The number of farmers’ markets in the US has more than tripled since the early 1990s, but is still not enough to satisfy American appetites for locally produced foods.
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A workshop in Iowa reported that market sales represent a fraction of total food purchases, but in the last decade, their number has grown from about 1,000 to more than 3,200, according to the North American Farmers’ Direct Marketing Association.
More farmers are responding to growing demand for homegrown meat, eggs, and produce. The most popular method of direct selling, producers need little land to profit from high revenues at retail, and market popularity benefits from increasing consumer belief that buying locally increases the nation’s food security by decreasing reliance on imports.
