Upcoming

April 23rd, 2024

1:00pm — 2:00pm

Twenty-Second Monthly members & friends meetup

NEW YORK FARMERS MARKET NETWORKING SESSION
Facilitated by Jack Riffle, The Farmers Market Federation of New York
April 23th, 2024, 1:00 pm — 2:00 pm

Join us for an informal networking session where you'll be free to ask all of your farmers market-related questions!

• Farmers Market Logistics

• SNAP at Your Market

• SNAP Incentives

• Vendor Management

Additionally, come with topic ideas for future meet ups! 

See you there,
Jack

Attend the Meetup Here

Meetup Archive

twenty-fiRst Monthly Members & Friends Meetup

“IT’S OKAY TO SAY I’M NOT OKAY” : STRESS IN THE AGRICULTURAL COMMUNITY
March 26th, 2024

Stress is a natural part of life, but for farmers and the agricultural community, it often comes with unique challenges. Studies show that rates of daily stress and the suicide rate among farmers exceed those of the general population. It's crucial to address this issue head-on — how do we manage and respond to stress? How do we know when we need help for ourselves? What signs, symptoms, and risk factors do we notice in ourselves or others?

Twentieth Monthly Members & Friends Meetup

SEXUAL HARASSMENT AND THE FARMERS MARKET
February 27th, 2024
with Julia Day, Regional Director for the Rochester/Syracuse Office, New York State Division of Human Rights

You hear about sexual harassment in the news, but what does it mean to you as a farmers market manager? Learn about how issues of sexual harassment can affect market managers, vendors, and customers at farmer markets.

We will also cover how to draft a formal policy against sexual harassment, plus the options and outcomes available to sexual harassment victims. There will be opportunities for questions.

Nineteenth Monthly Members & Friends Meetup

MANAGEMENT STYLES, VENDOR CLUSTERS, AND MARKET COHESION: LEARNING FROM QUALITATIVE RESEARCH ON FARMERS MARKET ORGANIZATIONS
January 23rd, 2024 @ 1:00pm

How does your approach as a market manager shape your vendors’ experiences? This presentation shares early results from two qualitative studies on how farmers market management impacts vendor economic viability and quality of life. Through examples and stories from the southeastern US, anthropologists Hilary B. King and Andrea Rissing will cover different market management styles, activities, and associated vendor responses, review market management priorities around which vendors cluster and split, and share recommendations for clarifying your own market style to increase market cohesion.

Eighteenth Monthly Members & Friends Meetup

RESEARCH ON CUSTOMER SPENDING AT NEW YORK FARMERS MARKETS
November 28th, 2023
with Matt LeRoux, Extension Associate, Cornell University

Electronic Point-of-Sale (POS) systems, such as the commonly used Square app, present farmers market managers and vendors with an opportunity to gather data and learn from customer shopping habits. In turn, this data can be analyzed to reveal growth opportunities. POS provides a quick and easy means for markets and farms to assess their marketing performance, make changes, and test for results. Matt LeRoux and Todd Schmit at Cornell’s Agricultural Marketing Research Program are working with NY’s farms to collect data using POS in direct-to-consumer channels and continue to recruit more farms for the project. 

Grocery stores have long used scanner data to inform marketing techniques. Now farmer-friendly point-of-sale software gives managers and farmers similar potential to collect detailed sales data. Learn how Cornell researchers are using this technology to study consumer spending and inform marketing opportunities for farms to increase daily sales. Leave this workshop with specific takeaways and tips for your own marketing and sales methods.

SEVENTEENTH Monthly Members & Friends Meetup

NY FARMNET — RESOURCE GUIDE FOR STRUGGLING FARMERS
October 24th, 2023
with Adam Howell, Director of Outreach at NY FarmNet

Farming is hard. Personal and financial stress can sometimes seem omnipresent. Luckily, there are free resources available to farmers seeking assistance. Farmers market managers can safeguard their most valuable asset, farm vendors, by directing them to helpful resources when they need support.

