“There’s no better place to buy fruits and vegetables than at a farmers’ market. Period,” according to Mark Bittman (2014, p.1). This quote from the article “Farmers’ Market Values”, by Mark Bittman, is a strong statement that shows how he truly feels about farmers’ markets. The author is clearly stating that when a buyer wants produce that is fresh, delicious, and just plain good to eat, they need to go to a market. Throughout the article, he reiterates many times the importance of farmers’ markets. They are an oasis in the middle of New York City that allows buyers to purchase the freshness that they are looking for as if they lived in the country. Bittman writes the article in a way that makes the reader want to go out and buy from markets, …show more content…
The author is a credible writer because of various different reasons. Bittman attended Clark University; therefore, he is educated, and he also is a writer for New York Times, which is a very credible and highly respected website. The author uses other sources in his article that include farmers and business owners in the field of farmers’ markets; furthermore, this shows how he has done his research to be a reliable source. The intended audience for the article can be anyone who is buying groceries, interested in the benefits of buying local, or consumers who are skeptical of farmers’ markets. In the article, the author acts as if every community has a local farmers’ market. He does not address the issue that not every buyer has access to a market, and their only option may be to buy from a grocery store. However, he does describe the need to spread farmers’ markets across the nation and make them more readily available. With the intended audience in mind, Bittman structures and writes his article in a way to hook readers and persuade them into learning more about the local food …show more content…
Bittman starts the article by describing the benefits of markets and how they compare to grocery store prices. He addresses the big issue of farmers’ markets being more expensive at times, and he confirms at times they can be, but urges buyers to realize that the quality is much better compared to grocery stores. Bittman then continues the article to portray the hardships farmers go through to keep markets up and running. Mark Bittman (2014) states, “Farmers who come to market may be working 18 ¬hour days, or even longer, depending on the length of their drive. On top of this, to handle retail sales they’ve got to process a variety of forms of payment in addition to cash, from SNAP (food stamps) to credit cards to tokens” (p.2). Farmers put in a tremendous effort to keep markets running, and they deserve the recognition for doing so. Bittman concludes the article by encouraging consumers to give the markets a chance, and he recognizes that local food movement still has a long way to go. The language and the appeals that authors use affect the reader greatly on how they interpret the
RNRA Team, “Supermarkets, Fresh Produce and New Commodity Chains: What Future for the Small Producer?” Hot Topics: February, 2004.
...e items come from places like CAFO’s. Joel wants to redirect the way farming should be. He believes that his process of “mob-grazing” will help restore the land prosper and continue to be farmed for many years. In the past 15 years small farms have been demolished by the bigger corporations. Smaller farms have a more difficult time accruing certifications and paying expensive fees to sell their products on a bigger scale. The USDA requires many restrictions and guidelines to what, where and how such products needs to be prepared which is time consuming, costly and requires many resources. In this area of Swoope, Virginia there are many small farmers that sell at the local Staunton Farmers Market located in downtown Staunton. Polyface also has a “Metropolitan Buying Club” which allows the products produced by the farm can travel farther for a monthly subscription.
... as changing zoning and offerring incentives to attract farmers markets and supermarkets to food deserts. Cities can increase access by guaranteeing public transportation routes. And farmers’ markets can accept EBT (electronic benefit transfer), which would make it easier for those on assistant programs to have access to fresh local fruits and vegetables. Seattle area farmers’ markets are already doing this. Community gardens can be an effective way of increasing fruit and vegetable consumption among residents. Cities can encourage this through zoning polices and grants.
More and more farm-to-table restaurants, farmer’s markets, and food co-ops are cropping up to meet the demand among consumers for healthy, local foods, as more chefs and consumers recognize the poorer taste and nutritional integrity of ingredients shipped in from far away. Fruits and vegetables that have to be shipped long distances are often picked before they have a chance to fully ripen and absorb nutrients from their surroundings. Because local food doesn’t have to travel long distances, it is grown in order to taste better and be healthier rather than to be resilient to long travel. The farm-to-table movement also helps local economies by supporting small farmers, which is a dying
Farmer markets have always been around and a strong reason to believe that they will still be around long after our time. There are several reasons why this age old tradition still exitst today and revolves around a very common question, “What does a buyer find important when they are about to buy food to be consumed, or how the produce is grown/manufactured, processed, marketed, and distributed. Supporting farmer markets and ensuring fair trade among the dealer and the seller can help promote healthier lives while building stronger communities. There are several reasons to support a community’s farmer market event because buying true locally grown food can allows the buyer to have options to food that is picked fresh and tastes better than what is sold in the supermarkets. Another benefit to farmers markets is that the food is sustainable, flavorful, supports local farms, and also in some areas, part of the proceeds goes to the unfortunate within that community. With the addition of the food generally being more flavorful, locally grown food is adapted to the climate in which it was grown, and can remain fresh longer than that of an imported produce grown in a different climate. Final...
enterprise lie on every side; farmers find no markets for their produce; the savings of many years
What is the contrast between a vegetable from the grocery store and the farmers market? Both, the grocery store and the farmers market have a diversity of vegetables at comparable prices. Yet, consumers favor to buy at grocery stores, such as HEB, Kroger, Albertsons, and Walmart. These grocery stores are open every day, making the shopping experience accessible, and convenient for the buyer. Unlike, the farmers market is only accessible once or twice per week. But, the local farmers market is making a comeback across towns and a feud between the two has begun. The Grocery store and the farmers market sell similar produce on the surface, but, the farmers market offers a higher quality of vegetables and promotes the local economy.
