My Love Affair With Farmers Markets

Recently I was asked at a presentation where my passion for connecting community to local food comes from.

I love this question. 

Call me a romantic but I get all gushy when it comes to talking about food grown locally. 

Anyone who has traveled with me understands that part of the journey will include hunting down area farmers markets to visit. My people know this and are patient with me. While they may stand in a corner drinking coffee while I cruise my way through the vendors, they understand my passion.

Back when I was younger nothing thrilled me more than visiting the Wednesday afternoon market in the town I (kind of) grew up in.  It was a time when farmers would drive up to the town square, back up their old pickup trucks and sell freshly harvested produce straight off the tailgate. 

Gorgeous peaches, flats of berries, ripe tomatoes and vibrant colors of peppers would light up the perimeter of the park with the true essence of summer. I was excited because I loved to cook and bake so I was completely inspired.

Years later I found myself growing produce off of my family's property in a small rural town in Oregon. The soil was so rich that the harvest was abundant, enough that we didn't know what to do with it all. Huge heads of cauliflower and broccoli were harvested by the wheelbarrow full. In an attempt to share the bounty I started hauling it every week in a pickup truck to a food bank. I knew fresh produce availability was minimal so it was a great opportunity to share the abundance of fresh vegetables with a community.

I think working in the farmers market industry is something I was born to do. Every time I attempt to pursue a different career my path always redirects to a market. Now I'm embracing it as part of who I am and excited to move into a new role of market management within my own city.

I have a routine every Saturday morning at the market where I work. As daylight appears the farmers start driving their box trucks into their assigned space, jump out and start unloading their week's offerings. In a couple of hours they will be ready to start selling to a community of eager customers. It humbles me to watch because I'm reminded by the amount of hours and back breaking labor farmers have endured the past week in order to feed people healthy food. 

I hope I never get too busy that I neglect to take that moment to offer thanks and appreciation for both the farmer and the customer that supports them. Its a beautiful relationship,