NY FarmNet is a unique program in NYS that provides free, confidential support for farmers to help with any number of issues they may face. NY FarmNet approaches farm assistance and support through a “holistic” model by deploying a consultant team representing both the personal and financial aspects of every challenge. NY FarmNet is totally free, confidential, and available to any farmer, farm family, or agribusiness in NYS. Our consultants provide assistance in-person, and on the farm for as long as the client requires assistance.

Adam Howell presents NY FarmNet and how it can help markets support their farmers during times of personal and financial crisis.

Sixteenth Monthly Members & Friends Meetup

WHAT ROLE CAN MARKETS PLAY IN THE SALE OF CANNABIS?
September 26th, 2023
with John Kagia, Director of Policy at NYS Office of Cannabis Management

This summer, the NYS Office of Cannabis Management (OCM)  issued a press release announcing the opportunity for cannabis to take part in farmers markets across the state. Cannabis growers were thrilled and called their local farmers markets to ask about joining to sell direct to consumers. However, market managers were confused and did not understand what their role could or should be with regard to the sale of cannabis.

In response to the confusion, the Federation contacted the OCM and spoke with John Kagia, Director of Policy, to get some clarity. We learned that the use of the term “farmers markets” was misleading and that the OCM is now calling these events Cannabis Growers Showcases (CGS) rather than farmers markets. But the ability to host a CGS is a bit confusing.

In an effort to bring clarity to the situation, John Kagia, Director of Policy at the NYS OCM, has agreed to be a guest speaker at our September Monthly Meetup. His presentation aims to provide an understanding of what a CGS entails, eligibility requirements for vendors, and the potential role farmers markets can play in the sale of cannabis.

Fifteenth Monthly Members & Friends Meetup

PREPARING MARKETS FOR POTENTIAL VIOLENCE
August 29th, 2023
with Jose Dos Santos, Protective Security Advisor, US Dept. of Homeland Security

Mass shootings and hate crimes seem to be happening on a daily basis, all across the country. Every event, whether a social gathering, a school, or a concert, needs to be aware of the possibility that such tragic events as these may happen at any of these public events.

But are farmers markets exempt from such criminal acts? No, they are not! We have been promoting farmers markets as a welcoming gathering place for everyone, but that does not make markets exempt from the possibility of such a tragic occurrence at a farmers market.

Jose Dos Santos, Protective Security Advisor of the US Department of Homeland Security, will help us to understand such situations and to be prepared so that we can do our best to keep everyone safe – staff, farmers, and vendors, as well as our customers. From preparation to prevention to responding to an actual criminal act, Mr. Dos Santos will walk us through what we need to do for everyone’s ultimate safety.

Fourteenth Monthly Members & Friends Meetup

FARMERS MARKETS AS ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDS
July 25th, 2023
with Kelly Sauve and Judy Ward, Ithaca Farmers Market

One of the revelations of the Consumer Survey done in 2018 under USDA’s SARE program s that consumers look to farmers markets as a key contributor to environmental stewardship.  They view farmers markets as a leading example for the community in promoting conservation practices.

To endure that your market matches the expectations of consumers on this issue, you must promote, educate and practice sound environmental practices. The Ithaca Farmers Market has always been a leader in this area but has now gone a step further with a new grant opportunity from the Park Foundation that is allowing them to expand their efforts. Kelly Sauve, the market and organization’s manager, along with Judy Ward, the market’s Zero Waste Coordinator will share their story on building an environmentally sustainable farmers market and their experiences along the way, on the July Monthly Members and Friends Meetup.

view the chat transcript

Thirteenth Monthly Members & Friends Meetup

GROWN BY PLATFORM — GETTING READY FOR ONLINE SNAP
June 27th, 2023
with Mike Parker, Grown By

Many farmers markets have created an online presence to help their farmers reach customers who do not participate in face to face markets. The online market reaches those who prefer to shop online rather than in person, those who cannot make it to the market during its normal operating markets, or those who prefer to shop for locally grown foods, but, for various reasons, do not want to shop in person. This online shopping platforms have proved to be successful in adding sales to their participating farmers.

