Farmer’s Markets - not just for food anymore

Local farmer's markets are a treasure trove to those who love fresh, locally grown food. At a typical market, you can find fresh veggies and fruits, artisan breads and sometimes homemade salsas. Along with these makings for a feast comes education.

Yep, you heard me right: education!

Employees, students and visitors peruse the multitude of offerings at the Sept. 14, 2007, farmer's market at the University of Arizona, Tucson, Ariz. Many of the tables offered brochures and general green living information to all for free, alongside their produce, honey, salsas or baked goods. Photo by Jennifer Tramm. All rights reserved.

Ask anyone holding down their little tent and table fort about where the food comes from and you're likely to get an earful about the benefits of locally grown food. A few months ago, I met some folks who run a fresh produce table at the University of Arizona Market on the Mall farmer's market. They told me that one of the benefits of eating locally grown food, aside from the obvious flavor bonus of something just dug up or plucked, is that it takes a lot less fuel to move local food.

Think about it: If several flats of tomatoes have to go from a farm in Le Grand Calif., to Tucson, Ariz., that's about 750 miles those delicious juicy fruits have to travel to get to your supermarket. What figures in to the equation for you? Road impact: Tax dollars pay to fix roads covered by large, heavy tractor-trailer rigs. Cost to consumer: The truck drivers get paid to drive and the trucks require lots of fuel. The cost of both is passed on to you, the tomato lover. Even more important to this blog is the cost to the environment: Such a trip will result in a great deal of carbon being emitted into the air.

Now, imagine that trip happening a few times a month, every month of the year. That's a lot of carbon to spend for people to enjoy the delightful tomato. Worth it? Perhaps not.Now, imagine the same tomato lover at a farmer's market. The tomatoes came from a farm, say about an hour away. The vehicle wasn't a massive tractor-trailer, but was a pickup truck. Not only are the tomatoes traveling less, they probably haven't been off the vine for long, so smell and taste better. The best part: Not as much carbon emitted into the air, which makes these tomatoes of the guilt-free variety. Very nice!

So, go to a farmer's market and ask about the food. Where did it come from? How was the growing season this year? Do they use pesticides? I'd be willing to bet the produce guy at the supermarket won't know any of these things about those Le Grand tomatoes.

Oh, and ask the sellers whether they grew the plants themselves - oftentimes the farmers own the stand. They're usually friendly and you'll find they know your community as well as you - they live there, too! So they care about it as much as you do.

A quick search online can produce a list of the nearest farmer's markets and what days they're held. These markets are a great opportunity for you to learn more about the environment and food and maybe take home some of the freshest veggies around.