Questions to Ask At the Farmer's Market

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Transcript

Brandy: Hello and welcome to “Ask a Nutritionist”. This is our weekly mini episode of Dishing Up Nutrition. My name is Brandy Buro. I'm a Licensed and Registered Dietitian here at Nutritional Weight & Wellness. So if you've ever walked through a farmer's market, you've probably noticed a lot of colorful vegetables, various baskets of fresh berries and peaches, maybe the smell of herbs.

And farmers are eager to talk about what it is that they've grown and what they're bringing to the market that day. It can be really fun activity to do in the summer. I find it a really fun social activity to do with friends and family, but I think for some people it can also be a little overwhelming.

You can be wondering, how do I navigate all of this? What questions should I be asking? Should I ask questions? Does it matter if this produce is labeled organic or not? Are these fruits and vegetables better quality than what I can find at the grocery store? And how do I shop at the farmer's market without spending a ton of money?

Is this going to break my budget? So today that's what we'll be talking about. We'll be answering all of those questions so you can feel a little more confident when you shop at your local farmers market, knowing that you're bringing home the most nutritious, getting the most for your dollar, and enjoying the best quality food that you can.

Advantages of shopping at the farmer’s market

So let's get started by asking, what are some of the advantages of shopping at the farmer's market versus going to your regular grocery store? Going to the farmer's market isn't always convenient. It may actually be less convenient because for one, they're usually only open on certain days and they're usually open certain times of the day.

So limited hours. So why should you make the effort to go to a farmer's market? Well, I think one of the biggest advantages is freshness. Most grocery store produce may travel hundreds, if not thousands of miles before it reaches the grocery store, and then it sits around a little longer before it finally ends up in your kitchen. Many fruits and vegetables are often picked before they're fully ripe, just so they can survive that long journey.

But at a farmer's market, the produce is often picked within the last 24 hours, so it's extremely fresh, and it's only picked when it is absolutely ready to eat at its peak ripeness. What this means for you is that it tastes a lot better. The texture is often optimal. You're getting a little more nutrition because it's at the peak of its freshness and ripeness.

And when you get it home, it may actually have a longer shelf life because the path from the field to your kitchen is so much shorter. I think another big benefit of shopping at the farmer's market is that you are supporting your local community.

When you buy directly from the person that grew that food, you're eliminating all the middlemen and more of those food dollars are going to the people that produce the food and staying in your local economy. I think that's an amazing benefit and giving so much power to you, the buyer. You're supporting family farms and you're helping preserve farmland in your region.

Farmers markets also offer more seasonal variety. You may discover vegetables that you've never seen or heard of before. Just this last week, I saw kohlrabi, I saw garlic scapes, different varieties of greens that I've never seen in the grocery store. Later in the season, you may also see different varieties of tomatoes and melons, different varieties of squash that you would never see at a grocery store.

Eating seasonally just naturally encourages a little more variety in your diet, plus you are leaving a much smaller environmental footprint when you eat what's in season when you're choosing plants that thrive under the natural conditions of that region and of the season of the time.

I think a lot of people also enjoy having that connection to the people that are growing their food. When you shop at a grocery store, you don't really know who's growing your food. In some cases, you may not even know where that food was grown. But at the farmers market, you can ask questions and you can learn a lot more about how that food was grown.

Is looking for organic produce recommended at the farmer’s market? 

So what about the question of should I look for organic produce at the farmer's market? Or is non-organic okay? Well, the very short answer is eat plenty of fruits and vegetables. That's always more important than avoiding them because they're not organic. That said, many small farmers are using practices that are very similar to organic farming, but they may not carry that official USDA organic certification.

So why is that? Wouldn't you want to have that certification if you're following all the rules of organic farming? Well organic certification is pretty expensive to obtain. It's also very time consuming. So when we're thinking about small family operated farms and the certification fees that go into that, it may not make financial sense and they may not actually have the capacity to do all of that work on top of all the time and labor that goes into farming.

So you may often hear farmers say things like, we do grow organically, but we're not officially certified. Or we don't use synthetic pesticides. They may even use integrated pest management. Or some may say that we only spray when absolutely necessary. So these are some clues to get an idea of how close to organic this produce is.

And that is why conversations with those farmers are so valuable. You may discover that a farm follows excellent practices even without having that official organic certification.

