Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food

ARTICLE BY VANELIS RIVERA | PHOTOGRAPHY BY ANDREW BAILEY

Farmers’ markets have deep roots in our history. But what used to be essential to daily life can now easily be substituted with an online order and curbside pickup. Though our culture of convenience has snowballed into many forms and for a plethora of reasons, over 20 years ago the ancient practice of the market was born again, inspiring new generations of makers to sell fresh, local produce, meats, and baked goods. Consequently, the growing pool of one-of-a-kind products has promptly encouraged locals to seek quality ingredients that not only economically benefit their area, but also small farming families. The expanse of agricultural land surrounding north Louisiana has allowed markets in the area to increase in size and vendors. One of the most steadily growing in the area is the Ruston Farmers Market, bringing high quality, fresh and locally-grown goods to the people of Lincoln and surrounding parishes.
In the fall of 2007, a small group of women in a book club wondered why Ruston did not have access to local fresh produce. Wanting to get something started, they put out flyers around town, asking for interested volunteers and vendors. By May 2008, with permission from the City of Ruston, the market launched in a public parking lot at the corner of Railroad Avenue and South Monroe. “The city of Ruston, realizing the importance of the farmers market and the value to the community, allowed us to start using that building on 220 E Mississippi,” informs Marcia Dickerson, President of the Board of Directors of North Louisiana Farm Fresh, the umbrella organization that operates the Ruston Farmers Market. With a new, spacious building housing more vendors and incorporating utilities lacking in the original location, like a large fan and bathrooms, the group was able to focus on becoming better established. In 2010, North Louisiana Farm Fresh Inc. (NLFF) was incorporated in Louisiana and a board was formed from volunteers, vendors, health professionals and other interested individuals. With the support of the NLFF, last year the market was able to put their Market Manager Tom Faber on full-time, in order to better facilitate the operations and use of the market, as well as offer agriculture consultation and hands-on administration of the market. Thanks to their exponential development, their vendors experienced a record setting $307, 000 in sales last year.
Beyond the space, vendors and exciting products, the market is a “wonderful social gathering for folks in Ruston,” says Dickerson. “It’s one of the few free, family friendly, all-community places that you can go and spend the morning.” Even if you’re not planning to purchase too much, you can still enjoy listening to live music, catching up with neighbors, or getting something to eat. “I know that it’s my favorite destination on Saturday morning, without a doubt,” says Dickerson. Melissa Martin from Holly Creek Farm looks forward to Saturdays, when she’s able to see her friends, talk to customers and glance at her kids running around with their friends, the children of other vendors. “It’s energizing and exhausting, It’s a good day,” she says.
Because Louisiana has two growing seasons, the market is able to have fresh produce year round. Of course, “different growing seasons have different levels of produce available,” says Dickerson. The board seeks to educate the public about the significance of buying produce during its growing season. That means if you go to the market during February and ask about tomatoes, they’re not going to have any, as the beloved red berry doesn’t grow in Louisiana during that time. “If you get a tomato at the grocery store in February, it has traveled a very very long distance and has probably been picked long before it should have been,” warns Dickerson. In order to have a more immersive experience at the market and further learn about the food that will end up in your home, Dickerson encourages people to ask vendors about their product. “Many of us would find it strange or rude to walk into a restaurant and start questioning people about their product,” she says, but at the Ruston market, vendors are eager to dish about their items. For instance, when chickens go into the molting phase when they don’t lay eggs, and the market consequently is in short supply, she learned about the use of duck and turkey eggs from the folks at Current Farms, based in Monroe. At first, she hadn’t the slightest ideas what to do with duck eggs, let alone how they taste or whether you could eat them like regular eggs. They didn’t receive her questions as a challenge to them or as queries based on suspicion. She learned most bakers prefer duck eggs because they make baked goods bigger and “loftier” than chicken eggs. Martin gets a lot of people asking about whether they harvest the animals on their farm or what chickens lay what color eggs, “which is fine, because a lot of people have never seen a blue egg or speckled egg before,” she says.
