Every day, Americans load their grocery store carts with waxy fruits, hormone-injected meats and artificially colored cereals with enough preservatives to make them last for months. Customers enter and exit through the sliding doors in a factory-like fashion solely for transactional purposes.

Alternatively, farmers markets offer a unique experience where shoppers can meet their neighbors, speak directly with vendors about fresh produce and support local communities with every purchase. The bustling stands and lively atmosphere cultivate a pleasant environment that traditional grocery stores can’t compete with.

Before high-speed transportation and refrigeration became the norm in the 1950s, farmers markets were an integral aspect of American food consumption and production. Now, markets are a stand-in alternative to grocery stores for weekend shoppers in the U.S. — a once-a-week luxury rather than an essential destination. Through policy support and financial accessibility, Americans can reap both the economic and dietary benefits of a cultural shift around nutrition. Americans should consider farmers markets as a fundamental aspect of daily life and the U.S. food system. 

Ultra-processed foods (UPFs) fill up grocery store shelves and account for 60% of American adults’ diets and nearly 70% of children’s. While many Americans opt for these products due to their convenience and affordability, these foods contain high amounts of salt, sugar and unsaturated fat, providing excess calories combined with a lack of essential nutrients. 

Researchers have directly linked UPFs to over 30 adverse health parameters including mental, respiratory, cardiovascular, gastrointestinal and metabolic health risks, and even increase mortality and cancer rates. The U.S. not only leads the world in UPF consumption, but also has the highest diabetes rates with 175.9 cases per 1000 people — a correlation that results from harmful ingredients in UPFs such as refined sugars.

Philadelphia-based pediatrician Catherine Bonita says that UPFs have a wide range of health disadvantages and can lead to further complications down the line. 

“UPFs are known to cause harm to the gut microbiome, leading to chronic inflammation and disruptions to the gut-brain axis,” Bonita said, “which some nutrition experts say can contribute to depression and anxiety.”

Instead of encouraging a predominantly ultra-processed diet, farmers markets revolve around seasonal diets, which tend to be higher in nutrients like antioxidants, vitamins and fiber. Seasonal eating can also have a positive impact on the environment: shipping fresh berries in the winter is more expensive than shipping in-season produce, like broccoli or leeks. This cycle reduces carbon emissions from transportation by cutting down travel distances and plane shipments, with 60% of vendors traveling less than 20 miles to markets. 

Mitchell Berliner, co-founder of the Bethesda Central Farmers Markets, says that even “organic” foods found in supermarkets can be misleading.

“If you bought organic arugula from Whole Foods, there’s a good chance that’s going to be coming from California,” said Berliner. “So, at best, it’s going to be 7-10 days before you eat it. Even if it’s certified organic, it’s not going to be as nutritious.”

Farmers markets also generate less physical waste than traditional grocery stores. Montgomery County operates a food waste program at multiple farmers markets across the county, turning scraps into compost and fertilizer in an attempt to combat the estimated 97,000 tons of annual county-wide food waste. As a partner in the composting program, the Bethesda Farmers Market further mitigates waste by donating unsold food to Manna Food Center, the largest food bank in Montgomery County. Vendors sell products in minimal packaging, as opposed to the overload of shrink wrap and plastic packaging used in grocery stores. Additionally, shoppers only buy a few days’ worth of food at farmers markets, creating less spoilage at home.

Farmers markets allow shoppers to speak directly with vendors about how they process food from start to finish — an opportunity often lost in national grocery store chains. Junior Maria Caballero works at the largest USDA certified organic farm in Montgomery County: The Farm at Our House. The farm sells produce through Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) food shares — a subscription-based program that allows consumers to purchase a share of a local farm’s harvest in advance. The Farm at Our House also sells produce through the Bethesda Farmers Market, as well as other markets in the DMV area. 

Caballero says that working at the farm was a valuable experience that widened her perspective on the difference in nutritional value between store-bought and home-grown food.

