Some days I feel like I'm on a seesaw. The mission of Sappington Farmers Market is to provide healthy local foods to the consumer while providing a fair profit to the farmer. Sounds great, doesn't it? Well, it is great. But that doesn't make it easy.
Some weeks we are loaded with fresh, local produce that nobody seems to want. Then the next week, we get lots of new shoppers looking for all the produce we just had to throw away because nobody bought it. We're still trying to figure out this balancing act.
One thing I do know. When we get a really superior product like our free-range heritage chickens from Cord Jenkins or our source-verified all-natural beef from MO Best Beef Cooperative, it's going to cost more. And that's where you come in. If you're reading this, I know you're a supporter of the independent farmers who provide the great, fresh food you want to eat. Well, those farmers have a lot more costs associated with producing that fresh food than the large corporations do. None of them ask for a high profit. And neither do we. But the prices you see on these items are higher than conventional foods-or even higher than some more corporate and non-local organic items. We think there's a tremendous quality difference and that there's also a moral and philosophical issue involved. We think you agree. There's only one way to make it work. If we all want fresh, local food, we're going to have to pay for it.
In these very trying financial times, the decision of what to pay for your food, and how to prioritize your purchases is a very serious one. Let us know where you draw the line. Post on this blog or put notes in our suggestion box. I really do think we're the only store that really listens. Because we're the farmer-owned grocery store--and because all of us farmers who own the store are also consumer advocates. You can't beat that. Our goal is to provide what you want to eat. Let us know.
