Small Business Development Report:
Each year one small business is selected by the Small Business Development Center (SBDC) at Western New Mexico University as the Center’s Star Client. The Star Client is selected from the hundreds of clients served at the center and is recognized for their entrepreneurial spirit and contribution to the local economy. The SBDC at Western New Mexico University has a long history of assisting small business owners in many aspects of business ownership including start-ups, expansions and even exit plans. The Small Business Development Center at Western New Mexico University is proud to announce EZ Does It Farm as the recipient of 2016 ‘Star Client’ award. Center Director, Jane Janson, said, “This year’s choice represents the energy of our young people carrying on a tradition that has been vital to our Southwest New Mexico Community.”
EZ Does It Farm is located in the heart of the Gila River Valley, 30 miles northwest of Silver City. Nestled among hundred-year-old cottonwoods, the 30-acre farm is home to the Casillas family, Nevadith and Horacio and their children Elena and Heliel.
The Casillas family specializes in grass-fed and grass-finished beef, pork, lamb, and goat raised in carefully managed pastures. Free-range chickens produce eggs that are, according to one customer, “by far the most delicious I have ever eaten anywhere!” Vegetables grown in rich Gila bottomland soil round out the farm’s offerings. The farm-to-market operation serves the local Grant County community through the Silver City Farmers Market. Dedicated customers buy directly from the farm. The Casillases work from the heart. Horacio grew up on his family’s ranch in Mexico where he learned all about animals. Nevadith is passionate about healthy food. “I love what we do. I love being around the healthy, happy animals. I love learning how to use the land in a good way. I love knowing where food comes from and that is healthy.”
Eight years ago the Casillases began growing food for their family. In October 2015, they decided they wanted to do more. They came to the SBDC at Western New Mexico University to learn skills to build a business. They are now applying new knowledge – in accounting, finances, and product costing (to name a few) – to grow their farm.
“The help we get from the SBDC is tremendous. It’s like going to school. We are learning to see the whole picture of running a business. We know the land and the animals. The SBDC is teaching us what we need to know so we will be around for years to come.”
EZ Does It Farm is confident in their plans for the future: “Our message is simple. We want people to know how we bring food to their table. We want people to trust us to provide healthy food from healthy animals raised on healthy land. We want to create jobs so others will have the chance to learn how we do what we do.”