PRFM is proud to announce that one of our own farmers, Cory
Mosser of Burge Organic Farm, has won the grand prize in the 2012 Farmers
Market Inspiration Awards. Congratulations, Cory! Your winning essay is
impressive and inspiring—reminding us just how much our market matters to its
farmers, vendors, and community of shoppers. Check out Cory’s essay below:
Any Given
Saturday
By Cory Mosser of
Burge Organic Farm
Do you remember June 30th, 2012? I do. At our farmers
market, it reached a record heat of 106 degrees and even hotter on the blacktop
parking lot where we set up. It was the type of weather that farmers love only
because we can complain to other farmers about it. There was more than a little
trepidation driving into town as sweat rolled down our foreheads before the sun
had even made an appearance- not a good sign. Would we (our farms three
apprentices, and myself), along with our vegetables, roast into little crispy
morsels of despair? Would our customer base ignore us completely for the comfort
of an air conditioned box store? Would we all have to go find jobs in said box
store the following week?
As it turns out, we had nothing to worry about. We didn’t
wither in the heat, we smiled. We were greeted by close to two-thousand market
goers (our market can easily top three-thousand on its busiest days), who were
excited to buy produce from us and who refused to let a silly little thing like
soul-sucking heat keep them away from the food they know and love. By the time
the bell rang to signify the end of market, we still had a line and we had sold
almost 50 percent more than we did the same day on the year before. As we were
cleaning up in our giddy, sleep deprived but socially satiated state, we were
reminded again of how much fun selling at market can be.
I love Saturday. As a kid, Saturdays meant adventure, hiking
trips, long days riding bikes or swimming. As I got older Saturdays mostly
meant no work, something I was particularly fond of while working terrible jobs
like Hotel Night Auditor, Long-distance Telemarketer, or Foundation Repair
Technician. Saturday became like a refuge from the rest of the world. No one was
allowed to mess with my day off. It’s more than a little ironic that, now that
I’ve stumbled in to this profession which I absolutely love, the cost of
admission is foregoing the traditional weekend. Every Saturday from mid-March
until right before Christmas is dedicated on the calendar. I’ve become
accustomed to the off-kilter vibration that comes from going to bed too late
after Friday harvest and prep, and getting up WAY too early on market day. I
miss weddings, college football, soccer games, and beach trips. I nap like an
old man every Saturday afternoon.
The crazy thing is that it’s unequivocally worth it. Rather
than a loss, Saturday for me is the big payoff. It’s our chance after a week of
talking to plants to be the center of a conversation. We have a captive
audience. We get to be menu planners, stand-up comedians, life coaches and
garden councilors. I get paid not only in dollars, but also in priceless
vignettes that unfold every weekend right in front of me. Watching tomatoes I’ve
battled into existence over months fly off the shelf. The emotional battery
charge of smiling familiar faces. The kids that want to eat raw okra right from
your booth. The knowing glance of a fellow farmer on a slow dog day in August.
The other day I received a handwritten note from a market customer that simply
said: “My baby’s first solid foods came from your farm, thanks so much for
everything you do!” These moments are worth all the lazy Saturdays in the
world.
Selling at Market has created a passion for going a little overboard. Last year, we started bringing a pepper roaster (basically an excuse to safely light things on fire in public), which led to the development of the Pedal Powered Pea Pusher (an old exercise bike converted to fit a pea sheller), which in turn inspired the Solar Powered Market Mister (solar chicken fence charger + spray tank pump + greenhouse misters + cooler full of ice water= happy veggies, customers and farmers). We tried it out on that record-breaking day, and we were able to maintain a “cool” 85 degrees!
We are incredibly fortunate to be a part of one of the best
farmers markets in the southeast. I have participated in at least 5 other
markets during my farming career, and Peachtree Road Farmers Market outshines
them all. We have a great location. Our market manager is vigilant about
ensuring that the integrity of the market is upheld. We have a dynamite staff
of volunteers that donate over 150 hours of their time to the market each week.
There are weekly chef demos, musical performances, kids’ activities, costume
contests, festivals, fundraisers, and films. I’m proud that our farm is part of
Wholesome Wave Market, which doubles the value of each EBT/WIC dollar spent. To
date, according to market manager Lauren Carey, our market has provided over
$7,000 in Whole Wave dollars to help families who have a true need for clean,
locally-produced food. Our market also partners with Second Helpings, a local
food donation charity. Last year, fellow market vendors donated almost 3 tons of
produce and other food items which were distributed to area food
banks.
A nice booth and good management are only the baseline for a
successful farmers market. The real magic is in the community that supports it.
The fashionable knock on producer-only farmers markets is that they are elitist
and only reserved for a select few, an argument that is myopic and lazy. During
the past few years we’ve noticed a subtle shift in our customer base. A movement
that may well have been initiated by well-to-do foodies and cutting-edge
hipsters is burgeoning into a diverse and passionate community of local food
advocates. We can count among our regular customers- factory workers, public
school teachers, teenagers, college students, grandmothers on social security
and even a few grade-school kids. What’s more, sales are up this year. We are
averaging 20% more on a weekly basis, and we have topped our record day from
last year 6 times this year. That type of growth is clear evidence not only that
more people are interested in local food, but that whole groups of people are
willing to come together over it. It has been nothing short of incredible to
witness a community come into full bloom around local food. People come to the
market to talk with their neighbors and to make new friends. Families bond over
dinner plans. Folks tend to linger and let their kids play or their dogs sniff
around. Market goers seem to actively engage with each other in a way that is
almost foreign today. In a world that is plagued by ceaseless distraction, to
see people connect without a Wi-Fi signal is a real treat.
As we finished clearing our market space on that inferno day,
I noticed there were still 2 families hanging out. A couple of kids with melted
popsicle faces were yawning, and the parents were negotiating strollers, dogs,
and large baskets of produce. As they parted I heard one of them say “See you
guys here next weekend?” The other shouted across the now empty lot “We
wouldn’t miss it for the world.”
Neither would I.
