Farmers markets serve many purposes to communities, people in need, farmers and the overall economy.
Farms large and small are an important part of Ohio's economy. One place where some farmers promote their business and sell their products are local community farmers markets.
Christie Welch, program specialist for direct agricultural marketing at Ohio State, will discuss the economics of farmers markets.
Worthington Farmers Market director will discuss running and organizing a large-scale farmers market, and they will also bring along one vendor for the farmers perspective.
Whether it's the cost or the location, some people do not have access to fresh produce that they could get from a farmer's market. The United Methodist Church and Community Development for All People has a program that provides fresh produce for people who need it. We'll learn more about the All People's Fresh Market.
Guests:
- Christie Welch, program specialist, direct agricultural marketing, Ohio State University
- Chelsea Kayse, manager of the Worthington Farmers Market
- Jason Wish, owner of Wishwell Farms
- Sam Alexander, healthy eating and living program coordinator at Church and Community Development for All People
Transcript
This transcript is generated with AI. To ensure its accuracy, review the audio file.
Amy Juravich: Welcome to All Sides with Amy Juravich. Farmers markets are deeply ingrained in the local economy. In fact, every $1 a farmer earns at a market generates another 48 cents in income for nearby local businesses, such as restaurants and hardware stores, as shoppers tend to shop around the market. Today, we're talking about farmers markets and the economy. And joining us now is Christy Welch, the Direct Food and Agricultural Marketing Specialist for the Ohio State University Extension. Welcome to All Sides, Christy. Thank you for having me here. So you lead a team dedicated to enhancing the profitability and sustainability of Ohio's farmers and local food producers. So tell me exactly what does that mean? Like who are you working with?
Christie Welch: So we work mainly with local food producers, whether that's produce, whether that proteins, whether that is value added products. And so we really work with all those folks that sell food, usually directly to the consumer, although we also help them with folks that want to sell to grocery stores or some sell to schools.
Juravich: Okay. Are the farms like small, large, generational? Like what do you, yeah, what kind of farms?
Welch: That's a really good question. And it's kind of all over the board. We have some generational farms that have been around, you know, four, five, six generations. But with farmers markets, it's also a great entry point for new farmers. And so there are a number of new farmers throughout the state also that look to farmers markets to sell their product.
Juravich: That's interesting, because I think a lot of people, when they think of a farm, they think of a generational farm. They don't think of new farms. So are there new farms?
Welch: Absolutely, there are many new farms here in Ohio. I didn't get the actual numbers, but most of those are women owned farms as well. And because the farmers markets have such a low cost of overhead to get started, tent, table, your product, some marketing materials, it's a great opportunity for those new producers to get their products in front of people and kind of test those and see what customers like, what other things that they might want to purchase from that farmer.
Juravich: Hmm. Okay. And so are you advising them on this? Like say it's a brand new small women-owned farm, and they're coming to you asking for advice. Do you tell them, I think you should grab a tent and start at a farmers market? We don't give a
Welch: What we try to do is provide research-based information and experience and education so that that individual can make the best decision for themselves. So we are not in the decision making, we are in the information providing and then helping to help that producer work through some of the options that they might face.
Juravich: What information are they looking for? I mean, since I'm not a farmer, I wouldn't even know what I'm looking for.
Welch: So from my perspective, we talk a lot about marketing and what encourages customers to purchase a product from a new producer especially, and really it's about their story. Everybody has a story. And so we try to help them understand how to position their products and services to that direct customer so that they can develop that relationship.
Consumers wanna know who's producing their food, how it's being produced, where it's been produced. And so, we have education on programs and one-on-one assistance to help producers work through some of those.
Juravich: Oh, so you're teaching the farmer how to teach their customers about them, basically.
Welch: Yeah, pretty much. Yeah, again, it's very relationship based, especially with farmers markets. Again, people want to have that ability to ask the producer, what is this? How do I prepare this? How do i enjoy this? Where was it grown? How was it growing? And those kinds of things.
Juravich: What struggles do farmers have in terms of profiting off of their produce?
Welch: Well, I'm not an economist, but I will say that just like everything else, the input costs have risen from labor to fertilizers to just the cost of the seeds that you need to grow product have all increased. And so I really try to encourage our producers to understand what their cost of production is so that they can ensure that they're pricing for profitability. So they have to pay attention to them.
Juravich: Money they're putting in, right? Absolutely. Don't just spend it.
Welch: Absolutely.
Juravich: Keep track of it.
Welch: And of course there are some people that do it for a hobby and that's fine, but for those producers that want to do it to help maintain their lifestyle, it's important to make sure they understand that. Do you have hobbyists come to you too? Some, yeah, for some, but mostly it's people that actually want to make a living or at least a part-time living from this. Okay.
Juravich: What for for most farmers? Do you feel like they can and they can figure out how to make a profit at a farmers market?
Welch: I think a lot of them do. I think we have some just incredible farmers market managers across the state that are very well versed in helping their vendors connect with those customers and providing, you know, put their best foot forward, so to speak.
And then we also have the Ohio farmers market network that provides education and training to market managers and vendors as well. So, there are many opportunities for folks to get more information. To make that connection with customers.
Juravich: Help them figure out whether it's just one market or multiple markets like when to like do what you know when to expand.
