a call to farms
Calgary may soon be losing its only year round farmers market. No offence CFM, but when you look at the list of farmers who have not committed to the new location it’s looking like the new spot isn’t going to look much like the current one. I suppose that’s up for debate, but that isn’t the purpose of this post. It’s the impetus.
I’ve been working on a few projects lately – culinary tourism, a new chef’s collaborative, a chef/producer round table – and I’m finding that there are indeed a lot of exciting things going on in our local food movement. What is lacking though is a common vision that all of these efforts can come together under. A broad vision for local sustainable agriculture and how that is integrated into the lives of the people of Alberta. I’ve been trying to think of a way of collecting my thoughts on this but it seems so big I wasn’t sure where to start. How about this then? Let’s start in the future, at a Farmers Market in the not so distant future.
This new market was purpose built to be an efficient space to deliver locally grown and raised products into the hands of urbanites. It is an economic, educational, and social institution. It was designed by a local architect firm and they included many green features like solar power, grey water collection, and recycled materials. It even has a teaching garden on the roof along with a greenhouse that draws warm air off of the bakery. The building was a collaboration between all levels of government and the corporate sector and it was built on land that was sitting idle. It is centrally located and has great public transit access along with ample parking. This is Calgary you know and most people don’t seem to mind parking for a toonie. The market is run by a group of citizens from various backgrounds and also has a vendor advisory group that works with the market to ensure smooth operation.
The first thing that strikes you when you walk into this market is the natural light that streams in. Not being able to experience the outside environment creates a disconnect with the season so the architects added skylights and large windows that actually also support heating and cooling of the space. The stalls are designed for multiuse purposes. Some are occupied by anchor vendors that can operate year round and others are designed for daily use. This gives new farmers an opportunity to get their products to the co-producers while they develop their businesses. Along the outside of the building there is space for outdoor market stands and the atmosphere spills out into the warm summer air during the months when supply is most abundant. In the winter the outdoor space can be used for a skating rink and festivals.
The key to this market is that it is sustainable. It operates as a not for profit and the bulk of its operating expenses come from the seasonal out-of-province fruit and vegetable stand run by the market, its food service industry delivery business, corporate donations, government, and annual fundraisers like the Harvest Dinner. Other income comes from the full list of cooking classes and presentations that are run out of the market’s education centre and demonstration kitchen. During week days the education centre is usually full of school children that get to experience and learn about local food and agriculture. There is also a small amount of money raised in the production kitchen that is booked by vendors and producers to process local ingredients into other products. This means that food that normally may spoil can be turned into jams, sauces, and ready to eat meals to also be sold at the market. Ultimately this keeps the rental costs to the farmers very low and they are able to pass on that savings to the consumer.
This market is a central piece of the province’s new Farmer Development Program. There has been active recruiting for the last few years for the next generation of farmers. A program of education, mentorship, land access, financial support, and marketing options means that new young farmers are producing a variety of new products for consumers. What finally got the program off the ground was escalating health care costs. As part of a way to counteract them, the province recognized that we would have to start to focus on prevention and not just treatment. Eating locally produced, more nutritious foods was just one of the creative ways we started to get healthier as a province.
These new farmers along with the new urban agriculturists now have a province wide system of distribution centres (markets) that can distribute out to smaller community markets. The new market in Calgary in the anchor store that keeps the supply flowing year round and it is part of the other seasonal markets that are being run in mall parking lots, rec centres, and community halls. These markets work together and not against each other and their success it ultimately driven by the citizens of Calgary who clearly want access to good, clean, and fair local foods. They have also clearly shown that they want all Calgarians to eat well so the Market is teaming up with local social groups to bring these same ingredients into the soup kitchens and support facilities. There is a plan to break ground next year on a restaurant next to the market that will help with rehabilitation and reintegration of individuals. They will be given jobs and responsibilities at the restaurant to be overseen by guest chefs from local restaurants and SAIT.
OK, maybe this sounds like a little more than a simple Farmers Market, but that’s what I think a true Farmers Market should be. It should be an institution and an asset to the city and its citizens. It needs to be the link between the rural lands where our food is grown and the people who grow it. We have the opportunity to shape and form what our local food system will look like in the years to come. Is there anything other than water that is more important than food? I’m not sure what will motivate each person to act on a vision like this, but there are thousands of things that can. We just need to find our common grounds, decide that it is important, and then start working towards the realization of our vision.
Posted in commentary
November 28th, 2009 at 3:32 pm
Wade,
Firstly, let me commend you on your vision of an “idyllic” farmer’s market structure. My name is Ken Aylesworth, Director of Branding and Operations for the Calgary Farmers Market, the CFM.