“The produce from farmers markets is usually picked within a day or two, so I feel like it keeps more of the flavor in the nutrients,” Caballero said. “We don’t use synthetic fertilizers or chemicals to control weeds so it’s all done by manual labor, and then after harvesting, we hand-wash everything.”  

Unfortunately, there are various structural barriers, such as the uneven distribution of markets and limited operating hours, that prevent Americans from having widespread access to farmers markets. Until communities address food insecurity and the deficit of farmers’ markets, America’s health epidemic will continue to worsen. Not only do a third of U.S. counties suffer from the absence of a farmers market, but the percentage of black residents and residents living in poverty is negatively associated with farmers markets per capita. 

Most farmers markets in the U.S. are largely unaffordable, attracting primarily white and affluent shoppers and reinforcing cycles of inaccessibility in America’s food systems.

Bonita says that people in low-income “food apartheid” areas opt for products high in preservatives due to their economic viability.

“In these areas, fast-food establishments tend to concentrate,” Bonita said, “and it is often easier and more affordable to buy a Happy Meal for your child than it is to buy fresh apples.”

In Europe, shopping at markets is an integral aspect of daily life. European farmers markets offer an expansive range of products, from charcuterie to specialized spices, that allow shoppers to find everything they need instead of relying on other stores for necessities. These markets serve as epicenters of community, providing a common ground outside of the workplace and home where neighbors can connect over locally-grown produce, share recipes and sustain traditions that prioritize nutritious food. The Bethesda Farmers Market, for instance, extends its reach beyond just food. Through collaboration with various sponsors, they host a variety of events and fundraisers such as NIH volunteers, Red Cross blood drives and the BCC jazz band — all of which promote community and wellbeing. 

Since moving to the U.S. from Spain, Caballero says she noticed a difference in attendance at farmers markets.

“In Madrid, there’s a lot of outdoor farmers markets,” Caballero said. “People in Spain go more often and buy less amounts of food. In the U.S. when you go to farmers markets, it’s a weekly market, so you probably would stock up and get more stuff.”

The primary issue preventing Americans from implementing European food systems comes down to lifestyles. Americans work relentlessly, an average of 1,811 hours per year compared to Europeans’ 1,528 hours. Due to time constraints, working Americans cited convenience as the most valuable factor regarding lunchtime choices. Convenience often signifies preservatives and additives, which lead to health issues like diabetes and heart disease. The U.S. spends nearly 18% of its GDP on healthcare, yet Americans have a lower life expectancy of 78.4 years than other first-world countries like France at 83 years. Americans must consider the tradeoff of farmers markets’ higher upfront costs versus the long-term impact of healthcare expenses. 

However, there are ways to combat the financial inaccessibility of farmers markets. Many markets, including the Bethesda Farmers Market, offer food stamps known as SNAP benefits to low-income families to encourage healthy eating. Additionally, the implementation of farmers markets in food swamps has seen favorable outcomes. The Cornell Cooperative Extension (CCE) of Niagara County, New York created a Veggie Van Program that brings locally grown produce to neighborhoods lacking access to nutritious food. Since its launch, the program has provided over 10,000 pounds of fresh produce to residents, with about 10% of their daily customers being first-time participants. Programs such as the CCE demonstrate that communities can tackle food swamps and financial obstacles through a systematic approach. Farmers markets also economically benefit communities in several ways by supporting small businesses and creating jobs for vendors, market managers, transportation and other staff.

Farmers markets serve as town squares, cultural hubs and reminders of the intrinsic connection between health and natural food. With a push in community effort through public health advocacy and education on their nutritional benefits, farmers markets can become more than just a once-a-week luxury. By hosting markets multiple times a week, residents can have more consistent access to fresh food and opportunities to engage directly with local farmers. Communities and local governments need to prioritize funding for farmers markets to fight America’s diet-related health epidemic, prevent food waste and support local economies.

“We have all these wonderful farmers, all this seasonally fresh-picked fruit,” Berliner said. “People just don’t take advantage of it.”