The Capital Region Farmers Market is looking to hear from you:
So if you haven’t heard by now, The Capital Region Farmers Market in EPIC have become a Saturday morning tradition in Canberra. After 6 years out in the shed in EPIC, they have grown to over 110 stallholders each week and attract some of Canberra’s smartest shoppers – the ones that like to buy direct from the producer and give the big supermarkets a wide berth.
Last year, the Rotary club of Hall, that runs the markets as a community project undertook a survey of customers. The feedback created some useful outcomes and helped them to lobby and undertake planning to do things like upgrade the parking, create new events such as the four chefs cooking demos and a parcel pickup service.
This year’s survey is now open for the next week and if you have shopped at the markets before and are keen to participate just click the link.
Woody Mann-Caruso said :
Aw shucks. Like out of a movie.
Last day for Southside at CIT.
There waz peas, broad beans, eggplant from Leeton, pink-and-white striped beetroot from the people just inside the door, and it was good to see Mr Zivko back (I’m going to take his photo one day).
When I buy produce from Kitanodai Kaihatsu, it usually doesn’t make it to a boiling pot of water.
Broad beans? *gobble*
Wax turnips? *gobble*
I do cook their beetroot and spinach, though.
I love how with organic food you don’t have to wash it, just to link back to the topic at hand – Why I Shop at the Farmers’ Market.
(For those who haven’t been, Southside is probably a little less pretentious than EPIC, but I don’t know if that will change when it moves on 7 November.)
There was peaz – though you probably shouldn’t let your kids eat a bag of them unless you’ve got good ventilation. Plenty of broad beans too! Great in pasta, a little butter, parmesan, salt, done.
Broad beans are very very easy to grow. And you can pick them when they are smaller and nicer.
But peas – mmmm – I missed out too.
There waz peas?
I couldn’t go this morning. *blub* I hope the Japanese guys still got broad beans next week.
You do say, quite frequently.
Sorry, didn’t have time to reply to this earlier. I was at the Southside markets scoring cheap, high quality, locally grown produce. I”d say I can’t tell the difference between these Rosy Gold apples I got for $2/kg and the $4.95/kg apples at Woolies – except you can’t get this variety at Woolworths at any price. Or fresh chocolate croissants from 210 in Hughes. Or a free potato from the potato guy because my kid wanted to make a monster. Or beef raised at a farm I’ve visited. Or a big bag of fresh peas in their pods, picked yesterday. Or some frost-hardy Black Russian tomato seedlings. Or local eggs and mushrooms. Or a mixed six of bagels from Isaacs. Sure you had an awesome time at Coles, though, whining about how you’re so glad you’re not one of those smug market w.nkers, and how you’re happy to pay double for stale produce shipped from oppressed farmers who get cents on the kilo.
So keep on keepin’ it real, yo. No smug poser, you. You a playa. A playa with soggy, floury, refrigerated apples that cost $5 a kilo and you had to wait in a cattle queue to buy them from a bored teenager who wishes you were dead.
sepi said :
That’s why I buy them, and once you figure out the stalls you prefer, you get even better value.
Woody Mann-Caruso said :
You do say, quite frequently.
People going on and on
I’ll say.
Keep your veggies, Farmers Market is all about the macarons!
I have had macarons from all over the place (including France) and the macarons out at the Farmers market are the best i’ve tasted, absolutely awesome.. give them a go!
Dream Cuisine is the stall name (just found it on the Farmers Market site)
http://www.capitalregionfarmersmarket.com.au/stall/dreamcuisine.html
nhand42 said :
Given that apples are more expensive at supermarkets, I am sure she does, just for giggles.
Give yourself an uppercut sunshine.
Jim Jones said :
Absolutely not. I do think some people prefer the taste; as I said, it’s a subjective thing. There are also other indirect benefits to farmer’s markets; reduced pollution due to reduced transport, money going back into local communities, etc.
But I think there’s also an insufferable amount of smugness. People going on and on about “freshness” and “taste” and “organic”, and will pay double for a perceived massive leap in quality, when the reality is often a disappointing “meh”.
They had a thing on ABC where they sliced up tomatoes from Woolies and tomatoes from an “organic” farmer and the farmer himself was unable to tell which was which. That sums up my opinion of farmer’s markets in a nutshell.
Woody Mann-Caruso said :
http://dictionary.reference.com/
You’re welcome.
nhand42 said :
So, in your considered opinion, people who choose to buy produce somewhere other than a supermarket is just being pretentious?
pepmeup said :
Rofl. That’s brilliant. I wonder if she sometimes buys the apples from Woolies just for giggles.
Jim Jones said :
Been there, done that, didn’t rate it. They certainly taste “different” but as to “better”, that’s entirely subjective. I’ve certainly had my share of dodgy produce from farmer’s markets, to the point where I simply don’t bother anymore.
Feel free to spend your money there if you want, but I stand by my statement that many people shop at farmer’s markets because it makes them feel superior to the plebs who buy from the supermarkets.
pepmeup said :
Oh well you get that. I dont really care as they are 10 times better than the ones you get from Woollies or even Fyshwick for that matter. Even the ones she sells for $1 a kilo are better.
Certainly the smuggest shoppers…
What does this even mean? What is it with cretins that they must wear their idiocy as a badge of honour and drag others down to their dung-eating level?
“Oh, wow, fire, we’re all sooo impressed, smarty pants.”
“Wheel? You’re a wheel. You think you’re so clever, don’t you?”
“‘Pasteurisation?’ Why don’t you use words we can all understand?”
apples are so much cheaper at the markets – you pay $3 per kilo for all apples – much cheaper than a supermarket