We buy a lot of produce in our house.
Where we buy it depends a lot on where we are when we need it though we always prefer the produce at our local farmers’ market and nearby farms. Directly buying produce from our local farms yield the most amazing prices and makes for a fun outing. We once bought a 30lb bag of apples for a Halloween party for $15. All of the apples were fresh, tasty and crisp. More recently we bought 12 ears of corn for $2 from a roadside stand and it was delicious!
We have the benefit that our No Frills is frequently supplied by a local farm with the fruits and veggies that are in season and I am sure this is common at lots of your local grocery marts too. This allows us to conveniently pick it up while we are at the grocery store and also support our local farmers.
It’s always a fun outing when we go to a farmers’ market. They offer a wide variety of produce as well as fresh eggs (we happen live by an Amish community so we can get awesome eggs of any size by the double-dozen), breads, cheeses, jams and baked goods. As there are always oddball shops at the market like used books, furniture and junk sales it also give us something extra to browse through. While it is fun to look around it also makes us feel more like a part of our community.
As you may already know, a local bakery is a great place to pick up fresh bread, cookies, buns, donuts, etc. Our bakery here makes the best donuts I have ever tasted! They are SO good we sometimes buy from the day old rack. While not as fresh as the ones baked today they are still quite good and save some extra money. I have even brought home day old buns or breads that I managed to pick up for a good price and then froze them until I needed them.
Here are a few links to help you find a farmer’s market near you:
- http://www.farmersmarketscanada.ca
- http://www.farmersmarketsontario.com/
- http://www.traveltowellness.com/canada_farmers_markets
What are your thoughts on buying local? Are you a one stop shopper or would you drive around a bit to get the fresh local produce?
where i live ,the farmer’s market produce is very expensive which i don’t understand why, local should be cheaper not pricier!
I’m lucky enough to live in a rural area so farm fresh produce is available for most of the growing season. We try to buy most produce local when possible, even if it is a bit more money. I find the quality found at the farm where we buy from directly to be much better than from the grocery store and I feel better putting my money into my local economy. Farmers don’t make a great deal of money, you can’t blame them for trying to make a living.
I sometimes find the farmers market in Montreal a bit expensive, but the products are usually better.
I too think local should be cheaper, there should be more incentive.
I agree with parent and Lily. I’d love to buy all of my produce from local growers, but the prices here are much higher than in the store–often twice what I’d pay at No Frills. As much as I agree that the produce is better, my budget can’t accommodate that large of a jump. (We’ve just started growing our own veggies this year–still learning!)
I agree with the other posters. While I would love to buy local all the time, it is so pricey where I live, that it breaks the bank. And not to mention, the food goes bad faster.
I am trying more and more local tastes though…and I like how certain stores are advertising where they are getting their food from (Save On Foods)
Wow, I’d love to hear where you guys live. My farmer’s market has some awesome deals.
Fresh, ripe and fairly local is definitely the best! There is a HUGE taste difference between something ripened and harvested yesterday and something that was picked last week and ripened (aka changed colour) on the truck ride here. There’s no comparison to tomatoes from your own backyard. Unfortunately, my garden is limited to about a 2×5 patch of dirt + patio planters, so we’re pretty limited in what we can successfully grow, but we do try.
There’s a farmer’s veggie stand set up down the street from us 6 days a week in the summer in a fairly urban area, which is awesome. Otherwise, I try to focus on the the “Grown in Ontario” signs at the local grocery store.
What drives me crazy is when the Zehrs price sign says “Product of Canada”, but then the sticker label on my fruit specifies that it’s actually a “Product of USA” or Peru or wherever. I’ve noticed this bait & switch more and more and it’s getting getting upsetting. I realize sometimes they have supply shortages, but in the middle of the Canadian growing season, if they can’t get something domestic, they should definitely take down the “Product of Canada” sign.
Unfortunately in Canada, we like to eat “fresh” produce in the winter too, so then those white-in-the-centre, hot-house, shipped from a continent away & therefore tasteless tomatoes (& other veggies) are just about our only option. ugh… don’t even get me started on the Strawberries that have been coming this way! Monstrous! but pretty darn flavourless…
The market down town in ottawa is crazy ! They wanted $6 for 12 corn! I can get it at the store for $2!
I’d like to buy local but too expensive!
wow $6 for corn that insane! My local markets are very reasonable. They are either on par or cheaper than what the grocery store has. I love fresh produce. It tastes the best! I also like our local bake shop very YUMMY!
