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market-farming - Re: starting farmers' markets (long)

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  • From: Marcie Rosenzweig <fullcircle AT jps.net>
  • To: "market farming" <market-farming AT franklin.oit.unc.edu>
  • Subject: Re: starting farmers' markets (long)
  • Date: Sat, 29 Jan 2000 17:01:10 -0800


Hi all,

I've belonged to three different farmers' market associations, and helped
start one that now runs 6 markets. I can tell you each association is
unique as is each market in each town. Somethings that happen here are:

Certified Farmers' Markets -
California is the land of regulation. If our legislature can write a law
getting into your wallet they will. (I'll step off my soapbox, now ;-)
Certified Farmers Markets in California allow the farmer to sell directly
to the consumer without following the standard packaging and sizing rules
for agricultural products (and there are many) the trade-off for this is
that a farmer or their employee can sell only the produce grown on their
farm as certified by the county ag commissioner. Before you can get a
certificate, you must submit a list of what you are growing, each variety
listed separately; how many acres, or linear feet, or square feet of that
crop you're growing; what months you anticipate the harvest to cover; and
your estimated production in lbs of that crop. Then, the Ag Commissioner
comes out to your farm to verify you are growing what you say you are.
Trust me if you do a biointensive cultural system with two to three crops
off each bed in any given season, you can really drive the system batty.
Your certificate, once recieved must be displayed prominently in your booth
when you sell.

Each market must apply to be a certified market and only farmers with
certificates may sell there. If the certified marrket is only one part of
a larger market, that includes prepared foods and crafts for instance,
there must be a clear demarcation between the certified market and the rest
of the vendors.

Whew!

The advantage of this system is the consumer knows they are buying directly
from the farmer and not a wholesale jobber. It helps level the playing
field by assuring someone isn't buying produce wholesale and reselling.
Some asssociations help farmers purchase signs with the Certified Farm
logo, the farm name and city on it.

For those of you in a less anal retentive climate, the take-away message
here might be to try creating a row or corner of your marketplace with
local farmer-type banners or other things that clearly let folks know
you're different from the rest.

Old City Markets -

I've participated in three of these with three different experiences.

One was an urban market. It was basically sponsored by a downtown
merchants association who asked the farmers' market association to set up a
market there. LOTS of traffic but fewer buyers than smaller markets I
attended. This was a summer evening market on a Thursday night in a
downtown dominated by offices. Local restaurants had food booths, there
was music, merchant some merchants had booths outside ther stores but most
did not. Great ambiance, mediocre sales. Folks got off work, grabbed a
bite at a food booth, listened to some music, bought a peach for dessert
and left.

Both others were rural/suburban markets in centers of small towns.

One Saturday morning market got moved three times because the merchants saw
all these people at the farmers' market but none in their stores. Never
mind they didn't open until the last half hour of the market. We were
thought to be robbing them of traffic because we had the parking spaces on
the street for two blocks. The merchants here never participated. We're
out of there and now they blaming the high school kids for loitering and
looking weird.

The final market is a success. You might call it a private market as it's
run by one person without a board and limited funding from the city - they
pay part of the publicity budget and some of his salary. It's a Friday
night market in the historic part of a Gold Rush town. Small eateries and
gift sores are the rule. Here's what's different.

The manager goes to each merchant personally inviting and encouraging them
to participate. The main street is blocked of and no parking is allowed
starting at 4:30pm.
The farmers market is in the center of the two blocks on both sides of the
street. Virtually all the eateries set up a "sidewalk cafe" presense.
Several merchants bring a table of gift items out and set up. A stage with
varied local bands (Celtic, jazz, salsa, rock, folk) is set up at one end
of the street and the band schedule is published in the local paper before
the season begins and weekly after that. Sometimes a second "stage area"
at the other end of the market allows for the local theater company or
poetry readings or local kids dance troupe to perform. He's gotten the
community to have ownership of a piece of this market everywhere you turn.
This market is in the smallest population draw of any of the three adn it's
in an historic distric tht is dominated by tourist trade inthe sunmmer,
but we always sell more here than at any other market.

I'll shut up now,

Marcie A. Rosenzweig
Full Circle Organic Farm
Auburn, CA





  • Re: starting farmers' markets (long), Marcie Rosenzweig, 01/29/2000

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