Welch: We do talk about that some and really I encourage those producers to visit a market that they think they might want to participate in, learn what's in that market, are there you know if I'm a tomato producer and there's already ten vendors producing tomatoes is that the best fit for me but I think again that story of why you do what you do you could really set yourself apart.
Juravich: Have you heard about any difficulties or are there any downsides at some farmers' markets? I didn't even think of that if there's too many tomatoes. Maybe that's one. Yeah, go ahead.
Welch: Well I think you know typically farmers markets work together to benefit all the vendors and so it can be really beneficial to have large volumes of product to attract more customers.
So things that I see some markets struggling with especially in smaller communities is getting sufficient numbers of customers to regularly shop at that market so that it is profitable for those producers that choose to sell at those markets and then of course weather's always an issue too. We had some really big storms go through southern Ohio last night and so, if you're at a farmer's market and you have severe weather, well, do you keep going? So, some of those typical challenges that farmers always have with weather.
Juravich: Yeah. Well, yeah, weather is an issue at the farm, at the market, everywhere. You know, always talking about the weather. Is there anything unexpected people might not know about being a vendor at a farmer's market, you know, besides the weather? Because I mean, we're thinking about that. But what's something unexpected that comes up that maybe like, you know, someone who doesn't live this day to day might not think of about about this role?
Welch: Yeah, I would say it's definitely that relationship. You know, a lot of times farmers are independent and they like to be out in the field, not so much in front of the public. And so it takes the ability to have those conversations and develop those relationships with your consumers and your potential shoppers. And so also being part of that community, not just the farmer's market, but the community in which it's located is really important as well.
Juravich: This is All Sides on 89.7 NPR News. We're talking about the economics of farmers' markets with Christy Welch, the direct food and agricultural marketing specialist for the Ohio State University Extension. There's a local multiplier effect that I mentioned in the introduction to the show, which is basically that for every dollar a farmer earns at a market, it generates another 48 cents in income for nearby local businesses. So I know you and I are both not economists, but. But talk to me about what that means so a farmer's market can help grow a local economy.
Welch: Absolutely, and I will say that we can always use more research on that topic, but just from, I used to sell at a farmers market in my community too, and we were right beside a grocery store. And the grocery store really liked the fact that we were there because the shopper could come to the farmers market, get the local items that they wanted, and then that wasn't available at the farmers' market, they could go right to the grocery store and do the rest of their weekly shopping there.
And so that's one example. There are restaurants that benefit from having a farmer's market or other businesses. So for example, there was a research study done out of the University of Wisconsin, Madison, and it shows that 49% shopped at a nearby local business and 42% of those shoppers ate at a local restaurant too.
Juravich: They're making a day of it. If you're going to a farmer's market, then you're making a day off it in whatever neighborhood you're in.
Welch: Yes, and it's more than just going to get that local food for a lot of people. It's an event and it is fun and it a chance to connect with others in your community that you might not otherwise run into and have that ability to chat and make those connections. You said you used to sell at one. What did you sell? My husband and I grew berries mainly. So blackberries, raspberries, strawberries.
Juravich: How'd you do? Did you like it?
Welch: We loved it and our local farmers market, when we first started doing the strawberries many years ago, they were a different production system and so people couldn't understand how we had them so early. So our farmers market allowed us to provide that education to our local consumers.
Juravich: Oh, you were teaching people about how you grow the strawberries. Yes. Okay, great. So, do you still do this or is this your... We retired a couple years ago. Okay, a different life. Yeah. Yeah. All right. So, you and your team provide training for farmers and so you teach courses and you've mentioned that a little bit, but can you tell me more about the courses? So, what would do the farmers come to you and how does this work?
Welch: So it really depends on what the customer or the client needs. We try to customize our information so it best suits them. So of course I get many questions about how do I start a farmers market? Where do I find local producers to sell at my farmers market.
So we have a lot of trainings where we talk about how do you go through that process of starting a new market. Then we also have clients that come or producers that come and wanna know. How can I increase my sales at a farmer's market? How can better market my products at a farmers market to either scale up my operation or to just make better connections and be more sustainable with those customers at the market.
Juravich: So you're helping people actually develop a full, like if they want to create a market, like a farmer's market in a neighborhood too, you're hoping with that too. If there's a bunch of farmers who don't have a place to sell, you can help them figure out how to start one?
Welch: Yeah, well, we can help them provide the steps and best practices and things to think about. We don't actually do the work on the ground, but they help them kind of guide them through that whole process.
Juravich: Interesting. And you're also on the board of the Ohio Farmers Market Network. Now, it makes complete sense to me that this exists, but I didn't know this organization existed. So tell me about that.
Welch: So this is the state organization for farmers markets throughout Ohio, and actually our program started that organization about, I believe it was 2008.
Juravich: OSU Extension started this?
Welch: Started this? Oh great. And so we led the establishment of that organization and then the board took it over, all volunteer board, and have done a phenomenal job growing that organization, and being a great resource for our Ohio farmers markets.
And, so they also provide training and resources. They have an annual conference every year that is just a great opportunity for folks that are interested in farmers market, whether that being managing one, or vending at one, it's a great opportunity for them to learn from their peers, which is always great.
