The current systems and management of farmers markets have a major impact on farmers’ profitability as well as their life satisfaction. This project, utilizing a qualitative study, aims to understand how farmers and farmers market managers interact and work together to shape the outcome of producers’ success. With support from the farmers advisory board and consent from market managers, we will select fifteen markets in eight cities across Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana and Mississippi.
Background:
Farmers’ markets are an important subset of direct market agriculture. They provide the platform for farmers who are interested in providing clean food, those who want to engage with local food systems approaches, and those who want to utilize environmentally conscious methods when farming. Farmers’ markets are managed by market managers ranging from nonprofit organizations, to city employees, part-time managers, and vendor associations. Due to this, the outcome of farmers, their success and failure, is directly related to how market managers operate. This research will work with the Farmers Advisory Board for recruitment of relevant participants. We want to reveal the full extent of how the structures within farmers’ markets influence farmers satisfaction (or lack thereof). This, in turn, will be used to recommend how farmers markets can better serve farmers and support sustainable food systems.
Objectives:
This project seeks to understand how farmers define their economic goals, their level of satisfactions/happiness, and how this overall influences their decisions to participate in farmers markets. This will provide a comprehensive understanding of farmers needs so that farmers market managers and similar organizations can better serve farmers in their endeavors.
Approach/Methods
This study uses a mixed-methods research design using interviews, observations, surveys, annual listening sessions, and content analysis of market organizations. In total we will include at least 75 farmers, 15 farmers market managers, 8 farmers advisory board members. Local listening sessions have flexibility; we hope to hold 12 over the course of the study, with a projected minimum of 12 per session, and a maximum of 30 participants per session. Therefore, we project at least 242, and up to 458 participants.
We do not plan to share data for use outside of this project. Transcripts and analysis notes will be kept for five years and then destroyed. Only PIs and Co-Is will have access to the data.