The United States is celebrating the National Farmers Market Week that puts the spotlight on farmers markets across the nation. One of which is Camp Hill’s Farmers on Walnut that operates every Thursday at the parking lot of the Camp Hill borough building.
Farmers on Walnut had a rocky start. It began as a one-time event but was so successful that the organizers decided to continue the market at the Cleve J. Fredricksen library parking lot. But residents opposed the plan as they were concerned about traffic, parking and trash issues. The borough council rejected the application from the organizers to operate the market at the library.
In turn, the organizers looked for another location. Within weeks, they came up with a plan to operate the farmers market in the borough parking lot in Camp Hill. This year is the second successful season for the market. According to market manager Monica Rhodes, the demand for locally grown fresh produce is increasing.
Sellers at farmers markets assure their customers that their products are 100 percent organic. Free range chickens eat a balanced diet provided by nature instead of supplements through chemical engineering.
Communities should support local farmers markets because legislation is favoring big agriculture and chemical companies. Farmers growing their own food say that the biggest challenge they face is prices. They tend to be not competitive with supermarkets. But they said that most of their products are not found in the grocery store. Organizers of farmers markets said they will continue as the weather turns colder.