And then they also are currently helping to update some of the food assistance benefits going from paper vouchers or coupons to digital. And so they are working with the Senior Farmers Market Nutrition Program and are the technical service provider as that switches over to electronic transfers as opposed to those paper vouchers.
Juravich: Okay, so yeah, tell me more about that. So the Ohio Senior Farmer Market Nutrition Program, is this an opportunity to help seniors get more fresh produce?
Welch: Yes, so income eligible seniors get the ability to apply for funds that they can use then on fresh produce, fruits and vegetables, at local farmers markets throughout the season. And this is different than like SNAP benefits, right? Yes, this is difference. There are many food assistance benefits as well. That's the other one you mentioned, SNAP. If we have markets that say, I'd like to accept SNAP at my market, how do I do that? Again, we can provide some education on that process.
Juravich: Okay, so you have education on that. So that's something that a market, it just isn't automatic that every farmer's market accepts SNAP benefits. They have to like go through a process probably with the state.
Welch: They have to go through a process actually with USDA's Food and Nutrition Service at the federal level to become an approved retailer. And then they have to train their vendors and do the management. And so it's not something you just snap your fingers and it's in place. I encourage markets that are looking to that to start a year in advance.
Juravich: Does every vendor have to agree to it for a market to do SNAP?
Welch: No, I mean, I think it's very important that most vendors come on board and are supportive, but every vendor does not have to agree to that and every vendor might not have eligible food items as well. Yeah. Dude.
Juravich: And do you feel like food assistance programs play a big part in farmers' markets? I mean, is it growing the knowledge that you can spend this money there and get fresh fruit and produce, or do you think it's still an unknown?
Welch: I think it's a little bit across the board as well. I think you could certainly be better known of the different programs that are available. But just for example, with that Senior Farmers Market Nutrition Program, in 2024, there were $2.2 million in benefits that went from seniors to local food producers here in Ohio. So that's a great benefit to our local food producer. Wow.
Juravich: Okay, and the senior program I hadn't heard of and you said that they they were like vouchers So is it like you like you called them coupons? So are we were digitizing this?
Welch: Digitizing that, yes, and so it is all either a vendor can have the ability to accept those electronics transfer payments or we have some vendors of course that don't use technology and so there's a QR code that they can get and the shopper can then scan that QR code to make those purchases.
Juravich: If a senior is listening right now and they want to know more about this program, the Ohio Senior Farmer Market Nutrition Program, where can they find out more?
Welch: So they need to check with their local area agency on aging. And unfortunately, I believe the funds are all allocated for this season for 2026. And so it will be something certainly they'd wanna keep an eye out for in 2027. Okay, that makes sense.
Juravich: Well, just to end on, what ways would you say that people can support local farms and local farmers markets? What would you love for people to do and to know?
Welch: Well, I think people, if they would just shop on a regular basis, whether that's once a week and do all their grocery shopping that they can there, maybe it's once every other week or even once a month, keeping those food dollars local are going to help our local food producers, which has so many more benefits. It provides community, it helps preserve farmland, and so I could go on and on.
Juravich: We've been talking about the economy of farmers markets with Christie Welch, the direct food and agricultural marketing specialist for the Ohio State University Extension. Thank you so much for your time today, Christy. Thank you. And coming up, we're going to talk to the manager of the Worthington farmers market as well as one of the market vendors. That's when All Sides continues on 89.7 NPR News.
You're listening to All Sides. I'm your host Amy Juravich. Today we're discussing farmers markets and the economics of it and what it means to be a part of one. Stroll down the streets of Worthington on a Saturday morning and you'll be greeted by rows of vendors selling everything from tomatoes to honey to bread. And here to tell us more is the manager of the central Ohio's largest farmers market. Chelsea Kayse, the manager of the Worthington Farmers Market. Welcome to all sides, Chelsea. Hi, thank you so much for having me. We also have Jason Wish, owner of Wish Well Farms, as well as a vendor at the Worthington Farmars Market. Welcome, Jason. Thank you. So Chelsea, let's start with you. What does it take to run a market, especially such a popular one? I mean, you're one of the largest here in central Ohio. What's it like to run one?
Chelsea Kayse: Yeah. Well, it's so interesting because there are so many facets to it. You really need to have the support of the city. We also have a fantastic team of volunteers. The majority of farmers markets that you see are going to be ran by nonprofits or else through a city.
So it's really important to have those relationships and also have a really fantastic team behind you. We are all year. So we run from January to December. So we are not just a summer market. And so we actually go indoors. We go indoors to shops at Worthington Place. So it's important to have those relationships within our city as well and our businesses.
Juravich: And tell me about the, the vendors. I mean, do you have like a wait list? Do you always have people wanting to be vendors? I'm sure, I'm sorry. I asked that because I knew, I know it's to be true. So you are probably full all the time. Yes, absolutely.
Kayse: Yeah, so and the one thing that we really try to do is we try to keep our vendors that have been with us So Jason here has actually been with the farmers market for 25 years. Oh, wow Okay, that's really important to not just us but also to our customers We have customers that they've been lifelong customers of Jason their kids are gonna become like long Customers of Jason and that's a really kind of how you build that market. It becomes a whole family community thing
Juravich: And Jason, so Wishwell farms grows tomatoes, melons, corn, more, as someone who's a vendor at the Worthington Farmers Market, what does a typical day look like for you whenever it's a market day?
