The Ann Arbor Farmers Market is an exciting, vibrant, bountiful place to shop! It is also a very different environment from traditional grocery stores. Follow these tips to ensure a wonderful Farmers Market experience:
*Stroll around the market to get a sense of everything available before you begin your purchasing. Each vendor has different products, and it is nice to take in the "big picture" before you begin shopping.
*Experiment! What better place to try a funny-looking pepper, or a new flavour of jam. Why not pay a visit to the market in January, to see what wonderful seasonal items are available?
*Take your time! This is your opportunity to ask a vendor their favourite way to cook buffalo, or learn how much water that beautiful new plant may need.
*Bring a cooler with you, for perishable items such as eggs, meat, and delicate greens.
*Come early; often vendors sell out of their most special products by mid-day.
*Bring recycled plastic bags to hold wet vegetables, reusable plastic containers to protect berries, and canvas totes to hold your loot. Reducing market waste and buying locally produced goods go hand in hand!
Shopping at the Farmers Market is a wonderful way to get beautiful food and handcrafts from the people who make them, visit with friends (new and old!) and truly delight in the bounty of the season.
See you at market!
Reducing market waste and buying locally produced goods go hand in hand! In an effort to keep the Ann Arbor Farmers Market clean and limit the amount of trash we send to the landfill, here are a few things to consider before you head out on market days:
1. Bring recycled plastic bags to hold wet vegetables, reusable containers to protect berries, and canvas totes to hold your loot. Remember to offer your bags to the vendors before they grab you a new one!
2. There is nothing more cozy than sipping a hot coffee, tea, or cider while you browse the market on a cool fall morning. If you plan on purchasing your drink, have the barista fill up your favorite travel mug instead of using a disposable one. Most cafes will give you a discount for bringing your own mug and you will be helping to reduce the mountain of disposable cups that quickly clog market garbage cans.
3. If you do have something to throw away, think about whether it can be recycled. Recycle bins for both plastic and paper are located in front of the Farmers Market office and by the benches along 5th Street.
4. The City of Ann Arbor now composts food waste! Swing by the compost cart (brown with a green lid) located outside of the Farmers Market office to dispose of that stray apple core or peach pit.
Thanks for doing your part to minimize the amount of trash generated at the Ann Arbor Farmers Market!