to sell your products.
It is very important to take a look at the menus of the restaurants here. While some restaurants do not go beyond the traditional tastes, some try to offer new experiences to their guests.
Innovative restaurants can offer you the opportunities you’ve been waiting for.
2) Selling microgreens at farmers markets
Perhaps one of the easiest ways to sell your microgreens is to go to any local market and set up a stall there.
In this way, you can both offer your products to your potential customers and increase your potential to find new customers.
The convenience of selling your products first-hand will give you a profitable return. Although you may not be able to achieve the profit margins you expect at first, there may be a noticeable increase in your profits later on.
The disadvantage of selling products first hand is that there are few bulk purchases and you have to dispose of your products quickly. There is a high probability that leftover stock will go unsold and unused.
However, since people go to marketplaces for a purpose, your sales will likely increase over time as customers get to know your product.
Also, some farmers may meet new producers in the markets, or restaurant owners looking for the freshest ingredients. Local selling is a way of gaining direct customers.
Here you can create your market and meet new potential buyers. Many people may not be familiar with microgreens and it may be a good opportunity for you to spread the word.
Here you can advertise your product and expand your market share.
3) Selling microgreens wholesale to markets
Local markets may be interested in the microgreens you grow. You can sell your microgreens by negotiating with the markets in your neighborhood or nearby.
Large markets are usually in agreement with large distributors. But that doesn’t mean you can’t sell to them too.
For this, you must first do the necessary market research and contact the purchasing departments directly. This could be as simple as approaching the stall and talking to the seller.
The benefit of selling to a market instead of setting up a stall yourself is that you can sell your microgreens in bulk instead of singularly. This minimizes at risk of leftover and unsold stock
In this way, you can earn high profits by selling your products wholesale. But the only disadvantage here is that the products you grow may not maintain their freshness for long so harvest timing is key.
With some agreements you make, you can make your weekly and monthly sales regularly and increase your market share considerably.
How Much Time Do You Need to Spend On a Microgreen Business?
The time you need to allocate for microgreen work varies according to the volume of the work.
First of all, it is important to understand how big your business model is. Then you should incorporate time and budget planning accordingly as the business develops and grows.
While most people grow microgreens in the garden or basement of their own house, some of them make this a profession and undertake more comprehensive projects.
The time you will allocate varies according to the volume of the work you wish to spend. While difficult things take a long and intense time, relatively easy things can be done in a short time.
Hi, I’m John Stephens, chief editor and writer for Totalgardener.com. I’ve been gardening and raising animals for over 15 years starting with a small backyard plot in Northern Virginia where I grew corn, potatoes, squash, and using a high mulch technique called the Ruth Stout Method. I also raised ducks and small mammals for meat and eggs in a movable pen similar to the ones used by Joel Salatin. I later moved to Colorado where I experimented with growing greens using aquaponics inside. I eventually added a microgreens setup and home sprouting operation. I’m excited to share everything I’ve learned plus more from the other local gardening and animal raising experts I know.