Jason Wish: It starts very early. Yeah, I can imagine.
Juravich: Yeah, I can imagine. Yeah, tell me about a typical day.
Wish: Well, we spend the entire week preparing for Saturday farmers markets. We've built kind of structured our farming model, business model around selling at farmers markets at one time. We attended up to 14 markets. Now we've kind of scaled back to about seven farmers markets, and Worthington has always been our biggest and best market. So it gets priority over all the other farmers markets that we attend.
Throughout the week, you know, we're we're harvesting, washing, packing all of our produce, storing it in a cooler. Keep it fresh for Saturdays. You know, we do have some outlets throughout the week, but a majority of our produce is sold on Saturday mornings.
So Saturday morning starts very early, about 4 a.m., especially during sweet corn, green bean, melon season. You know I'm up at 4 a,m. Out packing the trucks, getting everything ready, because we're sending out not just the Worthington truck, we're sendin' out five trucks to different farmers markets around central Ohio.
But the employees will arrive around 6.30. I have the trucks packed, they head out to the farmers markets, and the one... At Worthington, we arrive about seven o'clock an hour before starting time. That takes them an entire hour to get everything set up. There's a lot of infrastructure to set up for a busy farmers market day. And hopefully make some money in the four hours that we're there. And then they pack it all up and bring it back home to the farm.
Juravich: Well, where is your farm located? So how far are you driving this produce around? We're in Bell Fountain, so it's about 55 miles.
Wish: So it takes almost an hour to drive to the market.
Juravich: And many of your crops are seasonal. I mean, how does a farm deal with large amounts of produce where you have a lot, maybe one week or two weeks and then less produce another time? How do you balance life? Because I'm guessing every week is different.
Wish: Absolutely. Um, you know, after doing this for so long and always keeping detailed records throughout each season, I can look back on those records and I can kind of figure out how to better stage our crops so they're not already at the, at the same time. We want to continue a steady supply throughout the entire season.
If we have a glut, we might not be able to get rid of everything if, and that can cost us money. If we have a gap, that's going to cost us one as well because then we don't have anything to sell the market. So it takes a lot of detailed planning. Throughout the off season to make sure that you can implement that during the season.
Juravich: It sounds like making a profit at a farmer's market is a juggling act, is it?
Wish: Yeah, I would say so.
Juravich: I mean, it's a business, but it's also a juggling act a little bit. Chelsea, do you feel that most farmers at the market, do they make their most money on your Saturday markets? Are you hearing from all your farmers? Is everyone positive and profitable? Absolutely.
Kayse: Something that's so important to the infrastructure of your farmers market is you want to ensure that you have enough for your folks that are coming in, but you don't want to cannibalize. So we have a certain amount of farmers with produce any given day throughout the season to ensure that we have enough of all of our customers coming in so that they can still make a great income and leave hopefully mostly sold out.
Juravich: Yeah. And the example that was given earlier is you want to make sure that every vendor can't have tomatoes. That's not going to work. So is that your job to make sure that ever vendor doesn't have tomato?
Kayse: Yes, absolutely and that's something that is so important that itself is a juggling act So when we get our applications for each season So we open applications for our winter and then for our summer and when we give those applications we have to look at Okay, this is how many like this is what our traffic counts have been This is how everybody has been doing selling their product. Are we selling out too early? Do we need more tomatoes or oh wow people are taking tomatoes home. Let's back off Maybe we don't need producers to come with tomatoes
Juravich: Are you calling certain farms midweek and being like, I really need you to bring more tomatoes this year? So my big one is.
Kayse: My big one is, and you know, unfortunately with farms as Jason knows, they can only control what they can control. So I will usually text or I'll shoot an email saying, please tell me you have more strawberries. It's starting to be towards the end of the season. I have people that are asking for them. So it's kind of just a dice roll of hoping that we get that. But I definitely do check in to make sure that.
Juravich: Have what our customers are coming for. Jason, let's talk about some unexpected difficulties. I'm gonna guess the weather, right? I mean you chose to be a farmer in Ohio so you you are probably used to and you can you can take the you can handle the what the weather gives to you but tell me about some difficulties.
Wish: Yeah, that can definitely be a struggle. And more so in recent years, it just seems like we've had a lot of dramatic weather events, high winds, heavy rains. It just, it can drown out the crops. It can blow off plastic on our greenhouses.
So yeah, weather events have been very difficult to manage more and more each year. I don't remember it being that way 15, 20 years ago. But yeah, it's definitely something that we have to take in consideration. In. And you're always dealing with insects and diseases and weeds. There's always something that we're trying to figure out how to deal with on the farm.
Juravich: What's your most popular product? I listed a few things that you grow, but I know, I mean, the list is very long. You can either tell me your most popular or your favorite.
Wish: Sweet corns probably are my favorite to grow. That's how I got my start in vegetable farming. I was originally a dairy farmer, transitioned to produce in 2001. So sweet corns, where we got our start, I've been growing it for 30 years.
