Farmers Markets: do you have an opinion you'd like to share?

Latest Articles

Farmers Markets: do you have an opinion you'd like to share?
Page Previous 1, 2, 3, 4 Next

Downsizer Forum Index -> Seasonal and Frugal Shopping

Author

Message

gil
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 08 Jun 2005
Posts: 18415

Posted: Thu Nov 26, 09 2:47 pm Post subject:

In Scotland, each market has to be licensed. This costs money. The licence lasts three years, and covers a single venue. i.e. you cannot change the venue, date or time of the market unless you pay more [quite a lot more] money, on each and every occasion you vary the original licence.

Many areas of Scotland do not have street markets [any more]. There is thus no existing market to piggyback on. And no tradition of closing off parts of the street to enable the market to happen. If you wanted to do this now, without a precedent, it is almost impossible. You'd have to liaiase with the council, police, fire service, etc etc, and it would, again, cost money, if it could be agreed at all.

factor in the climate, and you have more complications. It is unpleasant for customers and producers alike to stand/walk around/make buying decisions in cold, pouring rain.

gil
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 08 Jun 2005
Posts: 18415

Posted: Thu Nov 26, 09 2:55 pm Post subject:

sorry, my reply boxes are misbehaving.

So it would be difficult to hold a farmers market outdoors part of the year, and indoors in the coldest months, because of having to vary the licence. Outdoors but under cover does not work very well either [wind, cold].

So the best option up here, in a sparsely populated area, is to have indoor markets, in village halls or sports centres or town halls. Because centres of population are small, it would not be economically viable to have a FM in the same place each week. Also, the distances involved for customers to travel. So we have monthly markets, and within each sub-area of the region, market days are planned so that there is a market somewhere in the same valley / catchment area for every weekend of the month.

I'd suggest that there are big differences in the organisation, running and rationale for FMs withiin the UK as a whole.

BTW, this is a view from someone who has been very involved in farmers markets both as organiser and producer.
And on occasion as a customer.

gil
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 08 Jun 2005
Posts: 18415

Posted: Thu Nov 26, 09 3:06 pm Post subject:

Also depends what kind of indoor space that is large enough can be rented for a reasonable fee, so we have ended up with a variety of venues in the region.
Locally, we have markets in town halls [3], sports centres [1], village halls [several], the function room of a pub [1], and latterly there has been one attempt to start a street-based market [initial markets on this site did not go well, despite the town centre venue, partly because of access/loading problems for the traders onto a site which is a pedestrianised shopping street].

cab

Joined: 01 Nov 2004
Posts: 32429

Posted: Thu Nov 26, 09 3:16 pm Post subject:

Do you find that you get mostly people making a special trip for the farmers market or are they drawn in while doing other things though? The former would be more like 'pandering' to the few (still hate that phrase

) and the latter is more akin to 'promoting' the produce to a wider market.

Just comparing the crowds at the two types, my experience (at least down here) is that you get a much more diverse group when the market is well integrated in the population centre; that this may well be practically impossible in some places may well be a reason why the 'pandering' thing could be held to be true.

gil
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 08 Jun 2005
Posts: 18415

Posted: Thu Nov 26, 09 3:34 pm Post subject:

It's hardly 'pandering' up here, because you get the wide cross-section of customers, just from a smaller population / geographical area. It is, after all, a remote rural area, and not a prosperous city with existing markets, universities, industry and a customer catchment that probably far exceeds the entire population [c.100,000] of our whole region.

If local folk come into a town to go to a market, they will do other things while there [go to the shops, the library, visit friends/relations]. Shop traders benefit from the extra footfall in the town.

Village markets less so, though they attract locals, tourists, and people working nearby or travelling across the region between towns [it's a region traversed by one major route, so easy enough to stop off to one side or t'other]. Has to be said that village markets do better in the summer months when there is tourist trade as well. But if there weren't markets in those places, a lot of the region would not have regular access to FMs / local produce.

BTW Most of our towns are the same size or smaller than an English village.... Our villages are more like your 'hamlets'.

gorbut

Joined: 03 Sep 2006
Posts: 137
Location: Border of London and Essex

Posted: Thu Nov 26, 09 4:11 pm Post subject:

We have a weekly farmers market but I am afraid I don't go very often because there is very little there that I would call local. This market is in Walthamstow NE London and stuff comes from Kent,Hertfordshire and even Somerset Unless it has changed radically there is nothing from Essex except occasionally someone selling honey which I do buy. The prices are also quite high. This is partly because a lot of the things are free range and organic and are often out of my price range. That is not to say that the price they are asking isn't fair just that I don't seem to be able to stretch my budget. The other things there are added value things such as cakes, pies and preserves and I do those myself so don't usually buy them. It is worth a journey sometimes to buy the spelt bread which my son finds easier to tolerate then ordinary wheat but that is a luxury for him due to the price.

