By John Lovett
University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture
Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — A sweet-and-smokey barbecue sauce designed around surplus carrots is the newest product rolling out from the Expanding Farmers’ Opportunities in Northwest Arkansas program.
FARM TO FORK — Chef Rafael Rios of Yeyo’s El Alma De Mexico in Rogers developed Rios Family Farms Carrott BBQ Sauce with students at Brightwater, A Center for the Study of Food at Northwest Arkansas Community College as part of a USDA-grant program called Expanding Farmers' Opportunities in Northwest Arkansas. (U of A System Division of Agriculture photo by Paden Johnson)
Rafael Rios, chef at his family’s Yeyo’s El Alma De Mexico in Rogers, is also a small-scale farmer offering a farm-to-table menu with ingredients from the Rios Family Farm in Rogers. Carrots from his farm, and surplus carrots grown in the region, make up the base of this vegan, fall-inspired barbecue sauce produced at the Arkansas Food Innovation Center.
“What I like about the recipe is that it has a robust flavor but just hints of beautiful fall aromas from spices like star anise,” Rios said. “It’s a versatile sauce, that can be used for braising and marinating. I give a lot of credit to the students at Brightwater for this recipe.”
Expanding Farmers’ Opportunities in Northwest Arkansas is a partnership of the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture; Brightwater, A Center for the Study of Food at the Northwest Arkansas Community College in Bentonville; and the Sam M. Walton College of Business at the University of Arkansas. The Arkansas Food Innovation Center is a part of the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station, the research arm of the Division of Agriculture.
The program, now in its fourth year with support from a U.S. Department of Agriculture grant, is designed to help cut down on food waste and create value-added products for farmers. In the United States, food waste is estimated at between 30 – 40 percent of the food supply, according to the USDA.
Before beginning the project with Rios, project team members took a survey of area farmers to determine their surplus produce. Carrots were one of the answers, so students at Brightwater were given the challenge to develop carrot-based recipes. Out of eight recipes, the top three were chosen by a panel and judged by Rios, who then guided further development of the sauce.
The project resulted in 500, 16-ounce jars of Rios Family Farms Carrot BBQ Sauce that will be for sale at Rogers and Bentonville farmers markets and Yeyo's El Alma De Mexico, inside the 8th Street Market in Bentonville.
“Chef Rios and his team had great vision guiding the creation of this Carrot BBQ Sauce so that the product aligned with the mission of their farm-to-fork businesses, and we look forward to future product production at the Arkansas Food Innovation Center,” said Renee Threlfall, associate professor of food science for the experiment station.
Chef Steven Jenkins, department chair at Brightwater, said some of the runners-up from the culinary students in their carrot recipe contest included carrot butters, a glazed carrot bruschetta spread, Carrots al Pastor, an Ozark Romesco, and a carrot harissa sauce.
Jenkins noted that the Brightwater culinary students have recipe contests featuring local produce to sharpen their culinary knowledge and ability to see novel uses of the local produce. A tasting event held for each contest at Brightwater for students, staff and the public for objective feedback. If the taste test results are close, they present the top recipe options to the grower for the final choice.
FINAL PRODUCT — The Arkansas Food Innovation Center packaged 500 Rios Family Farms Carrott BBQ Sauce jars. (U of A System Division of Agriculture photo by Paden Johnson)
“When we presented the top recipes to Chef Rios, he immediately focused on the barbecue sauce because he felt that there was a need in his own operations and in the community for the product,” Jenkins said. “The students were very creative in their flavor profiles and used the sweetness of the carrots to complement smoky flavors or spiciness in the dish.”
A distinctive characteristic of the sauce, Rios said, is that it can make non-meat items taste like meat due to the subtle smokey flavor and aromas. In all, 500 pounds of carrots and 100 pounds of onions were smoked with applewood prior to being mashed and mixed with spices in the cooking process. Since carrots are not acidic, apple cider vinegar was used in the recipe to provide shelf stability and flavor.
Expanding farmers’ opportunities
While northwest Arkansas has several farmers markets, Threlfall said growers face limitations due to unpredictable weather on market days, short shelf life of produce and challenges in selling imperfect produce also known as “seconds” or “culls.” A three-year USDA grant worth $616,452 was awarded in 2021, with a one-year extension granted last month. The project is funded by the USDA’s Farmers Market Promotion Program through the USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service’s Local Agriculture Market Program.
The aim of this project, Threlfall added, was to increase farm income, reduce produce waste and encourage greater utilization of the existing food system infrastructure.
“For this project, we have successfully worked with Arkansas produce growers to create six value-added products from surplus produce, with three more products in development,” Threlfall said. “Not only do the growers sell their product, but they also get a portfolio that includes the product recipe, a food safety plan for processing and a customized marketing plan developed by professors at the Walton College of Business.”
Rogelio Garcia Contreras, teaching assistant professor at the Walton College, said supporting farmers in selling their surplus goods is “crucial” for “long-term sustainable agricultural practices and community resilience.”
“By transforming excess produce into products like salsas, pickles, spreads or other dishes, farmers enhance their income while reducing food waste,” Garcia Contreras said. “Most of these value-added products are unique, artisanal and seasonal, and because they are sold at farmers markets or at the farms themselves, they offer a unique opportunity to foster a closer connection between consumers and producers, promoting community and generating awareness of seasonal and regional foods.”
Garcia Contreras noted the program has also helped bring an entrepreneurial approach to the challenge of surplus in the region and fostered innovation between students and farmers.
“We have designed marketing and commercialization strategies customized for each of the products developed as part of this initiative,” Garcia Contreras said. “Value-added products often require more labor, attention to detail, and a compelling story, and all these qualities can be found in the collaboration we have put together for the successful implementation of this grant.”
Garcia Contreras, Jenkins and Ruben Morawicki, former associate professor of food science for the experiment station, collaborated to design the program. Jeyam Subbiah, professor and former head of the food science department, and John Swenson, manager of the experiment station’s Arkansas Food Innovation Center, also lent their expertise to the program, Threlfall said.
To learn more about the Division of Agriculture research, visit the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station website. Follow us on X at @ArkAgResearch, subscribe to the Food, Farms and Forests podcast and sign up for our monthly newsletter, the Arkansas Agricultural Research Report. To learn more about the Division of Agriculture, visit uada.edu. Follow us on X at @AgInArk. To learn about extension programs in Arkansas, contact your local Cooperative Extension Service agent or visit uaex.uada.edu.