The Economic, Social, and Environmental Impacts of Farmers Markets: Recent Evidence from the US

Phillip Warsaw, Steven Archambault, Arden He and Stacy Miller
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Phillip Warsaw: Department of Community Sustainability, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA
Steven Archambault: Department of Agribusiness and Food Industry Management, Cal Poly Pomona University, Pomona, CA 91768, USA
Arden He: Department of Planning and Landscape Architecture, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53706, USA
Stacy Miller: Good Phyte Foods, Charlottesville, VA 22902, USA

Sustainability, 2021, vol. 13, issue 6, 1-18

Abstract: Farmers markets are regular, recurring gatherings at a common facility or area where farmers and ranchers directly sell a variety of fresh fruits, vegetables, and other locally grown farm products to consumers. Markets rebuild and maintain local and regional food systems, leading to an outsized impact on the food system relative to their share of produce sales. Previous research has demonstrated the multifaceted impacts that farmers markets have on the communities, particularly economically. Recent scholarship in the United States has expanded inquiry into social impacts that markets have on communities, including improving access to fresh food products and increasing awareness of the sustainable agricultural practices adopted by producers, as well developing tools for producers and market stakeholders to measure their impact on both producers and communities. This paper reviews the recent scholarship on farmers markets to identify recent trends and synthesizes the current evidence describing the ways in which farmers markets contribute to the wellbeing of their communities, as well as identifying areas for additional future research.

Keywords: local food systems; public space; social capital; food access; economic impact; social impact; agroecological practices (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (6)

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