I love to get to know the vendors and about the farms that I support and source from at Farmers Market. As I have been shopping at my local farmers markets weekly for years now, I mostly know who I like to buy from; but I am always curious to learn about new farmers too. I have done enough research over the years to know what I consider important to ask and what I am looking for. When asking to have a conversation about the farm and farming practices, I will do when no one is around and they aren’t super busy, so typically really early when the market first opens. I will start by introducing myself (and if you are new to the farmers market, I would tell them that too). I say to them: “I would love to learn more about your farm and your practices. May I ask you some questions?” If they are able and say yes, the questions I ask are as follows:

🥬 Do they use conventional sprays?

🥬 If not, do they use organic sprays?

🥬 If yes, how long have they been an organic farm? This will tell me about the soil too

🥬 If no organic sprays, how do they control for pests? Snails, caterpillars etc

🥬 How big is the farm and are they next to other organic farms?

🥬Do they rotate their crops? Do they till their soil (we don’t want them to).

🥬 Do they have animals on farm? If yes, what kind?

When I walk through, I am also thinking about what should be in season and what shouldn’t be in season.

Most of the time they are nice about questions, and love to share about their practices. Some may not know the answers unless the main farmer is there. If they sell coffee at the market, I will get one for them or bring the next time.

Are you interested to know about why I ask some of these questions and what the different answers mean?