Best ways to support local markets essay sample

Local food systems are on the rise these days. While supermarket shelves are full of food that does not rot for days, consumers pay more attention to farmers’ products grown without pesticides. The credibility of local farmers rises fast in the era of GMO as healthy eaters cannot rely on food supplied by huge agricultural businesses. People always want to choose what is best for them, and local farmers once again meet the demand of picky eaters. Nevertheless, we cannot say that local farmers thrive at the moment. They still need a greater support of consumers to cover losses that inevitably occur in organic farming.

Purchasing from local farmers is the best way to support a natural food market driven by the basic principles of a free trade. Demand and supply directly determine the price and popularity of products, and there are no hidden schemes in trading with a local farmer. They supply vegetables that will be purchased by all means, otherwise, they face losses. Vegetables are not branded clothes from the last fall collection – once they have rotten, there is no way to utilize them. That is why, farmers carefully analyze the cost of growing plants, possible yield, and the demand in the market to decide how much input they shall do.

In some areas, we can help local farmers indirectly by eating at restaurants that purchase local food. We can also volunteer to support farmers in our neighborhood who certainly need more help when the harvest is ready to pick up or when pests attack new plants. Farmers usually do not have a lot of workers in their field, and a few occasional volunteers would do a great help.