Virginia farmers’ markets more than double in last four years

By JANE W. GRAHAM
AFP Correspondent

RICHMOND, Va. — Virginia’s farmers’ markets are growing in number and popularity, two leaders at the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer services report.
“Farmers' markets in Virginia are booming,” Leanne Du Bois with the VDACS Office of Promotions said.  
“We have seen a tremendous growth in farmers’ markets in Virginia,” Elaine Lidholm, head of VDACS communications, said. “In 2006, we had 88 known markets.  Today we have 190, or possibly more. New ones keep popping up all the time. Here in Richmond alone, we have seen almost a dozen new markets just in the past two years.”
“Some markets are reporting an increase in sales up to 20 percent over last year although customers have remained steady,” DuBois said in an e-mail. She cited the Williamsburg Farmers Market as an example. 
“That seems to suggest that buying patterns are changing,” Dubois continued. “There is also more consumer awareness and interest in knowing and supporting the Virginia farmers who grow our food.”
“The vendors at the markets are still mostly traditional small farmers,” Lidholm wrote in an e-mail, “but we’re also seeing a more diverse grower base: Someone with perhaps less than an acre or two of vegetables or herbs; people who further process their products to make cheese or baked goods; the inclusion of a lot more non-produce items like meats, honey or eggs; more herbs, potted plants, cut flowers and non-edible products.”
Lidholm recently accompanied the new VDACS commissioner, Matt Lohr, to the Byrd House Farmers’ Market in Richmond.
“This is a good example of an urban market that serves two distinct populations,” Lidholm said. “The first is the more affluent working person who stops by on his or her way home from work and purchases not only produce but gourmet items like fresh-baked bread and cut flowers. The other constituent is the person who lives in this area who doesn’t have a car and no grocery store within walking distance, so it may be the only source of fresh produce around, unless you count the spotted bananas at the 7-11.”
DuBois did report that she had read in The Daily Press that the Newport News Farmer’s Market is having problems.  The newspaper reported that one week no vendors showed up to sell their produce.
“Herb Skinner, the Newport News market's manager, said the market has fallen on hard times,” The Daily Press reported. “Where they used to get about a dozen vendors, now they're lucky to have more than two, he said. Several years ago, the market used to be open Tuesday through Saturday, but now is only open Fridays and Saturdays.”
“It is true that there is more competition for vendors and markets with the increase in farmers' markets,” Dubois said. “Farmers' markets are more conveniently located in neighborhoods and communities now and many have weekday markets so as not to compete with the popular Saturday morning markets.”
She said she hopes the farmers’ markets will continue to shine, noting that they serve as a great incubator for farmers who are just beginning or transitioning to direct marketing.
Individual farmers’ markets across the state may take slightly different approaches to the way they do business. The Roanoke Times recently featured an article about the West End Community Market located on the parking lot of the West End Center for Youth in Roanoke.
Lindsey Nair reported in the article that this new market, open from 4 to 7 p.m. on Wednesdays is aimed at one segment that has traditionally been left out of the equation that connects consumers with hardworking farmers. This segment is the state’s low income population.
She quoted Brent Cochran, manager of the market, as saying that he hopes market customers will be able to shop with Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, formerly known as Food Stamps.
Nair reported the use of SNAP cards at farmers’markets is a growing trend across the state and country.
A check with Lidholm showed there are no readily available figures on how many of the Virginia farmers’ markets are equipped to use the SNAP cards.