I don’t know what farmer’s markets and roadside stands you’re going to, but around here they’re incredibly expensive. Well worth it for the quality and freshness, but we don’t often see a dozen corn for cheaper than $5.50.
Living in Niagara, we have an incredible assortment of on-farm ‘markets’ that are very reasonable in price, as well as local weekly markets that offer a seasonal bounty of fruits, veggies and other goods. Going to the market on a Saturday is one of my favourite things to do. Some things are more expensive than the grocery store, I agree. What I do, however, is buy large quantities of seasonal produce to either preserve or can, and in this instance, the farmers market is generally the lowest cost option for what I use. I freeze berries as they come into season to keep us going all winter for smoothies and parfaits, and I make pickles and tomato sauce in jars for meals, as well as some jams. Right now, we’re getting ready to make some apple goodies (chutney and pies). Yum!
I live in a rural area, but we’re right on the shield and not much grows here… but some things do.
We have a local Farmer’s Market that sells fresh produce dirt cheap to supply all the low-income families healthy food.
It’s not a road-side stand, it’s a building like a grocery store open all-year round. The owners are great. 🙂
The local market in the closest city is very expensive. I have also gone to the byward market in Ottawa–and well, prices reflect the “big city” spend more to ‘go green’ attitude! So we grow many vegetables ourselves. Now that is really local. (No coupons required!)
I find local is way more expensive than fruit and veggies from farther away, which doesnt make sense.
Seriously? You people dont understand why prices are lower at magor grocery chains from mass producers, than local markets from self employed farmers????????? ~Shakes head~
I’ve had some pretty good deals at the Byeward market downtown Ottawa, like 6 big/medium size cucumbers for $1, 3 brocolis for £2 or 75c each. Other than that, the rest are pretty much expensive.
I would love to buy local, but I can’t afford to! Farmers Markets in Calgary are easily double the cost of the grocery store and the quality is no better. I recently visited 2 of the biggest Farmers Markets here hoping to find some deals on produce for canning….what a wasted trip it was. Some things were even more than double the grocery store prices. If the quality was there and the cost were comparable I would shop the Farmer’s Markets. But when what I buy from Walmart for half the price or less looks just as good as the Market(and is only a 5 minute drive) then sorry, I don’t have money to throw away.
Lots on roadside stands here in Chatham Kent & the prices aren’t too bad..,$3 for 6 corn but its so tasty!!
Also enjoy the Farmers Market in Ridgetown, ON too! Local farmers sell their produce & homemade jams, bake goods etc.
*Lots of…
I shop at our local Farmer’s Market to support the local farmers and because it’s convenient for me. I try to think that I offset the cost of paying more for local produce with saving money on the mass produced products that I purchase i.e. toilet paper, etc. // I’m making an effort to try to reduce my carbon footprint by purchasing more local produce.
Admittedly the farmer’s market is more expensive if you buy from the local farmers. There are a lot of booths that sell non-local produce there that are much cheaper i.e. a bundle of 5 English cucumbers for $2 or a container of strawberries for $2 but the local is always better quality. I’ve gotten to know the local vendors though and who has the better prices. I also try to reason that the people who pick and process the fruit need to make a decent wage and the farmers need to make a profit so that they can stay in business. Food that comes from poorer countries pay less for labour so of course the produce will cost less. I just make sure that when I’m paying more for something that it’s actually worth it.
I’m a beekeeper and I can’t begin to tell you the benifits of buying local honey. Its well worth the couple extra $.
-Local honey has traces of local pollen which act as an innoculation to people with allergies.
-The bees are responsible for pollinating all farmers crops (except for wheat, corn and rice which are pollinated by the wind)
Billy Bee honey for example is a blend of Canadian, Argentina, Russian, and Chinese honey. It use to say this right on the label. Now it says Product of Canada because it is made up of 40% canadian honey which is enough to say its a product of Canada.
Bees are medicated every spring and fall with harsh chemicals that kills mites (fleas that are killing bees world wide). If honey is collected from the hive during this time the insecticide would be found in the honey that is processed for people. These 2nd world countries don’t care they just need to make profits quickly and easily.
I don’t get a chance to go to the farmers’ market, but luckily in my city, the big grocery stores often carry locally grown products, so that’s really very nice, they are at competitive prices as well.