Ten years ago, farmers markets in Michigan were few and far between, with only 90 existing in the state. Today, the state boasts more than 250 farmers markets, and a recently-released report finds these markets are more than just a place to shop for local produce. Farmers markets also can boost the economy and provide jobs.
While farmers markets are growing in numbers nationally, they could be doing a lot better, according to a report released Thursday by the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS). What’s holding farmers markets back? Federal policies that favor industrial agriculture at their expense, the report stated.
“On the whole, farmers markets have seen exceptional growth, providing local communities with fresh food direct from the farm,” stated Jeffrey O’Hara, the author of the report and an economist with UCS’s Food and Environment Program. “But our federal food policies are working against them. If the U.S. government diverted just a small amount of the … subsidies it (gives to) industrial agriculture to support these markets and small local farmers, it would not only improve American diets, it would generate tens of thousands of new jobs.”UCS released the report just a few days before the 12th annual U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) National Farmers Market Week, which starts Sunday. According to the report, “Market Forces: Creating Jobs through Public Investment in Local and Regional Food Systems,” the number of farmers markets nationwide more than doubled between 2000 and 2010, jumping from 2,863 to 6,132, and now more than 100,000 farms sell food directly to local consumers.
According to the report, all that growth happened with relatively little help from public funding. Last year, for example, the USDA spent $13.7 billion in commodity, crop insurance and supplemental disaster assistance payments mostly to support large industrial farms, according to the Congressional Budget Office. The agency spent less than $100 million that year to support local and regional food system farmers.
The fact that farmers markets are growing without the help of public funding, however, could show that farmers markets aren’t in need of such assistance, said John Pridnia, who started the Port Austin Farmers Market with his wife, Lisa, seven years ago. He said the federal government spending money to help start farmers markets would be another example of waste.
“We started ours with a hope, a desire and the energy to succeed,” Pridnia said. “We started with minimum expenditures.”
Pridnia agrees, though, that farmers markets help boost the local economy. He sees it for himself every weekend in Port Austin.
“It’s a phenomenal positive for the business community,” he said. “Shoppers stay in town for hours after the market closes to have lunch and (visit businesses). They linger and enjoy the town.”
Pridnia said a farmers market is a tremendous asset to any community, regardless of the size of the community or the market itself.
“We have over 150 vendors, but some farmers markets have 15 vendors, but it doesn’t matter the size — the joy is still there,” he said.
He said he would pit any small-town farmers market against one in an urban community.
“Bigger is great, but it’s not always better,” he said.
Pridnia said he and Lisa are invited every year to other communities around the state to give presentations on starting a farmers market. He said so far, they’ve conducted the presentations in about a dozen communities.
“It’s astounding how popular our market is,” he said. “It’s a place for shoppers to access food direct from the farming community. It’s a place to enjoy the day. It’s also become a social event, not only for the shoppers, but for the vendors. The vendors have created a family among themselves.”
Pridnia said organizing the Port Austin Farmers Market is definitely a “labor of love” and it wouldn’t be possible without the help of volunteers.
Pigeon started a weekly farmers market this summer, and it ran in June and July. Amish produce and baked goods were available, along with other products. On average, there were five to seven vendors each week, said Brandis Mallais, Pigeon Chamber of Commerce vice president.
“A friend and I would travel to Port Austin’s farmers market on weekends to get fresh produce and flowers, and we thought it would be nice to have it here (in Pigeon),” Mallais said.
Pigeon had a building next to the Pigeon Historical Museum that was not being used, and Mallais said the building was meant for a farmers market. She talked with a co-worker at Thumb National Bank, who had connections to some Amish families. The Pigeon Farmers Market flourished from there.
“It’s another reason for people to come to town,” she said. “It’s giving people more of an opportunity to stay local.”
The goal for next year is to start in May and to provide a wider variety of products, she said.
Mallais said she doesn’t believe farmers markets really need public funding.
“If anyone needs it, it’s the growers,” she said.
Considering that agriculture is one of the top industries in Michigan, it seems anywhere in the state would be a prime locale for a farmers market. The state produces more than 200 agricultural commodities, from tart cherries to maple syrup, pickles, cheeses and salsas to beef and fish products, according to the Michigan Department of Agriculture.
“The agri-food sector in Michigan generates more than $70 billion for our economy, employs one million Michigan workers, and it’s still growing,” said Elaine Brown, executive director of Michigan Food & Farming Systems. “Shopping at farmers markets like this is a wonderful way to support and industry and make fresh, healthy food available for everyone.”
When growers sell directly to consumers, most of the money recirculates locally. In 2007, the most recent USDA figure, direct agricultural product sales amounted to a $1.2 billion-a-year business.
“The fact that farmers are selling directly to the people who live nearby means that sales revenue stays local,” O’Hara stated in a release. “That helps stabilize local economies.”
Keeping revenues local also can mean more job opportunities, the UCS report stated. Last summer, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack asked Congress to set a goal in the 2012 Farm Bill of helping at least 100,000 Americans to become farmers by, among other things, providing entrepreneurial training and support for farmers markets. O’Hara’s report takes up Vilsack’s challenge and argues that supporting local and regional food system expansion is central to meeting that goal.
In the report, O’Hara identified a number of initiatives the federal government could take to encourage new farmers and the growth of farmers markets in the upcoming Farm Bill. For example, the report called on Congress to:
• Support the development of local food markets, including farmers markets and farm-to-school programs, which can stabilize community-supported markets and create permanent jobs. For example, the report found that the Farmers Market Promotion Program could create as many as 13,500 jobs nationally over a five-year period, if reauthorized, by providing modest funding for 100 to 500 farmers markets per year.
• Level the playing field for farmers in rural regions by investing in infrastructure, such as meat-processing or dairy-bottling facilities, which would help meat, dairy and other farmers produce and market their products to consumers more efficiently. These investments could foster competition in food markets, increase product choice for consumers, and generate jobs in the community.
• Allow low-income residents to redeem food nutrition subsidies at local food markets to help them afford fresh fruits and vegetables. Currently, not all markets are able to accept Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits.
“Farmers at local markets are a new variety of innovative entrepreneurs, and we need to nurture them,” said O’Hara. “Supporting these farmers should be a Farm Bill priority.”
LOCAL FARMERS MARKETS
• Port Austin Farmers Market
9 a.m. to 1 p.m. until Oct. 15
Intersection of Lake and State streets, downtown Port Austin
(989) 738-7600
• Sebewaing Farmers Market
9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Aug. 20
Center Street, downtown
• Pigeon’s Farmers Market is done for the year, but the goal is to start it up again in May 2012. Call (989) 453- or visit www.pigeonchamber.com.
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