My parents in law live in Sussex and the had a great Sunday market years ago which was largely local produce. That ended though when Sainsburys bought the land and built a superstore.

katie

Joined: 13 Dec 2004
Posts: 713
Location: midlands

Posted: Thu Nov 26, 09 5:05 pm Post subject:
I've spent a lot of time selling plants at farmers' markets. The ones in wealthy areas usually have organic food as well as local. In the less rich towns, it's mainly local. They are valued by people who think local food is important but I've heard many variations on the theme of 'I shan't bother again - it's no cheaper than the supermarket!'

woodsprite

Joined: 20 Mar 2006
Posts: 2943
Location: North Herefordshire

Posted: Thu Nov 26, 09 5:11 pm Post subject:
Our official farmers market is monthly. It is well stocked and well attended and half of the stalls are there on a weekly basis as part of the ordinary market ( running 3 days a week since 1100) anyway. This, along with great shops, is the reason that I can buy everything I need locally and the vast majority of my food is local.

Rosemary Judy

Joined: 08 Aug 2005
Posts: 1215
Location: East Midlands

Posted: Thu Nov 26, 09 5:28 pm Post subject:

I have stopped using our local ones, as they are the one week here the next there and I simply can't remember which is being held where.
And I work full time now, and resent having to travel to diff places a long way off to get my food.
I use the local farm shop - who sell at the FM's anyway, and also use downsizer as my FM.
I still grow a lot of my own veg and fruit, and make my own tomato sauces and so on. and a neighbour has just opened a fruit and veg shop, and she is committed to local and fetches me a box every week
I make my own bread.

I don't eat much meat compared to some, but have bought off here and also a good friend who has beef.

I would like to be able to buy local cheese and milk, but there isn't much near me.

I would like to go to the same place every week - so I do and it is a supermarket.....

Rob R

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 31902
Location: York

Posted: Thu Nov 26, 09 5:32 pm Post subject:

Barefoot Andrew wrote:

I really like that idea.
A.

Only one problem- as a farmers market [ds] there isn't much 'local' unless you're in Wales or the west country.

Barefoot Andrew
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 21 Mar 2007
Posts: 22780
Location: In the 17th century

Posted: Thu Nov 26, 09 5:35 pm Post subject:

Rob R wrote:

Only one problem- as a farmers market [ds] there isn't much 'local' unless you're in Wales or the west country.

I was thinking about that earlier - whether I should be supporting my local producers here in Derbyshire (of which we have plenty), or getting my produce from the likes of Gil, Brownbear and yourself.

Despite the food miles, I personally prefer to support the traders I know and our rather wonderful community herein.
A.

Rob R

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 31902
Location: York

Posted: Thu Nov 26, 09 5:42 pm Post subject:
For me I'd put knowledge of what goes into my food above 'local' but fully intend to increase the local sales throughout 2010, when the place stops looking so much like a building site but I'd still rather have mostly deliveries as our lane isn't really suitable for lots of people coming and going.

cab

Joined: 01 Nov 2004
Posts: 32429

Posted: Thu Nov 26, 09 6:10 pm Post subject:

Barefoot Andrew wrote:

Its a two-stage thing for me. I go for local producers who I can get to know and rely on first, more distant downsizer traders second (if I struggle to get what I want very locally). That isn't to say that there aren't some cracking producers on here, but if that banner at the top 'for a sustainable and ethical future' means anything I think it means relying on local first.

cab

Joined: 01 Nov 2004
Posts: 32429

Posted: Thu Nov 26, 09 6:10 pm Post subject:

Rob R wrote:

Barefoot Andrew wrote:

I really like that idea.
A.

Only one problem- as a farmers market [ds] there isn't much 'local' unless you're in Wales or the west country.

I hear tell of some meat up near Hull that ain't bad.

chez

Joined: 13 Aug 2006
Posts: 35935
Location: The Hive of the Uberbee, Quantock Hills, Somerset

Posted: Thu Nov 26, 09 6:19 pm Post subject:

I agree with the people who have said that the question is a very strawy straw man. The farmers markets we have anything to do with are ALL about local. Organic comes a small second, if at all.

We do Wellington Farmer's market, which is two Saturday mornings a month and is in a scout hall very central to the town - mostly inside, a bit outside. Ma sells mainly cut flowers at that one and there are plant sellers, veg, goat-products (not milk, soap, cheese, that kind of thing), a pie chap, butcher, venison, bread, eggs and trees. It is a vibrant little market - probably due to the fact that people who are shopping in the town centre anyway can pop in - that is worth going to for both consumers and producers. There is a lot of local produce and very little organic.

One Saturday a month we do Cotford, which is essentially a modern housing estate - the market is in the school hall. That is a bit more 'crafty' in it's base and people have to make a special effort to come out to shop at it. It is not doing nearly so well and many stallholders are not even covering the cost of their stall. There is talk that this week will be the last one.

	Downsizer Forum Index -> Seasonal and Frugal Shopping	All times are GMT Page Previous 1, 2, 3, 4 Next
Page 3 of 4

View Latest Posts