Success Story: Dulce Organic Farms

The Power of Ownership with Dulce Organic Farms

Location: Central California | Santa Cruz County | Watsonville

Business Type: Organic produce

Small Business Center: California FarmLink

Assistance Received: Business advising and access to capital

Visit Dulce Organic Farms online

Antonia Vega Gonzalez, and her husband, Jose Juan Pulido Garcia, spent more than two decades as farm laborers in California’s strawberry fields, developing experience in every aspect of production while nurturing an entrepreneurial vision.

“I started at a very young age,” Antonia recalls. “By the time I was 7 or 8, I was already working. My parents took me to work in the strawberry fields. That was the only work I knew.”

In 2018, Antonia enrolled in El Pájaro CDC’s Women’s Business Education Program, a 12-week course that covers the essentials of launching and managing a small business. Upon completion of the course, Antonia first learned about California FarmLink’s lending services. Eventually, Antonia and Jose secured their first operating loan with FarmLink, enabling them to launch Dulce Organic Farms on leased land in Royal Oaks.

“The team helped me with the loan application process, and it was simple,” Antonia shares. “That loan gave me the push I needed to move forward.”

Over the years, Antonia and Jose refined their approach and strengthened their operation. “By the fourth year, we finally understood how to grow high-quality strawberries,” Antonia explains. “Now, we have the knowledge to produce better fruit in larger quantities.”

By 2023, after five years of leasing and business development, Antonia and Jose were prepared for the crucial next step: purchasing their own land. California FarmLink played a pivotal role in this transition, arranging a joint financing agreement with the USDA Farm Service Agency that enabled them to purchase 23.27 acres in Royal Oaks — transforming Antonia and Jose from tenant farmers to landowners.

“Owning this land means we can focus on growing our business for the long term,” says Antonia. “Before, we never knew if we’d be able to stay on the land from one season to the next. Now, we can plan for the future with confidence.”

California FarmLink’s commitment extends beyond financial support, and invited Antonia and Jose to participate in their El Resilerador™ program, a course designed for Spanish-speaking farmers to strengthen financial literacy and business planning skills.

“The course was great for me and my husband,” says Antonia. “The instructors have an incredible ability to break down complex topics into clear and understandable lessons.”

Now, in 2025, she is growing mixed vegetables while preparing for transition to organic strawberry production, but her vision doesn’t stop there.
“Our goal is to expand by another five acres,” Antonia states confidently. “We’ve already mastered the process of growing and harvesting high-quality strawberries, so I think we’re ready to increase production.”

By securing land ownership, Antonia and Jose are redefining who will sustain productive farmland in California. Their success highlights how targeted support for farmers contributes to a more resilient and equitable food system, where agricultural knowledge gained through years of labor can lead to business ownership and wealth-building opportunities.

“We knew we could grow high-quality organic strawberries, but without stable land, our future was uncertain,” Antonia explains. “FarmLink believed in us from the start. They gave us the chance to grow. Not just crops, but a business, and I can say in confidence that my business wouldn’t exist without California FarmLink.”

You can find Dulce Organic Farms produce through Coke Farms.

To read more about Antonia and Jose’s journey, click here to view the full story from California FarmLink.

6/2/2025