Lawrence Farmers' Market competing for national ranking

Posted by Chad Lawhorn July 30, 2009 at 11:20 a.m.

Lawrence Farmers' Market competing for national ranking

Another Lawrence institution is working to make the latest Top 20 poll, and this one doesn’t have anything to do with KU athletics.

The Downtown Lawrence Farmers' Market is battling to be named one of the 20 best farmers' markets in the country by the American Farmland Trust.

The nonprofit organization is running an online poll asking people to vote for their favorite farmers' market. Thus far, Lawrence is on the outside looking in.

As of Thursday morning, the Lawrence market had 73 votes, which left it 18 votes behind 20th ranked Santa Barbara Certified Farmers Market in Santa Barbara, Calif. Lawrence’s market is a full 1,024 votes behind the No. 1 ranked Davis Farmers Market in Davis, Calif.

People can vote online at www.farmland.org/vote.

Several other Kansas markets also are part of the competition. Thus far, the farmers' market in Emporia is ranked No. 16 in the medium-market category. Lawrence is competing in the large-market category because it has more than 55 vendors on a regular basis.

Voting will last for about another week, according to a press release from the group.

Copy and paste the link:

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ilovelucy (anonymous) says…

I'm really not knocking our Farmer's Market because I am a regular customer and love the variety. However, to be in the large city category is ridiculous.
You don't know what a good market is until you visit KC's, Denver's or Colorado Springs.
July 30, 2009 at 11:30 a.m.
jkealing (Jonathan Kealing) says…

lucy--
Des Moines has one of the best farmer's markets around as well. A great, great mix of fresh food and freshly prepared food that makes it worth getting up early on a Saturday morning.

Jonathan Kealing
Online editor
July 30, 2009 at 11:32 a.m.
JackRipper (anonymous) says…

Isn't it interesting that so many of the things that the "wackos" are pushing for in this town are the things that put Lawrence on the map! Free State, Wheatfields, the Farmer's Market, and no where is there mention that Lawrence is competing with dog food plants, warehouses, McDonalds, Best Buy in the rest of the country. Maybe if people would accept that what makes Lawrence so desirable to live in isn't housing sprawl out west and roping a fly by night corporation to town but the very things being encouraged by true small business people, not the Chamber.
July 30, 2009 at 11:51 a.m.
DougCounty (anonymous) says…

What I like best about the Lawrence Farmer's Market is that it is for local/regional producers only. That gives it a real down-home feel, with amazing variety, and, best of all, great people you get to know personally. When the average grocery-bought food has travelled an average of 1500 miles, it's a refreshing change to get the local stuff, which can be bought truly ripe/ready to prepare instead of having to sit on the shelf 3 days to ripen to edibility. Even better are some of those heirloom varieties where they were developed for flavor, not ship-ability!
July 30, 2009 at 12:20 p.m.
Machiavelli_mania (anonymous) says…

I have been to the Farmer's market once in two to three years. And then I can't find what I am looking for. They will never top Madison's Farmer's market (wisconsin). It rocks!!
July 30, 2009 at 12:48 p.m.
Machiavelli_mania (anonymous) says…

I think there is a lot of political (not party affiliations but political in influence) events that happen behind the scenes with the city's Market. What I don't get at the store, I buy at the northern produce-stand near the airport. There needs to be more produce stands independent of the Market to control prices.
July 30, 2009 at 12:52 p.m.
Machiavelli_mania (anonymous) says…

Where in Des Moines is the Farmer's Market? I could take it in sometime.
July 30, 2009 at 1:10 p.m.
jkealing (Jonathan Kealing) says…

Machiavelli--

It's on Court Avenue and several streets around it. It runs from 7 a.m. to noon:

http://www.desmoinesfarmersmarket.com/
July 30, 2009 at 1:13 p.m.
BrianR (anonymous) says…

Our Farmer's Market rocks.
July 30, 2009 at 1:14 p.m.
jkealing (Jonathan Kealing) says…

Multi-
You're right. No donation is needed to vote for the Lawrence Farmer's Market!

Jonathan Kealing
July 30, 2009 at 1:30 p.m.
Machiavelli_mania (anonymous) says…

JK, thanks much.
July 30, 2009 at 4:11 p.m.
consumer1 (anonymous) says…

I happen to like the size of our Farmers market. If it were a larger one, is would be less personalized. I like going there and talking to the folks who shop there. And... I like the granolas that run it. They are very nice folks.
July 30, 2009 at 5:10 p.m.
bearded_gnome (anonymous) says…

our farmers market is just plain wonderful!

dunno what 'mania has stuck in her head.

our farmers market: friendly people, great selection. just fun to go to.

***
please don't stone me: I shopped at the Davis farmers market when it was very young. local kiwi, peppers, corn, some other vegies. all was good. was on a sidewalk, along the side of a downtown park, usually not very many people selling.

so, sorry, I helped support the Davis market.

but how is *that* a large city farmers market???

I'll be voting for Lawrence, thanks.
July 31, 2009 at 12:13 a.m.
bearded_gnome (anonymous) says…

from the donation page that follows voting:
Every minute, two acres of farmland are paved over for development. In ten minutes, that could be the amount of acreage needed to support one of the vendors
at your farmers market for the whole season. That could be your entire farmers market—gone in under an hour!

---isn't this rather hyperbolic? seems extreme, at least if you're considering american farmland.
July 31, 2009 at 12:27 a.m.
Stain (anonymous) says…

I love the Farmer's Market but it is not one of the top 20. Not by a long shot.
August 13, 2009 at 8:29 a.m.
dudedog12 (anonymous) says…

this is old news, need to get it off of the site.
November 7, 2009 at 6:33 a.m.
dogbait (anonymous) says…

I have been to the Farmer's Market in KC and many of the produce I seen are from Mexico. I thought it was supposed to be from local growers? I try to buy organic and use the vendors at the farmers market but sometimes, I wonder if their produce is really homegrown.
March 24, 2010 at 9:43 p.m.
Pywacket (anonymous) says…

dogbait~ I just saw something in the KC Star about one KC-area Farmer's Market cracking down on sellers who peddle imported stuff without identifying it as such. Can't remember whether it was Lenexa, OP, Olathe, or ??? But apparently, some of them do try to police the vendors. Not sure about KC proper...

I love the Lawrence market but don't get there too often. By the time I drag myself out of bed on Saturday, I'm usually not up for a drive into town... and if I'm in town on Tues. or Thurs., I usually have to get home before it starts. I'll get back there one of these days... Maybe when more produce is ripening up.

Have any of you tried the Baldwin market? It's tiny but there's some good stuff there. One guy even makes breakfast burritos (you can tell him exactly what you want in yours) and sells slices of veggie or meat/cheese quiche. Really good, too. Then there are these two ladies who make wonderful pies! They have a Kentucky Derby pie, which is basically a pecan pie with the addition of chocolate. Pure heaven. Somebody else does cinnamon rolls, which is what the men in my family go for.

Worth a look-see if you're out tooling around on a Saturday morning.
May 28, 2010 at 11:11 p.m.