Questions to ask farmers about their farming practices

All that being said, what questions should you ask farmers about their farming practices? Most farmers love talking about what they grow and how they grow it, and they're open to having these conversations. So here are a few great questions that you can ask to sort of develop that relationship. Do you use synthetic pesticides or herbicides? This is going to give you an idea of how those crops are protected from disease or infestation.

Are your farming practices organic, even if you're not certified? Many farmers can tell you flat out whether they are or not and explain their methods. Next, how do you manage weeds and insects? Some farmers practice crop rotation, encourage beneficial insects. They may weed by hand, or they may even use physical barriers to prevent weeds from growing instead of relying heavily on chemicals.

You can also ask them when this was harvested. Freshly harvested produce generally tastes a lot better and usually maintains their quality a lot longer. You can also ask them which vegetables they would recommend this week. What are their favorites? Farmers usually know what's tasting the best because they are harvesting it themselves and they're probably eating it themselves every day. Quality control, right?

So these conversations are going to help you make informed decisions, but they're also going to help you build relationships with the people that are growing your food. It's also giving the farmer some feedback about what's important to buyers. So it's a lovely relationship and a great dynamic to establish.

Produce best to buy organic (when you have the option) 

Now let's talk about what produce is the best to buy organic when you have the option. If you're prioritizing your budget and trying to decide where to invest in organic produce, focus first on produce that's more likely to retain any pesticide residues when it is grown conventionally.

There's a great list that's provided by the environmental working group that gives us a list of what to try to buy organic versus what you could probably get away with purchasing conventionally. So that list is updated every year on the EWG's website, ewg.org. They have something called the Clean 15 and the Dirty Dozen list. So love referring to this list every year just to get a sense of where should I try to purchase organic when possible and what could I get away with purchasing conventionally grown produce, maybe save a little bit of money.

So those produce that have the lowest levels of pesticides are considered clean 15. They make that clean 15 list. Those that have the highest pesticide levels land on the dirty dozen list. The dirty dozen list is what you should try to purchase organic whenever possible. So here are some examples of common fruits and vegetables that land on that dirty dozen list.

And that's because if they're treated with pesticides, it's more likely that they're going to remain on the fruit or vegetable and you are more likely to consume it. So here we go. The dirty dozen list usually includes strawberries, spinach, kale and collard greens, grapes, peaches, nectarines, pears, apples, bell peppers, cherries, blueberries, and green beans.

So as you can tell just reading off that list, you pretty much eat the vegetable or fruit as it comes out of the field. So there's really no protective peel or rind that gets peeled off. So you're eating what's exposed to the pesticides. So those would be best to purchase organic if it's in the budget.

Now on the other hand, there are produce that have a thick protective peel or a rind where the pesticide is less likely to reach your plate. That list of produce is considered the clean 15 because the edible portion is protected by that rind. So some examples of these foods include avocados, sweet corn, pineapple, onions, papaya, asparagus, cabbage, mushrooms, and sweet potatoes.

So these are all examples of produce that are reasonable to select conventionally grown if organic is not in the budget. And remember, these are simply tools to help prioritize where your food dollars go, they're not hard and fast rules. Eating a variety of fruits and vegetables is always the goal. That's far more important than trying to eat all organic all the time.

Is certified organic food at the grocery store better than non-organic food at the farmer’s market? 

Now here's another good question. Is certified organic food at the grocery store better than non-organic food at the farmer's market? Well, not necessarily. I think it's easy to assume that organic produce is always better no matter what, but there are a few factors to consider here.

A tomato that is grown organically in another country, thousands of miles away, shipped for over a week before it gets to the grocery store, it's probably not going to be as fresh or as flavorful as a tomato that is grown 10 miles away using minimal pesticides. Freshness absolutely matters. Flavor and your enjoyment of this matters. The growing practices matter. Storage time and the time that it takes to get to your kitchen matters.

So the simple answer is not always organic is better no matter what. Instead, we have to think about the whole picture and the process of producing that food. Some other questions to ask yourself, how fresh is this produce? How is it grown? How long has it been sitting in storage? Can I talk to the person that grew this food? Oftentimes locally and conventionally grown produce may actually be the better choice compared to organic produce at the store that's traveled thousands of miles to get there.

Money saving strategies at the farmer's market

Now, this next question might be at the top of your mind lately. What are strategies to stretch your food dollar at the farmer's market? How do I make this an affordable choice if I'm going to go through the effort of going to a farmer's market? I think many people may assume that going to the farmer's market could be expensive.

