Have you ever tRed barn.reated yourself to a visit to a Farmers’ market? If you’ve never been to one, a true farmer’s market is an event where a group of LOCAL food producers sell their products directly to the consumer instead of selling it first to a wholesaler or retail store.

Here are some reasons why I buy from farmer’s markets:

  1. Food is fresher.  Often, produce is picked THE SAME MORNING! Without starting your own farm, you can’t beat that.
  2. Food is more nutrient-dense.  Vitamins eventually disintegrate with time, so buying it and eating it as soon as you can after harvest will maximize the nutritional benefits.
  3. Food tastes better. See #1 and #2, and read The Dorito Effect if you want to know why store-bought tomatoes taste gross.
  4. One can meet the producers, and ask questions you’d have trouble getting answers to when contacting a food corporation. You’ll get immediate answers to your questions like, “what kind of fertilizer do you use for your corn?” and, “what exactly do your pasture-fed animals eat?”  and, “do you deliver?”.
  5. It feels good, ethically. I’m supporting my local economy, not some huge corporation.
  6. There’s much less pollution of the kind generated by long-haul trucks and fancy promotional packaging. See #5.
  7. Food is often grown without pesticides and artificial fertilizers because it’s small-scale farming, not corporate ‘pharming’.
  8. No artificial food additives, because the food is minimally processed.
  9. See no evil, eat no evil. You are more likely to buy the healthy food you see, instead of the treats you would be tempted to buy at the supermarket.
  10. Try before you buy! There’s always sampling going on. Bring an appetite so you can taste the wares, and maybe even have brunch while you’re there.

vegetablesNo, you won’t get points for your purchases, nor can you typically pay by credit card (vendor depending)—but the physical and spiritual feel-good factor is BIG.  Check out the region of Ottawa-Gatineau’s Farmer’s markets here. You’ll find an amazing array of food for sale: vegetables, fruits, breads, desserts, meats, eggs, milk products, and ready-to-eat foods, too.

By Andrea

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