Market Terms

The Center for Urban Education about Sustainable Agriculture has done it again. All I do is think of some piece of information I wish I had and presto whammo there it is at the Ferry Plaza Farmers' Market.

First I wanted to know which vendors were within 100 miles of the market and if they were organic or pesticide free and I wanted to know it without having to take notes I'd have to refer to each week without having to start over. And the CUESA provided identically organized signs at every vendor.

Lately I've been thinking I should make a list of the different market terms and what they mean because it gets confusing but the CUESA beat me to it. They have a glossary of market terms free for the taking at their market table.

It's not like I don't know what organic means or pesticide free or that I think about the difference consistently once I get to a farmers' market. Some days I simply get so excited about a box of pretty apples with a pink cheeked farmer that I forget to ask how the the apples were raised.

And truth be told on those days when I do remember to ask, I still buy from the man or woman that has the nicest smile. The one that handles the produce with a certain respect. I often choose character over certification. My reasoning is if the farmer is happy, likely so are his workers and so is his soil.

Reading the glossary I learned that organic meant no GMO crops and that free-range claims on eggs and beef are not regulated. I didn't know that farmstead cheese meant that the cheese is made by the same people who keep the animals that produce the milk. And I didn't know that the Ferry Plaza Farmers' Market prohibits the sale of any products known to contain GMO's.

But now I do. The glossary is good information for shopping anywhere, especially if you don't have the farmer standing right there. If you'd like a copy let me know. I'd be happy to send it to you.