....the troubled Farmer's Market in our town

In the old days Farmers would set up fruit stands to generate income for the family farm. They would delivery to the town folks and to the Mom and Pop stores too. Then there was bartering..... a common practice that worked out great for all. Still....more avenues of creating sales were needed. . 

Then came along a concept.....Farmer's Markets. Here's a little paragraph from the USDA: "When food is produced, processed, distributed and sold all within the same region, more money stays in the local economy.  This leads to economic development and job creation.  Farmers markets provide opportunities for small farmers and businesses to sell their products, and they help meet the growing demand for locally produced food.  Being able to quickly and directly market to the consumer gives farmers important income opportunities without the added costs of shipping, storage and inventory control".

 What began as a business necessity for many small farmers has evolved into a social event for entire communities, with many families and patrons viewing a trip to the Saturday morning event. New features like live music, cooking demonstrations, gardening tips and educational opportunities are added.  Businesses that surround farmers markets also benefit from the additional foot traffic that the market brings.

Except for my hometown...Rio Linda.

Rio Linda has a rich history in farming and poultry. It's still evident too. Go down most of our country roads and one will see a small farm operation. There are lots of backyard operations here too. Farmer Deno would say that all of these rural farms could stock the shelves of a Supermarket everyday. A Farmers Market as well. 

But it is not happening. The so called Rio Linda Farmers Market and Peddlers Fair that sets up on Thursday from 5 to 8 is virtually non existent. For years now it has at the most.... few vendors....one selling produce....the other is peddlers junk such as t shirts and other commercially acquired retail goods. This past week there was only one vendor selling produce......and most of the produce came from Reedley Ca which is 201 miles from Rio Linda. Yes...they are allowing folks to buy produce from a wholesale warehouse to sell under the disguised as "local produce". The top picture was taken from the vendors sell table......that a local on line newspaper posted a day ago......and you can see that the peaches have a little sticker on each....and the origination of the fruit on the box (click on it to enlarge). Outright deception because the management allowed it to go on.

Sometimes being a farmer...you'll have to fight the old guard of town so that your farm can thrive. Farmers Markets can be the blood of Rio Linda...bringing back the town to what it once was. I can see that happening......without the old guard. Farmer Deno was a co host for three weeks but I had to resign from trying to work within a system that cared more for their reputations than the needs of the farmers and folks of our town.

The first week of my involvement was a little shocking. No open bathrooms. No park tables. Vendors parking where the public should had been parking. no announcement of the event on the park's event sign they have, and perhaps the most shocking was that there were zero produce vendors. Fact is...this function is not even a register Farmers Market! It cant be listed in the Master Listings of Farmer Markets! 


Not sure how anyone will sell or buy at 5:00 pm during the days that the mercury reaches over 96 degrees. After working all day long...who would come just to buy produce that wasn't grown here in Rio Linda. Shade trees are of little help.

I suppose the finale straw was....the shocking picture that a local on line newspaper posted a day ago of the three tent vendor event......those boxes of peaches that were brought in from 200 miles away and sold in a "Local Farmers Market". Pure deception or outrageous mismanagement.

Change is needed. Change will come. Let us farmers tell you that much!