Kimberly and Steven Martin have been vending at the Santa Fe Farmers’ Market since 2000. They use hydroponics and are pesticide-free.
Kim and Steve have been growing hydroponic tomatoes and cucumbers on their 7.5 acre farm in Alcalde, NM since 1999. Prior to that Steve had been a truck driver and worked on a dairy farm. He loved farming and wanted to stay in the industry, while making a good living and not having to deal with animals. After extensive research he settled on hydroponics because it uses 1/10th of the water for 10 times the produce of soil grown crops. Their spread of greenhouses covers about 1/4 of an acre and produces 130,000 lbs of produce. Rows and rows of carefully manicured tomatoes and cucumbers fill the greenhouses. They have to be harvested and pruned everyday because this style of growing is so fast and prolific. To stay ahead, they employ two part time and five full time employees. If you eat a tomato purchased in winter, it is most likely grown on this unassuming property tucked in next to the Rio Grande river. While Kim is the face of the operation, faithfully selling at the Market every Saturday, Steve loves to stay home and work with the plants. Next year, they hope to install solar power, which will cut their significant electrical costs and make their home grown operation even more sustainable.