But tomatoes is our most profitable crop. We started putting up greenhouses to grow early tomatoes, kind of a niche item to sell in the off season before all the other outdoor growers have their tomatoes during August and September and October, so we start selling our tomatoes in late May. All during June and July and there's not a lot of competition for our tomatoes. So we do very well with growing the early tomatoes and that's kind of what we've hung our hat on it for the farmers markets.
Juravich: Do you stick around at the Worthington Market in the winter too? Are you one of the, or just the summer?
Wish: I was just telling her off camera that we, we have attended it a couple of times many years ago. So we kind of wrap up our season mid-October now. Okay. So we're just there from during the outdoor season.
Juravich: Tell me more about this, the winter season. I mean, do you still have people selling fresh fruits and vegetables in your indoor market in the winter? Absolutely.
Kayse: With that being said, it's definitely quite a few less, but we still have several that come and bring their stuff. It just depends on how their setup is. Also, you're going to find your more seasonal stuff, so potatoes, your really hearty leafy greens like kale, so things like that.
Juravich: All the kale. This is All Sides on 89.7 NPR News. We're talking about farmers markets and we're talking with Chelsea Case, the manager of the Worthington farmers market, and Jason Wish, the owner of Wishwell Farms. Jason's also a vendor at the Worhington farmers market. Chelsea, talk to me about how Worthingdon residents respond to the market along with nearby businesses. Because in the previous segment, we were talking about how when people come to a market, they tend to make a day of it and they shop elsewhere too. So talk to about. Worthington residents coming to your market and what they do.
Kayse: Yeah, absolutely. So something that is really fun about the Worthington Farmers Market, we started in 1987 and we were started by a small non-profit group of the Old Worthingtons Business Association, specifically to bring business down and revive old downtown Worthingtown.
So since then we've transitioned the non-profit that the Worthinking Farmers market is under is now the Wortington Partnership because we. Partner with more businesses outside of old Worthington, but that is really the businesses that we're protecting. So that's why we're there.
We're there to help bring business to those small businesses around us with the farmers market. So it's great. You will have customers come down. They're shopping at the farmers' market. They're getting brunch at Worthingtn Inn where Wolf's Ridge just recently opened. They're going to Whitney House to get a drink. Maybe they're making candles at Candleworks. It's a really fun day and it's for all ages. You can have a large family. It could be couples, it could be a girl's day.
Juravich: And Jason, are you, do you have, because Chelsea mentioned, you know, repeat business and people come because they want your stuff. Have you made connections with people?
Wish: Absolutely.
Juravich: Yeah, tell me about Chem Connections.
Wish: So early on, when we started growing greenhouse tomatoes in 2001 and 2002, and started taking them to farmers markets, folks didn't understand how we could possibly have tomatoes. So it was kind of a learning curve to teach people that, yes, you can grow tomatoes in Ohio in April, May, and June if they're growing in greenhouses.
So we would have to put out samples and kind of educate people how we're doing this. We would show them pictures. To prove that. Not from Mexico. We had a lot of people who didn't believe that we were actually bringing in homegrown tomatoes from our farm.
So we definitely have built a huge clientele at the farmers markets over the years. And without those connections that we've made, we would just be another random grower at a farmer's market, hoping that we can pull people off the street. Now, of course, we're always hoping to grow our customer base in that way. But we have those, I call them our hardcore shoppers, you know, the ones that are there right when the market bell goes off lining up. Ready to buy our produce and with those relationships and connections that we've built over the years has helped us remain profitable.
Juravich: Do you Chelsea tell me about people coming in who are not from Worthington because I I know that your your market is Popular and attracts others. So do you I guess that there would be tourists
Kayse: Oh, yeah. So we actually do a dot survey every year to kind of see who's coming in. So well over 40 percent of folks that are coming to the Worthington farmers market are coming from outside that Worthingtons zip code. So it's really fun to see.
We have people that will say that they drove in from Zanesville. We have people that come into town with their family from California and their families like, oh, you have to come check out the farmers market. And it's just so fun to see them feel like, wow, this is beautiful. It looks like a little Hallmark movie down here because downtown Worthington is so charming.
Juravich: I also want to ask you, Chelsea, about the Worthington Farmer's Market accepts SNAP EBT benefits for the vendors. Tell me about this, tell me about adding it and what it's like for your vendors to have customers using SNAP benefits to buy food.
Kayse: It is so important and it's a business that we really try to protect. I'm sure that Christy spoke to it prior but we also offer the produce perks match. So it's 25 for 25 match. So you can get $25 for using Justin Produce which is fantastic for our farmers because they're getting that additional business.
And for our customers who may feel that shopping at the farmers market is fiscally out of reach for them, this makes it a great incentive for them to come visit us. So they'll use $25 on their EBT card. They'll get an additional free $25 through this grant program of produce perks that they can use on any vegetables or fruit in the market.
Juravich: Do you feel like it's, do you feel like you hear from people that they think farmers markets are not accessible to them? Like they feel like everything costs more.
Kayse: Absolutely, and that is something that I totally understand if you're not used to shopping at the market. However, I think that it's so important if you are shopping now and if you going to your major big box grocery stores, you will note that prices are almost on par at this point. And you'll also know that your produce is coming from within a 20 mile radius. So you know it's fresh, you know, it's going to last longer.
Juravich: Jason, talk to me about how you convince people to buy from you instead of going to the Kroger or the Giant Eagle.
