Healthy soil and sustainable growing

[yarrow@sfo.com]

Title: Re: [Livingontheland] Farmers' Market Disappointment

At 6:06 PM -0600 11/17/07, E. E. Mitchamore Jr wrote:

....Next was the biggest Farmers' Market in the Austin area.  More like a county fair, with handcrafts and food booths in a paved parking lot.  If shopping and eating are your goal, I guess it's ok, but there was no information on the farms or the farmers.

....What are Farmers' Markets and farm stands like in other areas?

>>

That's surprising. Did you try talking to the farmers? I'd guess you hit the touristy market instead of the vegetable-focused ones, but I don't know Austin.

One of the benefits (or tradeoffs, ymmv) of living in an urban/suburban place is the plethora of farmers' markets. Here in the SF Bay Area, within 7 miles, we have 4 year-round and 2 seasonal markets, all of which include a nice selection of organic produce. The rules for farmers' markets around here are that the items sold must be produced by the farm (including value-added products such as garlic braids, lavender oil, or jams). Most of them have only a stand or two of prepared foods or gift items, so what you see are tables piled high with produce. I'd guess that most of the markets have a limit on the number of nonproduce vendors -- a couple flower stands, several with prepared foods, a couple of bread bakers (very popular), but mostly fruits and vegs.

One of the seasonal markets seems to want to draw young families to its downtown, so it's 4-8 pm on a weekday and a third of the stands are prepared foods, but still many produce stands. They close a street and put cafe tables out. The latest one, which began this June on Sunday mornings, does the same but has a more boutiquey/outdoor cafe atmosphere than any of the others so is less appealing as a farmers' market. Maybe this is the new trend, to reach out to people who would not otherwise make a special trip for fresh vegetables. Or maybe the goal is to make it different from the other Sunday-morning market that's 4-5 miles down the road (that one is near a Trader Joe's, and I think they both benefit from increased traffic).

At all the markets, the name of the farm and its location are usually displayed prominently, especially if it's an organic farm. If the farmers speak English, they are willing to talk about their farm when it's not too busy. Several of the farms that are not certified organic say they use no pesticides. One of the organic farms has an annual harvest festival at the farm, which is over 100 miles away.

Another benefit of living in a population center is the variety of produce. Some of the farmers bring lots of Asian vegetables. One of the organic farms grows unusual varieties, so I always look closely at what's there when I happen to go to that market. At a couple of the markets I've found transplants.