Your Local Farmers Market
Portland's Local Farmers Market
Buy Fresh, Buy Local
Do you shop at your local Farmers Market? Farmers Markets began to rise in their popularity about 10 years ago or so, when it started to become more and more obvious that our current food system was definitely broken. (Technically, Farmers Markets have been taking place for many thousands of years, starting when farmers would grow surplus food to sell to their neighbors!) Because our current food system isn't working, it's essential for changes to be made. That's why there's currently a local food movement taking place, which fully supports shopping at your local Farmers Market.
Food Consumers
As food consumers, it's our responsibility to understand where our food comes from, which includes growing methods. And the sooner the better. The term 'fresh' is often misused these days, making it necessary for food shoppers to educate themselves on what fresh food really means. The majority of food choices available today at your local supermarket are processed. Essentially, what this means is that all or most of a foods nutrients are completely removed in order for its to have a longer shelf life.
Although it's taking awhile, and really through no fault of our own, we're finally beginning to understand just how important it is to have access to fresh food. Making healthy food choices is one of the best ways for anyone to get the essential nutrients they need to feel energetic throughout the day. For many years, the majority of food consumers trusted the promotional words that were on a particular food items packaging material. Unfortunately, there are legal loopholes these food companies can take advantage of, unbeknownst to the consumer, making most claims untrue or deceitful. Shame on them!
Local Farmers Markets
So we've finally gotten to a place where we're now beginning to learn more about how our current food system works. This is good news! The result of this new 'where does my food come from' awareness? There's now a focus on finding local fresh food. This includes a new focus being placed not only on finding a local Farmers Markets, but on the overall local food movement, as well. The opportunity for anyone to now find and eat local food, which includes organic local food, is now an option as there are many Farmers Market doing business these days.
Both large cities and small towns now offer Farmers Markets, which can operate on any day of the week. Many people tend to look for a Saturday market as they're working during the week. Local Sunday markets also often tend to be very popular for this reason. Farmers Markets in Los Angeles are quite popular, as well as Minneapolis Farmers Markets, Portland Farmers Markets, Farmers Markets in Dallas, and last but not least the Nashville Farmers Market. These particular cities are ones that have been putting a huge focus on the importance of buying local food, and are thus providing the community with a number of fresh and local food choices.
Other Reasons
There are other reasons why shopping at your local Farmers Market is a good idea. Did you know that when you buy local, you're keeping those almighty important spending dollars in your local community? And what a great place to bring children so that they can learn at an early age how important it is to eat local, fresh food. And if you happen to see a fruit or vegetable that you've never tried before, simply ask for a sample. Who knows? You just may have found your new favorite food item! Buying local food is something that should be on every food consumers list of things to do, and for many reasons.
Bottom Line
If you're someone who's never visited your local Farmers Market and would like to find its location, simply perform an online search using one of these phrases - find a local market or Farmers Market near me or where is the Farmers Market? Once you find your local Farmers Market online, make a note of the time and day they operate on so you can go the next time they set up for business. Buy fresh, buy local!
Other names for Farmers Market include Farm Market, Farming Market, Market Farming, Local Farms, Growers Market, and Veggie Market.