What Is A Farmers Market: II

Lauta Avery
Mirror contributing wrter

   There are approximately 350 Farmers Markets in California. With its mild climate and populous urban centers, California is ideally suited for year round markets. Southern California growers of avocados, citrus and strawberries will travel to Bay area markets before northern growers’ crops are ready to capitalize on early season prices. During the earliest part of the very short cherry season when prices can be as high as $120 per twenty-pound box, farmers will sell on the wholesale market to take advantage of favorable market conditions before wholesale prices drop to below the cost of production. Conventional marketing channels force farmers to sell large production on tiny margins — it is estimated by the Small Farm Center that a conventional farmer’s average income is right around $18,000 per year. For many farmers, selling at farmers’ markets has enabled them to stay on their farms.
   Since Certified Farmers Markets in California may be operated only by a municipality, a farmer, or a non-profit organization according to the regulations that govern them, it seems as though the intent was to have markets operate for the mutual benefit of the sponsors and participants. As the farmers prosper, the market generates revenue and money can be spent on promotion and services, further strengthening the organization. This creates an ideal situation for all participants including the customers, whose dollars fuel the markets’ growth.
   How do farmers prosper at farmers markets? For one thing, they rely on a steady stream of customers. Customers are attracted to farmers markets for the opposite reasons they shop at grocery stores where convenience, not quality, is ranked first. Crowds and long lines, and the attendant conversations and socialization, are what make farmers markets irresistible.
   Getting to know a farmer is another plus at a farmers market. Aside from some cartoon logos or Paul Newman’s smiling face on a bottle of salad dressing, the average American consumer never gets any face time with the person who grew his or her food. Without getting a good look at the produce boxes in a grocery store, it is difficult to know what continent the food came from, let alone which farm. As customers become more knowledgeable by shopping at a farmers market, they learn to expect more. They ask for appropriate organic labeling and they do not like to be told that chicory greens are dandelion (they are in the same family but are not interchangeable – hence the confusion.) It’s nice to come away from your weekly shopping trip a little wiser.
   Even with the rules and regulations that govern all aspects of California’s farmers markets, it is difficult to find a “typical” market. Going to different farmers markets puts you in a different rhythm, a new pattern of buying. While I get very frustrated when I visit a different grocery store and can’t readily find the items I am looking for, I enjoy exploring a new farmers market. I feel as if I am visiting a whole group of new acquaintances, each of whom has something interesting to share. I always ask where the farm is located –- that way I can put a face and a location to what I am about to eat.
   As the rest of us slow down for awhile after the end of the year holiday festivities, business at the farms and the markets continues apace. Root crops and hardy greens which were held back due to unseasonably cold weather will be ready for market and tastier for all the time they spent chilling. Visiting a farmers market during late December is like taking a walk on the beach in the rain – it’s a new way to enjoy a familiar experience. We’ll see you soon!