Managing farmer and consumer expectations: A study of a North Carolina farmers market

Human Organization, Summer 2002 by Andreatta, Susan, Wickliffe, William II

After completing its sixth season of operation, and with the assistance of two market managers and public advertising, the PTFM has made the transition to Stage Two, which occurs when part-time and full-time commercial farmers supply the majority of the fruits and vegetables, but hobby gardeners still able to sell at the market. According to Lloyd, Nelson, and Tilley (1987:1), "since the larger, more established producers participate in the market, there is a lower chance of market failure." Although the PTFM has clearly entered Stage Two, it is still experiencing some difficulties that may make it difficult for the market to develop further.

The "larger, more established producers" that provide a stabilizing function for the PTFM are seven "anchors" who sell at the market on a daily basis. Of these, only one is a farmer, another is running a full-time nursery and landscape operation, a third sells homemade bread and honey, and the other four are vendors selling on behalf of several farmers who cultivate some of their own products and receive other fresh farm products from their neighbors to sell. Since the market managers have decided that the PTFM will operate as a daily market, these anchors are important because they ensure that there is always something for consumers to buy. None of the smaller farmers has the time or resources to sell at the market seven days a week, and none of them would have sufficient product to sell if they could.

Because of the market's dependence on the anchors for stability, there is a perception among small farmers that these vendors receive preferential treatment and that the market rules are designed to favor the anchors, even if this disadvantages small farmers. The anchors occupied more than 10 of the coveted 20 aisle locations in Farm Area 1 from March through November. Since they were there every day and their tables and products remained in place overnight, other farmers never had access to these locations, which they perceive as unwarranted favoritism. The policy that sets prices for renting spaces makes it expensive to rent two adjacent aisle spaces (two aisle spaces rent for 2.3 times the cost of a single space), which means that small farmers must usually make do with a single space. Furthermore, although spaces are nominally rented daily on a first-come, first-serve basis, the managers make exceptions to this rule to make it easy for large vendors to leave their displays in place even when they may not be selling at the market. (One consequence of this is that the market staff cannot power-wash the floors, contributing to hygiene problems noted by some consumers.) Finally, many farmers believe some vendors are less careful than they might be about following the market rule that at least 51 percent of a vendor's produce must come from the farm that the vendor represents, We noted earlier that some consumers are also skeptical that the majority of the produce sold at the market is truly produced on local farms.