Market Manager Laura Avery teaches visiting school children about fresh fruits and vegetables.

Southland Farmers' Market Association

Value Statement

The Southland Farmers' Market Association seeks to preserve the many values of certified farmers’ markets. At a Southland certified farmers’ market, consumers can:

• Find fresh, high-quality, good-tasting and nutritious foods
• Choose from a wide variety of locally grown fruits and vegetables
• Develop a relationship with the growers of what they buy
• Support local agriculture
• Be assured that their food was grown under California health, labor and environmental regulations
• Save money with lower prices for higher-quality foods
• Learn directly from growers about the source of their food
• Select from a greater variety of fruits and vegetables
• Often select from a greater variety of organic fruits and vegetables
• Frequently sample products before they buy
• Experience a sense of shared community
• Have a fun, pleasant shopping experience
• Become aware of the seasonality of produce
• Share their experience at the market with friends and neighbors.

Southland certified farmers’ markets provide a place where growers can:

• Sell what they grow directly to consumers
• Earn more than selling their products for wholesale
• Farm profitably at any scale
• Control the quality and distribution of their produce
• Have access to markets with few barriers
• Produce a greater variety of specialty products
• Enjoy meeting consumers
  
• Learn directly from consumer tastes and demands
• Have access to a forum to discuss their agricultural concerns.
  

Communities benefit from Southland certified farmers’ markets benefit because they help provide:

• A sense of community in urban areas
• A focus for building community and social gatherings
• Consumer education about nutrition and health
• Support for outlying greenbelt areas that make urban areas pleasurable
• Revitalization of downtown areas
• Employment opportunities in rural areas
• Food security and federally subsidized programs for low-income residents
  
  

Photos by David Karp

© 2002 Southland Farmers Markets Association
All Rights Reserved.

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