More than just a way to support the local economy, farmer's markets offer the added benefit of know exactly where your food comes from

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by Hanne Armstrong
This Week Staff

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Many of us like to do all of our grocery shopping in one store; it's just easier that way. We've heard good things about our local farmers' market, but don't want the bother of an extra trip in our already busy lives. Whatever advantages there may be in shopping at a market just aren't worth it. Are they?

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"Everything sold here is local," explains John Gallant, manager of le Marché de Dieppe. "We sell three to four million dollars of products every year, and that money stays in the local economy."

Supporting the local economy is important to many people, but is it the only reason to shop at a local market?

"We're all trying to be healthier," says Cathy Keeling, whose Bridge Street Café hosts the Sackville Farmers' Market. "At the market you can talk to the person who actually planted the seeds, made the jam, spun the wool, raised the meat, and so on."

If you're wondering why you would want to talk to the producer of your food, think about knowing for sure what kinds of pesticides and herbicides might be in your fruits and vegetables, or whether your meat is full of growth hormones.

What was the livestock fed before it became meat on your table? Does your fresh produce come from traditional, unaltered seeds, or modified, treated ones? Is this cut of beef better than that one for a particular menu? Are those fruits or these better for a particular recipe?

You can find out a lot about the food you're buying when the producers are right there to answer your questions.

"And," emphasizes Cathy, "the money you spend goes right back into the local economy."

What are we getting for our loyal support of the local economy?

"We get deliveries on a daily basis," says Green Pig Country Market co-owner Lynn Beckwith. "Only fresh produce is available to our customers." The Green Pig is not technically a farmers' market, but Lynn and her husband Ron are supplied by local producers, and Lynn says the demand for local products is steadily increasing.

"What's sold here is picked the day before," says John of the Moncton Market. "You can't get fresher than that." And of course, if it wasn't local, it couldn't be as fresh. But it's more expensive than the big retailers, isn't it?

"Word around is it's a little more expensive, but often it's a very few cents," says John of le Marché de Dieppe. And when you consider the advantages, a few cents isn't much to worry about.

Farmers' markets are open to the public Saturday mornings year round, with le Marché de Dieppe experimentally open Friday evenings this summer. The Green Pig operates seven days a week from June to Christmas.

As an attractive bonus to the raw produce available, most farmers' markets also have locally prepared foods which can be eaten on the premises. From Thai to Indian, local to Lebanese, you can enjoy a snack and the company of friends while contributing to the local economy and your own health with local, safe, produce.