But honestly, when I'm just focused on buying food at the farmer's market, I have not found that to be the case. There's lots of ways to save money. This season, I'm actually finding that produce is similarly priced, if not a lot more affordable than the produce that's at the grocery store. At least when we're comparing apples to apples.

Or in my case this weekend it was zucchinis to zucchinis and beets to beets. I'm just finding better prices at the farmer's market. Make a mental note of the prices that you're seeing at the grocery store. Compare that to what you're seeing at the farmer's market. The difference may actually surprise you.

Another strategy that I use to save money at the farmer's market is shop near closing time. Try to get there within the last hour or half hour of the farmer's market. A lot of vendors are pretty eager to offload what produce they haven't sold at that point versus hauling it all back home and risking that it's spoiled and they make no money off of it.

Not every farmer is going to offer you discounts. But some may offer specials, like if you bundle, maybe you buy several things from their market versus going to different farmers, or maybe they'll offer you a discount if you buy large quantities.

Next, I'd make sure that you are buying what's in peak season. There's usually a lot more of it to sell, whether it's zucchinis, beets, greens, green beans, and cucumbers. Prices are usually a lot lower when there's a lot of it to sell. So peak seasonal produce. Cheaper and usually it's a lot tastier.

Next, purchase larger quantities. If you are willing to process some of that produce, whether it's freezing it or canning it, maybe make some pickles. You could even roast and freeze some vegetables. Make a soup or some smoothies and freeze that. Buying in bulk is going to save you a lot of money.

One of my clients loves doing this. I just know her as my client who goes to the farmer's market. She'll buy buckets and buckets of peppers. She'll buy as much broccoli as will fit in her freezer. Then she eats that all year long. She cuts it up. She may sauté it or she may just throw it straight in the freezer.

Then she uses that as a base for a soup or she'll put it in her egg scramble in the morning and it lasts her pretty much the whole year until it's farmer's market season the next year. Amazing money saver strategy.

Next, compare vendors. Some vendors are going to charge cheaper prices. So what I like to do is make a lap around the market just to see what everybody's selling, what they're offering, what the quality is like, and what they're charging for it. Prices can vary quite a bit from booth to booth. So do that lap, make some comparisons, and then decide where your best options are.

Also remember to bring cash. Some vendors offer some discounts when you purchase with cash, but I think everybody appreciates not having to pay for the credit card processing fees. So that's just a nice courtesy for the farmer there.

Another thing you could do is ask about the imperfect foods or sometimes referred to as seconds. These are fruits and vegetables that might be slightly bruised, slightly damaged, or oddly shaped. They're just not perfect looking, but they are perfectly nutritious. So they might offer a discount for that.

And they're really great in cooking preparations. You know, if you're going to make a soup or a sauce or a smoothie or maybe just roasted veggies, perfect way to use up those imperfect veggies.

Now, when you go to the farmer's market, I think it's best to sort of take inspiration of what is available and what looks good at the market when you're thinking about your meal plan. Instead of going there with a very specific list of what you absolutely have to get for XYZ, let the market inspire that menu.

So if you find that zucchini is abundant at the market and it's really inexpensive, try to build dinners around that. Maybe we're making a stir fry with zucchini, or maybe we're doing stuffed zucchini boats, or maybe peppers are in season. Well, that could be stuffed peppers, or that could be sheet pan fajitas.

So try to approach this with a mindset of flexibility. I think that's a great way to save money while also trying new things and working on variety.

Wrap up

So as we're wrapping up today, if there's one message that I would love for you to walk away with, it's that the goal is not to buy perfect food. The goal is to eat more real food, no matter what. So whether your vegetables are coming from the farmer's market or maybe the grocery store, or maybe it's coming from your own garden, our goal is to fill your plate with vegetables, try to get a variety, try to get lots of different colors on that plate.

That is one of the most cost-effective investments that you can make in your health, no matter what. Farmers markets are simply offering you the opportunity to enjoy fresher, more flavorful foods, support local agriculture and the local economy, maybe discover new plants that you've never tasted before.

And you get to build a relationship with the person that's growing your food. I think that's all like really exciting and beautiful. And we don't get that chance every day. So the next time you visit your farmer's market, don't be afraid to ask those questions, try something new, and enjoy the whole experience.

Well, thank you so much for listening to today's episode of “Ask a Nutritionist”. If you enjoyed today's episode, please share this episode with a friend or somebody you think might benefit. Well that's it for today. I'll talk to you guys next time.