Alex Canepa, Farmers' Markets and Advocacy Manager
During National Farmers Market Week, we are joining farmers’ markets across the United States to celebrate the contribution that farmers’ markets make to American life and the nation’s economy. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, farmers’ markets generate more than $700 million in annual sales for over 100,000 farms and ranches.
Here are three reasons to love your farmers’ market:
Farmers’ markets and CSA programs, like our SFC Farmers' Markets and Farm to Work project, allow farmer, to realize a higher “net” profit margin than any other food retail outlet. On average, farmers receive only 14.8 cents for every dollar that Americans spend at the grocery store or going out to eat. By cutting out the middlemen, however, farmers’ markets allow farmers to keep well over 90% of the sticker price of their food. This is one reason why many young and beginning farmers’ get their start at the farmers’ market.
Farmers’ markets are spearheading America’s most ambitious and successful nutrition programs, including fruit/vegetable incentives and the WIC and Senior Farmers’ Market Nutrition Programs. Each of these programs increases the purchasing power of food-insecure Texans so that they can afford fresh, healthy food and give their money directly to local farmers. SFC Double Dollars, for example, doubles the value of SNAP (formerly known as food stamps) for the purchase of fruits and vegetables. On the first Saturday of each month, SFC also triples WIC benefits for healthy foods at our Downtown and Sunset Valley markets.
Too big to fail isn’t just about banks, it’s about farms too. Independent farms are finding themselves squeezed out of markets now dominated by a small handful of multinational corporations. However, the little guys are fighting back (and winning). According to the USDA, farms that sell directly to consumers are not only less likely to file for bankruptcy than their larger competitors; they also have an outsized impact on growing local economies because they purchase feed, seed, and equipment from other local businesses.
This Saturday, put your money where your month is and visit one (or both!) of our SFC Farmers Markets. Not only will you find the freshest, highest quality food Central Texas has to offer, you’ll also support a vision of agriculture that puts people, the environment, and local economies first.
SFC Farmers' Market Downtown — Republic Square — 9am to 1pm
SFC Farmers' Market at Sunset Valley — Toney Burger Center — 9am to 1pm