Wish: Wow. Yeah, we definitely hear that. I hear about that on probably more in the YouTube comments of our farm videos.
Juravich: Not people to your face, yeah.
Wish: Yeah. And a lot of times I do have to mention that I'm not actually present myself at a lot of these farmers markets now. I'm staying home back at the farm, packing the trucks, being there, put out fires. So I hire good people to run the markets for me.
But we definitely hear about how the prices are so high these days that how can they afford to go shop at farmers markets. But the prices were high everywhere. And we obviously have to cover our expenses. We want to be able to make a profit doing this because it is hard work. It's risky work.
And... You're buying, you're getting fresh. Like she said, you are getting fresh locally grown produce. You're keeping the money in the local economy. So, you know, all those things are important. So I try to explain that. And you know eating out, fast food is expensive these days. Everything's expensive. But I think the quality of produce and supporting the local growers is what's the most important.
Juravich: Yeah, tell me about tell me a little bit more about educating people on buying local like so that they know that their produce hasn't traveled literally hundreds of miles.
Kayse: Yeah, absolutely. So something that we really pride ourselves on at the Worthington Farmers Market is we are, we only accept product that has been grown or made within Ohio. So if you're, like even our coffee, obviously we can't grow coffee beans here in Ohio. However, what we do make, we ensure that they're at least roasted here.
So we wanna try to keep all of that business within the state as much as possible so that it benefits the local economy for us. And it's also important too, for the fact that. We all know, we go to the grocery store, we think we're going to eat really healthy. Pick up spinach, we pick up lettuce, and you forget about it for a week, it goes bad. However, if you buy it at the farmer's market, guess what, it's still good when you remember it's till in the fridge. So you end up actually saving money in the longterm because you're probably.
Juravich: Is going to last longer. So Jason, what is what's on tap for this weekend? What are you going to be packing up in the truck at 430 in the morning on Saturday?
Wish: Well, fortunately this time of year, I don't have to quite get up that early because there's no sweet corn and green beans and melons yet. But we usually try to pack most of our tomatoes and the infrastructure within our box trucks to run a successful market the night before. So that way we're not rushing around too much on Saturday mornings.
But right now, the main items at our farm is tomatoes. So we have our greenhouse grown tomatoes and we have a grape tomatoes. Those are always a big hit. We have garlic scapes coming off of our garlic patch out in the field.
We a commercial kitchen on our farm where our old dairy facilities used to be and that's where we produce our sweet and hot pepper relish and fresh salsa and maple syrup. So we have all those items that kind of go along with our tomatoes but our big item right now is the greenhouse tomatoes.
Juravich: Wow. Okay. And so, I know you'll be at the Worthington Farmers Market, but tell me the names of a couple other markets where people can find you.
Wish: We will also be at the Clintonville farmers market, the Dublin farmers market and the Powell farmers market.
Juravich: All right. We have been talking about farmers markets with Chelsea Case, the manager of the Worthington farmers market. Thanks so much for being here, Chelsea.
Kayse: Thank you so much for having me.
Juravich: And Jason Wish, owner of Wishwell Farms, a vendor at the Worthington Farmers Market, among others, and farm owner. Thank you for being here, Jason. Absolutely. And coming up, we're going to talk to an organization that's working to provide free and fresh produce to people who need it. That is when All Sides continues on 89.7 NPR News.
You're listening to All Sides. I'm your host Amy Juravich. Farmers markets aren't always accessible. Whether it can be the cost or the location, some people do not have access to fresh produce that they could get from a farmer's market. The United Methodist Church and Community Development for All People has a program that provides fresh produce for people who need it. Here to talk with us about that program called the All People's Fresh Market. Is healthy eating and living coordinator Sam Alexander. Welcome to All Side Sam.
Sam Alexander: Good morning, Amy. Thanks for having me.
Juravich: So talk to us about this, the All People's Fresh Market. It's on Parsons Avenue. It distributes free, healthy food. First, let's start, where does the food come from?
Alexander: Yeah, so we are a partner agency of the Mid-Ohio Food Collective. The vast majority of our food is gonna come from them off of their truck each morning that we're open. We also receive food from Kroger as part of their zero waste program and then we get a small amount from Columbus Food Rescue as well. But we're opened Tuesday to Saturday, we get trucks Tuesday to Friday and you never know what's gonna come off of that, that big shiny truck.
Juravich: So you don't, whenever you say you don't t know, what you mean is you don t know what kind of produce you're getting. That's correct. That's right.
Alexander: That's correct, that's correct. We can ask for produce only, but and if we get too much of one particular thing we can be a bit picky about that, but we try to not be and and to be extremely grateful to MidOhio for whatever they can provide us that day.
Juravich: Tell me what's, I mean, maybe there's not a typical, but what's typical? What's normally on the truck?
Alexander: I'd say that staple crops like cabbage, potato, corn, onion are some of the big ones, you know, winter apples we get a lot of. You know, it's not uncommon to see things like pineapple. We've been very fortunate to get plenty of milk and eggs, which I know that our patrons really value.
Juravich: And is any of it local products or is it mostly just whatever the grocery store has an abundance of?
