Farmers’ markets - a foodie’s heaven
THERE’S no denying the popularity of farmers’ markets across Australia has increased dramatically but it’s been and remains a tough road, as naysayers, supermarket giants, local governments, regularity bodies and small business owners continue to thwart the entrepreneurial spirit of market creators and organisers.
Yet selling directly to the passing public is part of our Aussie heritage, if you consider the roadside stalls offering home- grown ‘picked- this-morning’ chokos, avocados, tomatoes, mandarins and chrysanthemums, alongside jars of home-made lemon butter, piccalilli and marmalade.
Or the pretty cupcakes, Victoria sponges and Neenish tarts, potted herbs and bunches of flowers laid out on trestle tables at fairgrounds and street corners. Without a doubt, these were the forerunners of farmers’ markets as we know them today.
Markets provide an environment for farmers and food producers to sell products of mostly farm-origin and associated value-added or processed artisan food direct to consumers with numerous benefits.
Enthusiastic following
By removing the middleman, producers achieve higher profits and consumers can buy fresher, better quality and well-priced produce in a more social environment with the added benefit of interaction between stallholders and shoppers; that includes the opportunity to taste and talk provenance.
Whether organic, bio-dynamic or conventional, fresh produce from farmers’ markets continues to attract a loyal and enthusiastic following.
The rising interest in organic food and its health, ethical and environmental benefits have also added to the popularity. Organic farming avoids pesticides and synthetic fertilisers
and promotes the humane treatment of farm animals and seafood, as well as the use of ecologically sustainable farming and fishing methods.
The force behind setting up the Noosa Farmers’ Market, arguably a first for the Sunshine Coast, is attributed to the Akubra-wearing Shane Stanley. The meat-and- three-veg straight- talker might have borrowed $1,000 and thought ‘foodie’ was a fancy irrelevant word but, with a bounty of support, his determination to succeed was undeniable. He had it in spades.
“Farmers need a shopfront, getting raw deals from the big boys should stop and, most of all, serious ways should be considered to make it viable for them to stay on the land, so the next generation is not bereft of fresh produce,” says Shane, who was brought up in country Queensland, and went to high school in Brisbane.
Honest philosophy
Seventeen years ago Shane received permission from local council to turn part of the AFL ground into the Noosa Farmers’ Market at the bustling heart of Weyba Road.
Foodies jostled 28 stallholders from sun-up to sell-out. He had a simple honest philosophy; if you couldn’t eat it, drink it, grow it or meet the producer who comes from the local region, there was no place for it.
The same applies today for the essential Sunday ritual
which often attracts around 100 stallholders, including originals such as Cedar Creek Farm and Auswana Coffee.
The seasons dictate an ever-changing array on tables laden with the freshest produce from the sea and land, heritage and heirloom varieties, seasonal foodie treasures, pantry staples, savour-on- the- spot fare and take-home menus.
There are artisan producers with olive oil, health foods, bread, cakes, mustards and preserves, plus landscape gardeners to inspire with seedlings, unusual herbs and fragrant bunches of flowers.
“There are a small number of farmers from further afield who have produce not grown around here; organic produce is naturally encouraged; we monitor products regularly, and ideally we’d like to introduce new labelling requirements including provenance.
“I want it to be 100 per cent transparent with all details. It’s about keeping it real and having integrity. As the market has evolved, we’ve also seen the need to recognise innovation such as the woodcarver who takes weeds and recycled timbers from farms and turns them into breadboards and kitchen utensils,” the father-of- two, says with the look of satisfaction.
Local ingredients
“And application after application arrives each week with the latest health craze, but we avoid all gimmicks. Products have to be produced and transported in a sustainable way, but even health and beauty products have to be of the highest quality and use local ingredients.
“Farmers supporting farmers is something that’s occurred due to demand from customers and farmers wanting
space at the market. We prefer the farmer to attend but sometimes that’s not possible, so a small co-op is formed, and the principal stallholder sells his own as well as other farmer’s produce which is usually from a smallholding.”
Forging a better way
In the future, Shane hopes farmers on small and large holdings co-exist more with each other. “The challenge is to get all parties involved from food production, land development, government, environmental bodies and real estate to farmers.
“As voters change, local councils react and knockback medium to large scale farming. Most councils are only interested in developing housing estates. I’ve seen councils around Australia including Noosa make uneducated, nonsensical decisions about the removal of large scale farming so land can be divided and sold. Soon we’ll be living off an import system full of chemicals. Local food production is being robbed with farmers made out to be the villains. Let’s forge a way forward. I live in hope.”
The future of the Noosa Farmers’ Market looks very rosy. It gained international and national recognition through TripAdvisor, and when Shane was appointed an Australian Ambassador for Queensland Produce by Tourism Australia, he promoted the market (and Noosa) to over 30 countries. These days, he works with Tourism Events Queensland (TEQ) promoting world-class seasonal fruit and vegetables. Noosa Farmers’ Market happens every Sunday from 7am to noon, at the Noosa AFL grounds, Weyba Road, Noosaville, on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast.