Farmers' markets in B.C. gear up for another season of local products and community-building

Farmers' markets all over the province are opening up for the season, bringing with them a renewed sense of community and appreciation for local products, from fruits and vegetables to jewelry and music. 

Melanie Langdon Wilkins says she saw first hand how her community was ready to fall back into the market routine when the Esquimalt Farmers' Market launched for the season in the first week of April — even though it's been unseasonably cold and wet. 

"It was freezing," said Wilkins, the market's executive director, who has been working toward opening day since January and was confident the weather wouldn't keep people away.

"The Esquimalt community loves the farmers' market, so we were expecting them to show up no matter what," said Wilkins. 

According to the B.C. Association of Farmers' Markets (BCAFM), there were 137 association-affiliated farmers' markets in operation across the province in 2022, featuring 413 vendor members.

The markets can be important income generators for communities, says Linda Van Alphen, market manager at the Penticton Farmers' Market.

It welcomes up to 10,000 people every Saturday, with people coming from all over the Okanagan region.

"We're an economic driver," Van Alphen said, adding that the events build community and food education, as well.

"It's so important for people to know that their eggs came from a chicken that laid it two days ago," she said.

The province has recognized the importance of farmers' markets for local economies, delivering more than $600,000 in funding through the B.C. Farmers' Market Expansion Program, and legislation changes allowing a wider variety of vendors. 

Apart from a yearlong ban implemented at the start of the pandemic, market vendors have been permitted to sell non-food items like flowers, soap and jewelry and that has helped broaden their appeal, said Jessica Hailstone, one of the co-organizers for the Clayton Farmers Market in Surrey, B.C.

While produce is often the heart of a local market, "it goes beyond just shopping for groceries," she said. 

"It really does invite the entire family to come in, [...] get their face painted and enter the pie-baking contest."

Along with generating local income, farmers' markets also help increase resources for people facing food insecurity, said Van Alphen, who wants to raise awareness about the nutrition coupon program. 

The outreach program by the BCAFM provides $27 per week in coupons for lower-income families, pregnant people and seniors that can be used at all participating farmers' markets in B.C.

According to the BCAFM, the program distributed $3.26 million worth of coupons last year to more than 10,000 households, giving them the option of buying fresh, local food.