Alexander: Yeah, so it's whatever the store might have an abundance of, and it's what ever food MidOhio can get their hands on with their food distributors. And the benefit of being a partner agency is that we have MidOhia to be able to go to bat for us on the distribution and acquisition side of things, so that us as a smaller community-based agency, we can focus on giving the food away and building relationships and being, you know, really person-centered so that we don't even have to worry about the logistics most of the time.
Juravich: Okay, so let's talk about the people. Who does the market serve? Who's coming to your market?
Alexander: The market serves anybody under 200% of the federal poverty level, but it's all self-attested. And so we're open to the public. They can come once a day, every day that we're opened. That's something that makes us really different from other food pantries and other food resources available to folks.
And so, we really try to encourage people when they come in to see what we have and then use their SNAP benefits, use those other food pantries where you can only go once a week or once a month. To fill in the gaps of whatever we might not be offering that day.
Juravich: Okay, and when you said it's self-attested 200 less than 200 percent of the federal poverty level I mean, you're not making them bring their tax return or something, right? They're just saying
Alexander: No, and and we are not even allowed to ask them and that's that comes all the way from the usda Okay
Juravich: And the food that they're getting at your market, is it, do you like put it in a set box or can they like pick what they want?
Alexander: Yeah, so we used to set things up grocery store style, but then COVID came and completely changed the way that we needed to do operations and we shifted to a drive-through only model. So now things are out on pallets on our pantry floor.
If we have melons or cabbages that can look nice and pretty up on grocery store shelves, we'll do that. But typically shoppers come in and take a basket. They'll check in with our folks at the front desk and then they'll just sort of walk the loop. We have signage posted saying how much of everything you can take, we have volunteers available to help folks shop and pack groceries if they need it.
Juravich: Do you have regulars? Are you getting to know people? Do they come often?
Alexander: Absolutely, and that's something else that makes us different. We really try to build relationships based on radical hospitality. You know, there is so much vulnerability involved with reaching out and asking for help in any form, and so we want to turn what is typically a shameful act for folks into a celebration of community, a celebration of the food, of what we like to cook and eat together.
And so we certainly do have. Regulars who line up like clockwork every day. And then Saturdays are a completely different ballgame because you get people who can't come out during the work week. So it's interesting to see the differences between the two populations too.
Juravich: I like the, what did you call it? Radical hospital. Radical.
Alexander: RADICAL HOSPITALITY.
Juravich: Yeah, tell me more use more words
Alexander: Well, that is straight from church and community development for all people themselves, right? We're a United Methodist Church, and we really believe in mutuality in our relationship building, that it's more about more than just providing the service. It's about walking alongside folks and trying to really see where they're at and be of the community with them, because we would be nothing without them, right, if we don't have patrons to come.
Shop the market, then we can't really justify our existence. And so that mutuality, that involvement is so crucial. We really encourage our community members to try to be a part of the process however they can. Whether that's volunteering or coming to help us clean up our campus or coming to grow food with us in our community gardens, we really try to make it a big neighborhood thing too.
Juravich: We talked in the previous segment specifically about the Worthington farmers market, but just farmers markets in general Do you feel do you feel that some that people feel maybe farmers markets are not accessible to them? Even if the farmers market accepts SNAP benefits, do they feel more comfortable at your place?
Alexander: Cost aside, I think that getting to the farmer's market is another huge barrier, right? And so we're located on the corner of Parsons and Whittier along two different bus lines, right down the street from Nationwide Children's Hospital.
And so I think that if the food is closer to where people are, they will come, right. Cause I think that no matter who you are or where you live, you want the freshest food you can possibly get your hands on. And that people know when it's fresh, right, So I truly believe that if there were more places like the Worthington Farmers Market on the South Side, for example, that you would get people to support it. Yeah, yeah.
Juravich: So we've talked on this show many times in the past about food deserts, places without easy access to a grocery store or an easy way to get fresh food. Is your area where your market is on Parsons Avenue considered a-
Alexander: food desert. So we do have a Kroger's located on Parsons down the street, but it's about who has access to it. You know, we're not even just talking about what neighborhoods have grocery stores and which ones don't. We're talking about who gets to go to the grocery store, right, and who gets to act freely at the grocery stores, right?
If you have to take a bus to get to us, you probably just want to get your box of produce and go, and don't want to try to get everything you need at the Krogers Meanwhile... And that's incredibly prohibitive compared to somebody with a car that can just drive all over town and go to whatever store they want to or whatever farmers market they want too.
And so I think that for a city like Columbus where we don't have a ton of density, a ton of pedestrian infrastructure that having those food access points is really, really important because even though there might be that Kroger's on Parsons Avenue, there's still so many people in our community that can't access that.
Juravich: Do you have people who come to you who want to take something, but then they say, like, oh, I'm not going to be able to carry that home on the bus?
Alexander: Sure, yeah, we've run into that. I've even run into folks who will salvage what they can of their box and then leave the rest at the bus stop, right? And so that's certainly like a persistent barrier.
Juravich: Yeah, yeah. I mean, that has to be hard, especially if it's like if it heavy stuff. I wanted like, can you tell me about like who is visiting the market younger, older, you know, what do you have any like demographics that
Alexander: that you can tell me about? Yeah, we get a mix of everybody. It's a lot of older adults, certainly, but then we get lots of families, right? Lots of new Americans who are, you know, living in large households and need to get food to feed everybody, kids and adults. And so we really see folks from all ages, all walks of life. Our two biggest zip codes that we pull from are that far south side 43207 zip code. And then we get a lot of folks from the Near East side as well.
