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Get Out There This Week and Thank a Farmer
OK, it's just a fact that every week is a farmers market week for Local Food Forum and many of our readers. But we're grateful that there is an annual National Farmers Market Week to showcase the important role that our nation's 8,000+ farmers markets play in increasing access to fresh, delicious, locally and sustainable produced food.
This year's celebration is upon us, starting Sunday (August 4) and running through Saturday (August 10). Here is the official proclamation from U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack:
WHEREAS farmers markets play a vital role in providing access to fresh, locally grown produce and other agricultural products, supporting the health and well-being of our communities;
and WHEREAS farmers markets offer a vibrant and inclusive space for education and engagement, where individuals can learn about food production, nutrition, and community;
and WHEREAS farmers markets provide consumers with affordable options in their communities, and foster relationships between consumers and farmers, enhancing transparency and trust in our food system;
and WHEREAS farmers markets contribute significantly to local economies by creating more, new, and better market opportunities that allow farmers to sell their products directly to consumers, thereby retaining a greater share of the food dollar within the community;
and WHEREAS farmers markets further USDA’s Food System Transformation framework to build a fairer system that works better for both family farmers and the families they support;
and WHEREAS National Farmers Market Week, held annually, recognizes the important role farmers markets play in our food system and encourages Americans to support local producers by purchasing their products at farmers markets.
NOW, THEREFORE, to further awareness of farmers markets’ essential contributions to American life, I, Thomas J. Vilsack, Secretary of Agriculture, do hereby proclaim the week of August 4-10, 2024, as National Farmers Market Week. I call upon the American people to celebrate farmers markets with appropriate observances and activities.
Those observances and activities are coordinated at the national level by the Farmers Market Coalition (FMC). They said, "Over the past decade, FMC has grown the annual celebration from a little-known proclamation declared by the United States Department of Agriculture to a widely anticipated event and effective tool for promoting and advocating for farmers markets. In addition to promoting their market, farmers market leaders nationwide (and now internationally!) recognize the celebration as an opportunity to connect with their communities, build relationships with local, state, and federal officials, secure sponsorship and grant funding, encourage data collection and research, and more."
State-level support for National Farmers Market Week activities at local farmers markets is provided by non-profit organizations such as Illinois Farmers Market Association.
To mark the occasion, we're happy to share the following farmers market primer from our friends at University of Illinois Extension and UI Health. If you're already a farmers market regular, please share with community members who are not yet. There's no better place to start a local food journey than at a local farmers market.
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