Market Time

Saturday Chris and I will go to Farmers Market for the first time. Alone…

Last weekend Thomas took seventeen flats of strawberries to sell. This week we will be selling strawberries in addition to garlic scapes, scallions, sugar snap peas, cilantro, herbs and possibly some beets.
Mike and Thomas, who are both old pros at market, are both out-of-town this weekend. So, off we go. The Chambers will be spending most Saturday’s over the next few months at Farmer’s Market, however, we were hoping for a little bit more instruction and at least one lesson on where our booth location is (“it’s at the far end of the pavilion, on the North side”) how to set up (“set up however you’d like”) and exactly what is expected of us (“if you can make change, you will be fine at market”).

Tomorrow morning we will empty the cooler, load up the Ford, and drive an hour to Glens Falls, NY to sell our wares for four hours. I’m really looking forward to it, even with a little nervous anticipation. Chris is sort of indifferent at this point, and isn’t too thrilled about playing the role. Interacting with the public may begin wearing on me in weeks to come, but at least I’m beginning the season with excitement.

…

Last night Chris and I went to a New Farmer’s meeting hosted by Cornell University and the capital region cooperative extension agency. We skipped out on the last meeting, but decided to attend this month’s discussion on “Marketing Outlets for Farms.” Chris and Tamara of Minglewood Farms gave us a quick tour of their place and spoke about what has worked for them in terms of making farming their business.

On a little more than two acres they grow the most beautiful lettuces and mixed greens (kale, boc choi, tatsoi, various sprouts) and sell at the Saratoga Farmers Market. Greens are their niche. He shared that additional vegetables are simply “window dressing” on their table each week at market. I liked that idea: do one thing and do it well.

After farming for fourteen years now, Farmers Market is the one marketing outlet they use. It’s where they sell all their produce. They feel as if the food should sell itself. If it is the best looking, best tasting produce people will come back week after week, year after year.
Before Chris and my interested peeked, and we decided to seriously consider this farming life, we were not aware of all the ways to sell produce. But there are a few in addition to farmer’s market: CSA’s (Consumer Supported Agriculture), Wholesale (selling to large grocery stores), and Restaurants. There are other wholesale-type of options such as selling to health food stores or retreat centers. The problem is there just isn’t a large net margin for food. Period.
We all have to eat. It’s just a shame that things like Doritos and Little Debbie’s and Kudos bars are less expensive than fresh produce. (And they have a much longer shelf life…) Mainly, most folks don’t know what to do with a rutabaga or rainbow chard or celery root. People want food now. They don’t want to peel and steam carrots or cut and roast Brussels sprouts. Lazy people!

Chris and I are still working out how and where and to what extent we want to do this thing. But we know we want to do something. And we know we are very blessed to be totally immersed in the culture right now- thrown into Farmer’s Market even. I’m lucky I can pick strawberries and eat them the same day, go cut some lettuces for dinner and sauté up some garlic scapes five minutes after snapping them off the stalk.

gourgeous garlic scapes