Why are farmers' markets so expensive?

[summerdays]

I go to a farmers market every now and again .... things probably are more expensive but generally the things I go back and buy again are very tasty ... fantastic garlic and herb chorizo, a spicy cheese with chillies in - varies in strength each time I buy it, and at this time of year some lovely fresh wild garlic flower pesto or in the autumn unusual apple varieties. I don't stock my fridge with it but it costs less than a meal out for a family of five and we end up with a meal that we couldn't buy in a supermarket.

 

[redcard]

You are off course referring to the same town who also sometimes arrange German markets. I have never really understood the link between that town and Bavaria. Neither has the local German community either.

Returning to the farmer's market in that town, I have to say that farmer's market is pretty sub standard (Read: rubbish) compared to other farmer's markets. And both the prices and the products is way off. Scented soaps (which I mistook for cheese, btw) sold for a hugely inflated prices and some piri-piri salmons priced 3 x more than the fish monger around the corner. There are better farmers markets than this roadblock.

My point is if they priced accordingly (i.e. Paisley prices, where every shop is a pound shop), then they would grow, and attract more stalls and attract more punters willing to spend money.

 

[PK99]

So farmers typically complain that they are the victims of unfair buying practices, they say the supermarkets are making all the profits, yet when they cut out this middleman and sell direct to the consumer, their prices are still bloody high!

Last week I paid £2.50 for a roll n sausage, plus 50p for some fried onions. A 500ml tub of soup was £3.50, £2.00 for a loaf of ciabatta. A 500ml tub of ice cream was a fiver!

Now I understand there's additional costs involved in getting a market stall up and running, but surely if they want to get the public on-side they should be selling their product at fairer prices? They must still be able to break-even on £1 for a tub of soup if the supermarket aren't taking their share of the profits?

Right?

There are farmers markets and places that call them selves farmers market - when one of the latter was selling fresh mixed peppers in London in January, i decided to use a proper Farmers' Market.

The ones i use (wimbledon and ripley) are fantastic - very high quality produce at fair prices. check out the website of the one you want to use and find out the rules for sellers
eg london farmers markets,

The following foods and products are available at London Farmer's Markets. All are grown and produced within 100 miles of London. Some produce is organic

 

[gbb]

I'm no agricultural expert but I believe vegetables, meat, wheat and dairy products all come from farms.

The fact that the big sign said 'Farmers Market' just nails it on the head for me.

You can buy veg, meat and dairy products from tesco, but they aint farmers either.


Just be like me, a cynic...you don't get dissapointed then. Its nothing more than a marketing con at worst. At best, its a farmers market with hangers on, people who 'attach' themselves to it, selling stuff at inflated prices.
Be a cynic, lifes much easier

 

[accountantpete]

We have one - the produce is without exception inferior and more expensive than can be readily obtained elsewhere.

 

[Pat "5mph"]

My point is if they priced accordingly (i.e. Paisley prices, where every shop is a pound shop), then they would grow, and attract more stalls and attract more punters willing to spend money.

Red Card, in Paisley (also in most areas of Glasgow, I guess) if people are used to buy their veg and meat washed, pre-cut, and/or frozen, they would not buy real farmer's produce, like lettuce with the odd complementary slug, dirty potatoes, rugged carrots, even if cheaper than Asda.
So you get, under "farmer's market" either an assortment of overpriced ready made foods (like your sausage roll and soup) or a pretentious overpriced assortment of cheeses, olives, breads and cold meats.
Where you could find a real farmer's market in our area I don't know: do we have any farms (apart from the dairies) round here?

 

[slowmotion]

In London, I suspect the whole FM phenomenon is just a con pulled on people with bigger wallets than sense. Quite how the scam works in places that are less affluent remains a total mystery.

 

[screenman]

To the OP, the idea is not to break even but to make a profit.

 

[TVC]

My local farmers market has some very good local producers. The sausages are fantastic and cost the same as Sainsburys', the black cured bacon is expensive but you can eat it raw. and I use it as a seasoning rather than sticking it in butties. The steaks are comparable in price to M&S, and the eggs were still inside the chickens 12 hours before I bought them at a supermarket price.

As for paying £2.50 for a hot dog, well I know a place where they charge £5 for a skinny mass produced burger in a lightweight bun, served with frozen fries and a cup of flavoured sugar water, I think it's called McDonalds.

 

[Archie_tect]

Some odd looking farmers at our local Farmers' market... they sell smoked fish and seafood... then some carve walking sticks and make aromatherapy oils.... + make gallons of jam and chutney.

The only meat sold looks about as fresh as Tesco. There is a Geordie bloke who moved to the Languedoc to buy a vineyard... he returns every year with his year's production... usually a soft red wine and a rosé for £4 a bottle.

 

[Speicher]

Some odd looking farmers at our local Farmers' market... they sell smoked fish and seafood... then some carve walking sticks and make aromatherapy oils.... + make gallons of jam and chutney.

I agree Archie. I was very disappointed with the odd-looking farmers at the last Farmers' market held near here. They smelt of smoked fish, seafood and garlic. I would not want to buy any of them. Though one did try to interest me in his plums, but he did not have a very large farm.

 

[Headgardener]

Owing to the Supermarkets (other than Waitrose who everybody thinks are expensive but they are really just selling at the actual price) buying and selling stuff cheap, when sellers sell at the farmers markets at a price to cover costs and possibly make a bit of profit people complain that they are to expensive. Usually though the quality is better and the produce is fresher as most of the sellers will be fairly local to the loction of the market so I would use a farmers market all the time if they came here to Hythe a bit more regularly.

 

[Glover Fan]

Owing to the Supermarkets (other than Waitrose who everybody thinks are expensive but they are really just selling at the actual price).

They may well sell their produce at a more suitable price from a sustainable point of view, but you can bet your house that the suppliers margins are near as damn it as the other retailers. Waitrose will themselves be making more money from the product. The supplier may see a penny or two more per unit.

All supermarkets are the same. Don't fall for the moral advertising BS.