Have you read about the benefits of buying fresh, local, organic food but aren’t sure where to go? Make the local farmers’ market your new favorite place.
Dozens of local farmers, artisans and artists gather at farmers’ markets to sell their own products, so you can find out exactly where your food comes from and how its grown. Here, you can have an honest conversation about what you’re buying with a grower who’s interested in teling you about it. Local farmers live on or near their farms so they have a vested interest in keeping the surrounding land healthy, unlike big corporate farms, which often pollute the land and are not members of the community. Farmers’ market products also save resources because unlike food from a supermarket that may have travelled across the world to get to you, they are unpackaged and travel only short distances.
Most stands at a farmers’ market will be organic, whether or not you see the USDA seal. Small farmer’s can’t always afford organic certification, but most of them will follow (if not exceed) the guidelines, providing you with delicious, healthy food. Bring your own reusable containers and bags and start enjoying the local farmers market scene!
Take Action / Next Steps
Want to learn more? Click here to read about the benefits of shopping local and organic on ecomii.
Visit localharvest.org to find the farmers market nearest you and learn more about farmers markets
Did you know that you can save money by shopping at a farmers market?
At
farmers markets you don’t pay for packaging and transport. You can also barter with local farmers to get deals on their
products. Sam Breach, a writer from San Francisco, proved that shopping for fresh produce at the farmers' market over two
weekends saved a full 29% on what she would have spent on the same or inferior items at Safeway.
Did you know that 58% of farmers markets participate in WIC coupon, food stamps, local and/or
State nutrition programs, according to the USDA?
If you thought you couldn’t
afford to buy organic, think again. There are tons of programs that make it possible for low-income families to enjoy the
best that farmers markets have to offer.
Did you know that organic produce is actually better for you?
According to
many nutrition experts, besides lacking the chemical residue that comes from pesticides and fertilizers on non-organic
produce, organic produce has more phytochemicals, compounds that are antioxidants and help fight the buildup of fat deposits
in arteries.
Did you know that 3,000 acres of productive U.S. farmland is lost to development every day?
According to the EPA, more and more land is being consumed, mostly because small farmers cannot
make enough profit to stay in business. Support healthy farm land as opposed to agriculture corporations by buying from
small, local growers.
SOURCES :
1.US Department of Agriculture. [16 May 2006]. 2000 USDA Farmers Market Study Statistics. Available from: http://www.ams.usda.gov/ [24 July 2008].
5.Astrom, Francie. [26 June 2008] “Cultivate the healthiest food from the farmers' market.” Health News. Available from: http://blog.cleveland.com/health/2008/06/cultivate_the_healthiest_food.html [11 Aug 2008].