Juravich: We are talking about the All People's Fresh Market, and we're talking with Sam Alexander, the Healthy Eating and Living Coordinator who works with the United Methodist Church in community development for all people. And I wanted to talk about that title for a minute. So you are the coordinator for HEAL, H-E-A-L, Healthy Eating And Living, which, you know, I love a good acronym, but we're gonna. What is the goal of HEAL?
Alexander: Acronyms, that's non-profits for you. So Healthy Eating and Living is all about centering the food as the basis of well-being and letting everything come out of that. And so we really try to provide additional wraparound health services, health and wellness services at the market and in tandem with the market.
One of our biggest community partners is Equitas Health. They're at our site every Tuesday with their walk-in mobile health clinic. And so anybody passing by can go and get free STI testing and pregnancy testing and talk with a nurse practitioner and see about prescriptions or same day sick care or anything like that. We also have twice monthly, their dental clinic that comes out. We have hosted Ohio State Extension educators to teach cooking classes and Tai Chi classes.
We have an ongoing health and wellness class with Molina Healthcare every Tuesday and Thursday before we open. And we run two community gardens on the south side of Columbus to try and do some education, grow a little bit of our own food and bring more people into the neighborhood to be part of what we do.
Juravich: Wow. Yeah. I'm looking at your website. I saw you have lots of programs. So you're not just a market. So you just listed some of those programs. Let's talk about a couple of them. The healthy cooking classes. Can you do those at your actual site or is that? Yeah.
Alexander: Yeah, we've had those take on all kinds of forms, whether it is a volunteer saying like, I really wanna make succotash or I heard that you have spaghetti squash and that's my favorite thing. They might come in with their hot plate and their big pot and just hand out recipe cards and say, here you go, isn't it great?
But then we've have things as intensive as registered dieticians coming in, really breaking down the hard science of everything. Of why food works the way it does and incorporate some cooking skills into that as well.
Juravich: Are you teaching people how to use some of the veggies that maybe, because I know, you know, you might get a lot of cabbage or kohlrabi or something that people don't know how to cook with. Do you do that too?
Alexander: Yeah, certainly. We've had folks who will take that on as a passion project. And I think that really goes to show how important volunteerism is to what we do. Because all it takes is somebody having an interest for us to try and make it work for them.
And I think it just goes to shows that everybody has a part to play. And it doesn't always look the way that people might think it does. When people think I'm volunteering at a food bank, they think, okay, I'm breaking down cardboard boxes and going out to the dumpster every 90 seconds. But no, you can come and share a wonderful vegetarian dish that you love with us.
Juravich: And tell me more about the garden because, you know, everyone knows Ohio weather. It's not you know if you have to love to take care of a garden, take care of a Garden here in Ohio. So what tell me about your garden.
Alexander: Yeah, so we have two community gardens. There's the Mike Dial Garden and the Mary Tsunami Community Garden, both sort of on opposite ends of Parsons Avenue north of 104 there. And we grabbed over 2,500 pounds of fresh produce out of those gardens last year to take to the All People's Fresh Market. Wow. And so we- That's a lot.
Juravich: That's a lot, yeah.
Alexander: Yeah, we've been able to pull in lots of new folks from the neighborhood this year who are maybe growing with us for the first time in a long time or for the first time ever or growing with their kids. And so it's a really beautiful reflection of what our collective effort can look like.
You know, we're very fortunate to have the Ohio State Extension Office come down and bring educators and Master Gardener volunteers. To provide some of that education to our growers and to help us get the work done meanwhile. And I really think that that is the most popular produce in our entire market. People always can tell when it's like the very freshest thing and I feel like I'll drop off truckloads and turn my back and it's all gone because people know it when they see it.
Juravich: What are you growing? I mean, tomatoes, right?
Alexander: So we just got out of sort of our cool weather leafy green season, so we've been doing lots of collard greens and mustard greens and kale and lettuce. We pulled garlic out of the ground from last year.
Things that you wouldn't even think to grow in the city of Columbus most of the time. But now we have, you know, our hot peppers, our sweet peppers, tomatoes, our okra and squash and beans all taking off just in time for summer.
Juravich: Okay, and do you keep that garden active May through October?
Alexander: Yep, so our growing season starts April 1st and ends November 1st, and when community gardeners come to grow with us, we ask for their commitment during that time period.
Juravich: I want to thank you so much for your time. Thank you for telling me about everything. We have been talking about the All Peoples Fresh Market with the Healthy Eating and Living Coordinator, Sam Alexander, who works with the United Methodist Church and Community Development for All People. Thank you so for your today, Sam. Thank you, Amy. And this has been All Sides on 89.7 NPR News. Thank you listening. If you missed any part of today's show, listen back at www.osu.org slash All Sids. You can subscribe to the All Sites podcast. Every episode is available in our mobile app. Be sure to like the show on Facebook and follow us on Instagram. Our Instagram handle is at allsideswosu. This is All Sides on 89.7 NPR News. I'm Amy Juravich.