Although I know who you are and see you almost every weekend shopping here at the CFM, I must apologize for not having introduced myself to you. Next time you are in please make yourself known to me, as I will do the same.
I am aware of your thoughts about markets through a number of avenues including discussions you have had with several CFM vendors and by reading your musings over the last while. I must say that for the most part I agree with your thinking, except of course when you are lobbing what I believe to be unfounded criticisms at the CFM.
That aside, I wanted to share with you that as we prepare to finish out our lease here at the Currie Barracks location (the end of November 2010) and re-establish ourselves at the new Blackfoot Trail location, we are already preparing a “fresh approach” for the new market, that interestingly enough includes the vast majority of your visions in the above blog.
Wade, I extend to you an invitation to sit with me to discuss in detail these plans.
I look forward to your reply.
Ken
November 29th, 2009 at 8:02 am
That’s not a bad vision, at all Wade. What do we do now to get there?
November 30th, 2009 at 4:48 pm
Great post, Wade. For me, the answer lies not in having a large, central eco-friendly farmers market – though it sounds awesome! – but rather in building and nurturing a web of local markets to the point that they require such a beautiful place. My background is economics, not food, so I am wary of a top down approach to anything. But this isn’t so much about economics as it is about instilling an ethic throughout this city’s communities.
I sold honey at the Sunnyside Farmers Market this summer, a market you’d think would be bustling with people walking from work to their homes in one of Calgary’s most affluent neighbourhoods. But the reality was that very few people showed, despite there being quality vendors. I already know some vendors will not go back to that market next year, which means the traffic will slow even further until there is no market left. Why did a market with decent vendors (and room for many more) in a central location in an affluent neighbourhood fail? My guess is mismanagement (though I’m not saying it wasn’t without good intentions).
That is mismanagement on the small-scale. Then there is the CFM, which I am not even going to touch here, except to point out something in Ken’s post that really bothers me. The fact that he, as Director of Branding & Operations, hasn’t reached out to you – somebody who is prominent on the Calgary food scene, is vocal and active in thinking out what the farmers market will look like in the future, and still supportive of the market despite all of its shortcomings – throughout this whole debacle is symptomatic of another kind of management failure (one that, unfortunately, I cannot say was accompanied by good intentions).
Your vision sounds great on paper (and I share it in principle). But once we’re there, what is to stop us from returning to the current state, where local – and here I mean truly local, as in community-based – markets wither or cease to exist, while many of us have to truck across the city to shop at a market we can’t identify with.
So I’ll propose something I think will help, and it is something that we can start doing today. At this point, we don’t need anymore physical capital – there are enough big markets. What we need is human capital. The missing component at both of the above markets is leadership: at Sunnyside the organizers weren’t able to secure vendors and they weren’t able to drum up traffic; at CFM, well, that’s been said, and I hope, as Ken says is the case, that many of its problems are solved with a fresh approach.
So I propose a new board of directors made up of people who have the knowledge and leadership to make a market work. This board will not create a new, centrally-planned market, but will instead work with community associations throughout the city to build up markets within those communities. When you consider the added workload of organizing a market for a small community centre, it is a wonder there are any at all. But a small, focused body could enable community-based markets to thrive, just by lending support, expertise, and, importantly, vision. Granted, a 7-day-a-week market in any one community is not realistic, but for reform we need to reconnect consumers with small producers at the smallest scale possible. With success there, it will only be a matter of time before your vision is realized.
Anyway, not the most coherent thought out there, but blog comments seldom are. It’s a big problem and there isn’t an easy solution, but I am more than happy to help find one.
Josh
December 7th, 2009 at 8:35 pm
Great vision. Nice plan.
Farmers’ Markets start with the producers. The makers. The farmers. There are plenty of food conscious folks around that are willing to support a great, sincere producer’s market.
Keep in mind not all good things can be locally produced and operators of markets need to keep an open mind about that.
December 8th, 2009 at 9:44 am
Josh,
I spoke with you at the end of this year’s Hillhurst Sunnyside Market. As a community resident I was very very happy the market even came back this year, yet, absolutely, some serious organization needs to go into ensuring it grows in momentum next year.
So, maybe it really is all about human capital, because now we have a core of dedicated volunteers and fresh staff in place to start to make this happen. AND we’re starting now, not in May! But if there were a local board to advise small markets such as ourselves we would be overjoyed. Our little group has got a lot of ideas, and some resources to bounce those off of would be so helpful.
I was really energized from Wade and others’ talks at Local 101 last year, and I know that in a city of a million, an inner city farmer’s market should be able to thrive.