"As one large Florida farmer said, 'I don't get paid a single cent for flavor...I get paid for weight. And I don't know of any supermarket shopper who tastes her tomatoes before she puts them in her shopping cart.' ... It's not worth commercial plant breeders' while to breed for taste because their customers — the large farmers — don't get paid for it." Once again, farmers are powerless in the face of economic superpowers in Estabrook's book, Tomatoland. Farmers aren't incentivized to create tasty, nutritious tomatoes because consumers aren't asking for it. Estabrook believes that most consumers, including myself, are oblivious to how tomatoes and other produce have been transformed over the years by economic goals. Estabrook describes the
...t tastes. According to Maiser, she states, “Locally grown produce is fresher…Local food just plain tastes better… Locally grown fruits and vegetables have longer to ripen.”(Source A). The writer is saying that the food quality of locally harvested food from local farmers’ markets is more convenient in various ways. Smith agrees, “Fruits and vegetables that travel shorter distances are therefore likely to be closer to a maximum of nutrition… It’s not just vitamins and minerals, but all these phytochemicals … a food never really reaches its peak ripeness…” (Source B). The food bought from stores like, Wal-Mart and/or Food 4 Less never reach their full peak of ripeness due to the chemicals used on the produce so it can be preserved. Locally grown produce will be full of vitamins and free of phytochemicals, so it will have a better taste that benefits a humans’ health.
...struggling to earn any income at all and sometimes do not even get the opportunity to eat. Another issue that Raj Patel did not touch on is the lack of care consumers have for the farmers. It seems that consumers care about farmers about as much as the corporations do, which, in my opinion, is not a lot. When consumers only care about low prices and large corporations only care about making a profit, the farmers are left out to dry. Many consumers believe “food should be available at a bargain price, a belief that relies on labor exploitation and environmental exhaustion at multiple points along the commodity chain.” (Wright, 95) Corporations as well as consumers generally tend to be selfish and I think Raj Patel is afraid to mention this. If only these people cared a little bit more about each other I believe the hourglass of the food system will begin to even out.
...ood that he grows. Pollan describes his day at the Polyface farm through out most of his essay and construes about how “local is not organic” and the importance of “choosing the person who grows your food” (Pollan 1 & 4). However, Pollan does neglect to bring up the time, cost, and environmental effects between buying at a local farm compared to a local supermarket. I conjecture a further investigation and inquiry on the environmental impact on the Earth and the study of gas consumption and cost differences between buying from a local farm and shopping at a local supermarket.
For economists and politicians, there are a few things that still are not considered, and the missing answers are only piling up; someone always has to win or lose out. Food policies are one of them. Bringing urban agriculture to cities is an incomparable move. When community food growing flourishes, the consumers seem to be healthier and smarter about what they eat, less p...
Farmers are essentially the back-bone of the entire food system. Large-scale family farms account for 10% of all farms, but 75% of overall food production, (CSS statistics). Without farmers, there would be no food for us to consume. Big business picked up on this right away and began to control the farmers profits and products. When farmers buy their land, they take out a loan in order to pay for their land and farm house and for the livestock, crops, and machinery that are involved in the farming process. Today, the loans are paid off through contracts with big business corporations. Since big business has such a hold over the farmers, they take advantage of this and capitalize on their crops, commodities, and profits. Farmers are life-long slaves to these b...
Decades later, and even in a new age of American “freedom” and “opportunities,” not much has really changed. In the American food industry, the presence of an oppressive class system is very rampant; hidden from view, but influential as ever. Because the way the food reaches our plates straight from the stores makes it seem like a simple method of growing and transporting, the complex system, or system of systems, is very much hidden behind a wall of what it seems to be. Citizens fail to realize that in this food supply chain, everyone plays a vital role, whether directly or passively contributing to the system. In 1880, roughly “80% of Americans worked in agriculture toiling to feed themselves and others,” which is now reduced to 2% of Americans
Have you ever considered what is in the food you are feeding your children? Most foods that are bought at the neighborhood grocery stores are considered global foods which are packed with additives and chemicals making them far less nutritious than local produce from the community farmer‘s market. After much research, I have concluded that it is better to buy produce which is grown locally rather than produce which is sourced globally (from other countries). I think this is important because most people, like myself, buy global foods and do not realize how much better local foods are for the local economy, the global environment, and our personal nutrition. Nutrition is vital to the healthy of everyone especially children, so with the purchase of local fresh produce, it can ease the worry in parents of what children as well as ourselves are ingesting.