The Ruston market runs by charging vendors a fee to participate, and whatever they sell is theirs to keep. “What we do like is for those local dollars to generally stay in our community,” says Dickerson. Because most vendors live within a “tight radius” of Lincoln Parish, if a vendor hypothetically sells five-hundred dollars worth of produce, some of that revenue is spent buying groceries in Ruston, at local restaurants and local shops. Over the years, they’ve accumulated a variety of vendors. Produce vendors, like Mack’s Tomatoes & Produce, specialize in high quality, delicious fruits and vegetables. However, if you haven’t guessed already, they are most notorious for their vine-ripened tomatoes, which are available from June until December. Located in Pioneer, LA, this family farm spans two generations, and what began as a 1,000 tomato plant venture has flourished into a large operation that services northeast Louisiana. Aside from market sales, they also sell at their home, as well as wholesaling to Brookshires and Super 1 Foods. They pride themselves in their tomatoes’ distinct flavor profile, resulting from the soil of West Carroll Parish. Michael and Ylane Albritton are happy to answer any questions and offer tips and hacks about growing tomatoes. After all, the more we grow in our gardens, the more we have to give to our neighbors.
Many vendors pride themselves in their variety of fruits and vegetables, but there are a few diversified livestock farms offering premium meat, such as Holly Creek Farms. Three years into selling at the market, they offer eggs, pork, lamb and some veggies. “It was a huge learning curve to go from selling privately to making sure their products were packaged according to agriculture laws and state mandates,” says Martin. The most successful aspect of their farm has been the pork, a result of her asking for pigs for her birthday. Smith Family Farms, located near Lake Bistineau, raises beef, cows, sheep and pigs. Their livestock are always roaming pastures of seasonal grasses and are offered grain from self-feeders. Their aim is to maintain healthy livestock by emphasizing a low-stress environment.
The market also has what are called “value added foods,” which is when someone takes a food product and adds to it, like jellies and pickles. John Stack, owner of Fuego Dulce, has been at the market since its inception. He went from selling his product in mason jars at a parking lot, to having over twenty different products, two of which you can now get at Super 1. Some of his top sellers are his Sweet-Fire Habañero Sauce, Sweet-Fire Cayenne Sauce, and Sweet-Fire Ghost Pepper Sauce. Though the market’s primary focus is their food merchants, they have an increasing population of craft vendors selling handmade woodwork, soaps and other skincare products. “One of the things that I have been particularly proud of is that [the market] has been an incubator for small businesses over the years,” says Dickerson, mentioning Railway Coffee, whose original owners began selling coffee beans and cold brew out of the back of their minivan. “That allowed them to connect with customers and really try to develop their products in a way that helped them establish a brick and mortar store later,” she says.
The unique platform of a farmers market serves a couple of purposes. “First, I always have the confidence that the food I get there is healthy and safe,” says Dickerson. She knows how the hens that laid the eggs are raised, as well as how the livestock is tended. “I know that food is healthy and safe for my family.” Quite significantly, the market is also accessible to members of the community, who might have food insecurity. The market is close to food deserts within Lincoln Parish, and they accept SNAP dollars and have a grant from the Lincoln Health Foundation allowing them to match SNAP dollars and double people’s money: “So for someone who is struggling with food insecurity, you get twice as much for your money in buying food at the farmers market.” Even vendors find it has widened their reach. “It’s been a doorway to local food sources and people we didn’t know and demographics that we didn’t have access to,” says Martin.
Dickerson is particularly proud that they have been one of the few markets to stay open at the beginning of the pandemic. She’s grateful to Faber for having the confidence to take the market online, allowing a curb-side pick-up system that gave their customers a safe and easy option to get good, healthy food. Unlike grocery stores, they didn’t have to set limits on their products. Though the market is back live, with safety precautions set by the state, they have kept their online orders open, switching the order date to Tuesdays.
Having a relationship to the food in your area allows you to keep the food chain close to you. “That’s the beauty of farmers markets. It’s like a dating service: here are the farmers, what they have, what they are bringing to the table,” says Martin. The Ruston Farmers Market has proven to be a diverse community, and there are still plans for further progress and community outreach. Taking part in a local farmers market is the ultimate display of regional and parish pride, so grab your mesh bags and make it part of your Saturday morning!
The Ruston Farmers Market is located at 220 East Mississippi Ave. Ruston, LA 71270. Follow them on Facebook or visit their website to learn more about their vendors and/or how you can become a vendor on a weekly or seasonal basis.