Farmers Markets

It seems that farmers markets are becoming ever more popular. According to Country File, on BBC1 this morning, 10 years ago there were only four farmers markets in Britain but there are now around 550! There is one here in Edinburgh which is very popular, although I have only been to it a couple of times myself. Something I hadn't realised is that only about half of the over 500 farmers markets in the UK are certified by the National Farmers Retail and Markets Association. Such certification means, amongst other things, that all of the produce which is for sale has been produced or grown by the stall holder and must come from within 30 miles of the market (50 miles if it can be considered an urban market). Luckily, the farmers market in Edinburgh is certified and even won Farmers Market of the year for 2007. You can check if your local farmers market is certified or not at http://www.farmersmarkets.net/index.htm. According to Country File, there is growing concern amongst farmers market operators about large commercial companies trying to cash-in on this growing market, by selling "Farmers Market" branded products. My guess would be that markets that allow this would not get certification because I doubt that these products are going to be locally produced. So, certification is something to look out for!