Who grew your garlic? Andrew Coppolino on market vendors versus farmers

I counted the fresh produce that's available at this time of the year, according to Foodland Ontario, and found about 50 different fruits and vegetables. Many of the items are available at local farmers' markets, but a question remains for me: how sure am I of where the food actually comes from?

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It's obvious from the name that a farmers' market is a place where farmers sell their products. But traditional farmers aren't the only vendors at this province's nearly 200 markets;virtually every market includes what are often called "resellers."

That's not bad, necessarily, but it's not always easy to tell the difference between the two.

Vendor tiers

The St. Jacobs Farmers' Market, for instance, has both growers and resellers among its stands. On its rate sheet it distinguishes between four different types of produce vendor: grower, grower/buyer, co-op grower and annual produce.

Growers are defined asvendors who only sell produce that they grow on their own family farms throughout the growing season. That last part is key; when the produce they grow is not in season, they are allowed todo some reselling of that itemon a case-by-case basis.

Grower/buyerspay more rent for their market stall than growers. To qualify, they must grow produce on their own farm but can supplement up to 50 per cent of the products they sell with Ontario produce purchased at another Ontario farm. The caveat is: "located near their farm," with no specific definition of "near."

Co-op growers are vendors who partner with other local growers.

Annual produceis a category is reserved for resellers who don't grow anything of their own, but "produce sold cannot be in season in Ontario."

Kitchener, Cambridge, Guelph, Stratford

Serving about 10,000 market-goers on a Saturday, the Kitchener Market has 24 farmers, 14 are "My Pick" certified, the other seven are resellers. TheMyPick farms(at any farmers' market) are clearly identifiedand Kitchener Market is working on a new system to identify the others.

In their vendor information package, theCambridge Farmers' Market says itrequires vendors to display a sign with the name of their business and ensure that "all produce must be of good quality," but at theGuelph Market, vendorsmust produce a minimum of 65 percent "homegrown" products and can resell out of season.

It says resellers can purchase from "a third party, and/or farm products where less than 65% of the products are home grown."

At the Stratford Farmers' Market, resellers and wholesalers "are prohibited," according to vendor guidelines.The Stratford Slow Food Market also features local producers.

In support of resellers

All of these conditions are clear for vendors, but it's not informationobvious tocustomers. Where there may be tiers of vendor fees charged, there is no signageto indicate to buyers what sort of merchant they're dealing with.

Shopping at a farmers' market isn't a zero-sum game; it's not black and white, just like the idea of "local food" is not black and white. Buying local food is great and supports local economiesbut it's only available for part of the year.

Where are we going to get local broccoli in February? We're not.

There likely wouldn't be a year-round farmers' market anywhere in Ontario were it not for produce from warmer climates. There wouldn't be the foods like eddoesor pomegranates that are important to a wide variety of cultural communities for whom they are essential ingredients. The issue of undersellingfarmers aside, lower priced producefrom resellers may behelping some people afford fresh food.

A large part of the issue is one of clarity and understanding which stand is reselling produce and where it's from.

I've heard the rumours that some resellers mightdress in Mennonite-like garb or hire Mennonites to sell their goods. I have certainly encountered resellers posing as farmers after travelling to the food terminal in Toronto to collect produce. Asking them a few questions about an apple'soriginand variety (including asking if the vendorput the ID stickers on them!) shut them up quickly. So I moved on to a vendor I knew.

Seek clarity? Ask questions

So it's caveat emptor: buyer beware. Decide what your priorities and values are about buying "local food" and do your research.

Know what's in season and what's grown here and make your purchases accordingly. Look for the "My Pick" sign that certifies the farmer but recognize that even these farmers can share the produce they sell. Recognize, too, that we wouldn't have a lot to eat if we didn't stock the shelves with produce from elsewhere.

More from Andrew Coppolino:

• Grocery stores evolve with new approaches
• 7 tips for school lunch prep
• Beyond corn and potatoes: autumn harvest varies the bounty