Farmers Market Week begins today; U.S. has over 8,000

This is National Farmers Market Week, an Agriculture Department celebration in its 23nd year.  

In his proclamation affirming the observation, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said the markets "continue to provide access to safe and nutritious food in the face of market disruptions while also shortening supply chains and reinforcing a competitive food system benefitting producers and consumers."

According to the 2019 National Farmers Market Managers survey, the U.S. has more than 8,000 farmers' markets.  Farm vendors benefit in a number of ways, including:

• 67% increased overall production.
• 33% increased the number of workers employed on the farm.
• Nearly 40% were able to sell imperfect products that would otherwise go unsold.
• 77% diversified the types of agricultural products they grew.

The Farmers Market Coalition has a toolkit and other resources with data you can use.