Farmers’ markets have become a food source to be reckoned with, and not just in bountiful 4-H states like California. You can see it in places like Santa Fe, New Mexico, where last January, the city broke ground on a permanent sustainable structure for their 40-year-old farmers’ market, and in über-urban areas like New York City, where 44 markets take place citywide every week during the growing season. According to the USDA, there are currently 4,385 farmers’ markets nationwide—a seven percent jump since 2005—with sales topping $1 billion annually.

There are serious reasons why we’re ditching the shopping carts in favor of farmstands. The mysteries of food sourcing have been underscored by incidents like last year’s E. Coli-tainted spinach debacle and this year’s news of salmonella-laced peanut butter from contaminated sources in China. More than ever, it’s vital to know how our food is grown and where it’s coming from. These tips will help you make the most of your local farmers’ market bounty in no time.

1. Get Over the “O”
While the organic label means that food is grown or raised without pesticides or herbicides, it doesn’t necessarily mean that your veggies were grown anywhere near where you live and eat. “Organic milk may be made with organic milk powder from New Zealand,” says Gabrielle Langholtz, publicity manager for New York City’s Greenmarkets. Many farmers choose not to go through the certification process because their farms aren’t large enough, or because it’s too expensive, but they nevertheless grow their crops sustainably, consistent with organic-farming standards. “If the farmer lives and raises his family on his farm, he’s disinclined to use chemicals to spray crops that are harmful,” Langholtz says. “Your main environmentally conscious question should be: How many  miles did this food travel to get to me?” Also keep in mind that organic and sustainably grown food does not always look picture-perfect: “Don’t demand cosmetic perfection, because that may require chemical treatments.”

2. Think Season, Not Reason
Sometimes you get to the farmers’ market with a great recipe in mind. You look around, and none of those ingredients are there. This is a clear-cut case of putting the cart before the horse. Buying fresh, local produce means getting to know what’s in season when. Marne Duke, marketing manager for the Nashville Farmers’ Market, the oldest in the nation (it started in 1828), suggests picking up a seed catalogue, like one from Gurney’s Seed & Nursery Company, to see what grows when and where (and what it ought to look like). You can also check out the non-profit Sustainable Table’s “Eat Seasonal” guide (sustainabletable.org), a great resource for enthusiastic but befuddled cooks. If the preparations seem intimidating (“How do I cook a fava bean?”), get your hands on a guided-by-seasons cookbook that you can turn to once you bring your bounty home. Some favorites: Vegetables Every Day (Morrow, $30); The Gardeners’ Community Cookbook (Workman, $19.95); and A Well-Seasoned Appetite (Penguin, $15.95).

Posted on Aug 1, 2007 at 1:30 PM
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