We're Celebrating National Famers Market Month all of August

By Lou Ann Crowley

Aired on Montana Public Radio July 24, 2008

Going to the farmers' market on Saturday morning has become a ritual for me. I make a mental list of what I need, set myself a budget and head downtown. But inevitably, when I arrive I'm once again swept up in the experience of the market as all my senses come alive: the colors of the flowers and vegetables, even the umbrellas at the stands, the smells of recently picked dill or huckleberries, brewing coffee and sweet baked goods and the music of conversation all around me. I'm filled on every level and feel grateful for this sensual feast.

Buying at the market is both a deeply satisfying personal experience and a powerful act on the economic and environmental world stage.

The market connects us to nature's cycle of growth from bedding plants, vegetable starts and spring greens at opening to the luxury of berries, young zucchinis, new potatoes and onions in July and then the fullness of harvest with melons, cabbages and winter squash.

The market connects us to the growers and vendors who bring their products to market. This is a vital relationship because we need each other to thrive. It's not just an exchange of goods for dollars, it is a mutual appreciation of the event in which we are all partaking – building community. For many of the growers this is a family business and as you watch the children grow into young adults you hope they continue to till the soil and sell at market. I have heard that in the 1950's Missoula grew well over 50% of its own food and that we now import up to 95% of our food. By supporting local farmers today, we help ensure that there will be farms in our community tomorrow, and that future generations will have access to nourishing, flavorful, and abundant food-this is sustainability.

We also send a forceful message about the quality of food we want for ourselves and our children when we buy at the market. We depend on the growers to provide us with food that is fresh, nutritious and with food safety being such a huge issue lately it is comforting to know we can rely on our local produce to be safe. The items we buy at market have not been shipped in trucks for several days ripening as they travel over the highways. Our food vendors are from western Montana and the Clark Fork Basin. Local food means fewer food miles, dramatically reducing transportation and days of refrigeration, and fewer tons of pollution and packaging. Unlike most food in the US that travels 1500 miles and from seven to fourteen days in transport to reach your plate, local food is usually harvested within 24 hours of the time you buy it.

Buying at the market keeps our dollars local. Local farms and food producers are crucial to a healthy and diversified economy. While dollars spent with large corporations almost immediately leave the community, dollars spent on local food products circulate within the community eight to fifteen times, drastically improving the value of our purchases. And in general markets increase commercial activity in the areas where they are situated.

Farmers Markets are for everyone to enjoy. Over the years the Market has created partnerships that not only support local growers but make sure that fresh local food is available to seniors on a fixed income by accepting Senior Vouchers supplied by the Missoula Aging Service and to women in the Women & Infant Children program by accepting WIC coupons supplied by the Missoula Health Department.

Now we are getting even closer to making Farmers' Markets open to everyone with a new program, funded by the Montana State Department of Health and Human Services that encourages food stamp recipients to use their electronic benefits transfer card commonly called EBT cards at famers' markets. The program lifts the restriction of just buying in the grocery store setting and opens up access to fresh, local food which in turn opens up access to experiencing the abundance of the market, the social connections that are made and the community feeling that is there.

The program was launched last year through a partnership between the National Center for Appropriate Technology and AERO and allowed four farmers markets throughout Montana to accept food stamp EBT cards. The cards work the way debit or credit cards work and in fact this year the EBT program has provided machines that can take debit or credit cards as well as EBT cards. Each Missoula market has a table with a wonderful volunteer. Stop by to use your debit or credit card, to find out more about the EBT program and how to use it or get information about applying for food stamps if you think you might be eligible.

August is fast approaching. Come down and help celebrate National Farmers' Market Month. Thank the growers and vendors for all they do, for the thousands of pounds of food they donate to the Food Bank each season and for the way they enrich our lives on so many levels. Remember your buying at the market strengthens our local economy, supports family farms, provides delicious, "fresh-from-the-field" foods for consumers, preserves the local landscape, and builds a deep sense of community. See you there.

I am Lou Ann Crowley from the Missoula Farmers' Market Board for the Alternative Energy Resources Organization. My commentary is one of the many conversations we¹re having at AERO. AERO is a grassroots membership organization that¹s been building communities by linking people with sustainable agriculture and energy solutions for 35 years. To join the conversation and become part of the solution, call us in Helena at (406) 443-7272.