Success Story: Ricky’s Farms

Ricky’s Farms Cultivates Business Growth in Castroville

Location: Central California | Monterey County | Castroville

Business Type: Agriculture

Small Business Center: California FarmLink

Assistance Received: Business advising and access to capital

California State Assembly District: 30 

California State Senate District: 17 

Ricardo “Ricky” Ortiz grew up in the family strawberry-growing business, learning perseverance and hard work from his father. Ricky began taking on a leadership role, and by 2019, he fully stepped into the helm as the face of Ricky’s Farms in Castroville. Operating on 22 acres and growing strawberries under contract with Naturipe, he successfully maintained the family business.

Ricky began exploring opportunities to expand his business with more acreage, volume, and employees. While he identified available leased acreage for expansion, he needed an operating loan to support the growth. Initially, he reached out to the USDA Farm Service Agency to discuss a low-interest loan but found the process too slow to meet his business timeline needs.

That’s when Ricky reached out to California FarmLink to inquire about an operating loan to support his business expansion. Once FarmLink’s loan officer began working with Ricky, they identified several challenges to his long-term business resilience beyond just capital access. Most importantly, Ricky needed a double-entry bookkeeping system, without which he had limited ability to understand his business’s financial performance. Additionally, FarmLink found that his tax service was not helping him take advantage of agriculture-specific provisions in tax law.

California FarmLink provided comprehensive support beyond just loan approval. They helped Ricky identify these operational challenges and connected him with resources to address them. Ricky agreed to explore options for improved financial management and committed to working with a new financial advisor who could offer more comprehensive business services.

“FarmLink is here to help us,” shared Ricky. “It gives us a little bit more leeway to improve our work.”

FarmLink’s loan is structured to support Ricky’s near-term capital needs while he advances his business practices in order to access lower-cost capital from USDA to sustain his scaled-up operations. Ricky’s Farms is now positioned for strategic growth while building the financial infrastructure necessary for sustained success. His collaboration with FarmLink demonstrates how the right lending partner can provide much more than just capital.

If you’re an agricultural business owner in California looking to expand operations or improve financial management, connect with California FarmLink to learn about their loan programs and technical assistance services designed specifically for farming operations.

9/26/2025