But these online markets do not currently reach SNAP customers, as USDA FNS did not allow SNAP to be used in any way other than a face to face experience. In the last couple of years, USDA FNS has been working with MarketLink to build the processes to allow SNAP online. The purpose was to be able to bring direct marketing farmers and farmers markets into online SNAP.

Grown By is online market that was developed in New York State by Mike Parker and his partners. This platform has worked directly with MarketLink and USDA to allow users of the Grown By platform to accept SNAP for purchases as soon as USDA gives the okay.

Mike Parker presents Grown By and how it can help markets and farmers reach new customers to purchase local foods online.

View the Chat Transcript

Twelfth Monthly Memebers & Friends Meetup

FOOD SAFETY CONCERNS FOR FARMERS MARKETS
May 30th, 2023
with Betsy Bihn, Director of the Insitute for Food Safety at Cornell AgriTech

VIEW THE CHAT TRANSCRIPT

eleventh monthly members & friends meetup

PREPARING MARKETS TO ACCEPT ONLINE SNAP PAYMENTS
April 25th, 2023

UPDATES on SNAP Online for Farmers and Farmers Markets
Farmers have always been innovative in ensuring their farm’s success. Whether it is diversifying their crop base, learning and employing new techniques, or branching out into new marketing channels, the Coronavirus pandemic really brought out this trait. Direct marketing farmers were forced to look for new ways to reach their customer base to ensure their farm products were sold and that farm revenue was secure. Many farmers moved into the online marketplace to reach customers who were staying at home or who were accustomed to shopping for their needs online. This method helped to ensure the farm’s viability during hard times.

Now farmers are finding that online markets continue to help them to expand their customer base, as more and more people shop for their needs online rather than face-to-face in farmers markets or big box stores. The use of online markets continues, even with the lessening of the pandemic. 

But one customer base has not represented in the online commerce world – the customer that depends on SNAP for their food purchasing. SNAP has always required a face-to-face transaction where the customer presented their SNAP card, input their PIN, and the seller swiped the card for payment. 

USDA has recognized that SNAP customers need and want the ability to shop online and has contracted with NAFMNP’s MarketLink and Novo Dia Group to build the framework for online SNAP for farmers. The ability to accept SNAP online for direct marketing farmers is about to be a reality!

View the Chat Transcript

Tenth Monthly Members & Friends Meetup

ADA REQUIREMENTS & FARMERS MARKETS
March 28th, 2023
with Stephanie Woodward

Farmers Markets strive to be a valuable source of locally grown foods for all community members.  We strive to be representative of all in the community. But sometimes we don’t understand exactly what we need to do to represent all the needs of the various groups of customers that we hope will participate in our markets.

Stephanie Woodward is an Attorney and Disability Rights Advocate. She is also an avid farmers market shopper. Stephanie will help us understand the needs of the disabled members of our communities and what we can do to make their farmers markets more welcoming. After her presentation, Stephanie will take your questions and provide insightful and helpful answers.

View the chat transcript

(Rescheduled) Seventh Monthly Members & Friends Meetup

FOOD SAFETY REGULATIONS
February 28th, 2023

View the chat transcript

Ninth Monthly Members & Friends Meetup

RESPONDING TO NEGATIVE PUBLICITY
January 24th, 2023
Lindsay Wilcox, CenterMost Marketing

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Eighth Monthly Members & Friends Meetup

KEEPING EVERYONE SAFE FROM PETTY CRIME
November 22nd, 2022
with Jim Farr

Sooner or later, every market will experience petty crime — shoplifting, pickpocketing, and cash box theft. But while it may be considered petty crime, it has a significant impact on vendors and their consumers. No one would be comfortable shopping in a location that is not considered to be safe — but who is responsible for watching out and preventing this activity? It is EVERYONE's responsibility! Vendors and managers alike all need to keep their eyes open and be protective of one another.

Jim Farr of the Rochester Public Market has had to deal with these issues at his market. Jim will be joining us to share his experiences and lead a discussion on how we can spot such behaviors, what clues to watch for, and how we can help to prevent such criminal activity in our markets.

View the Chat Transcript

Seventh Monthly Members & Friends Meetup

FOOD SAFETY REGULATIONS
October 25th, 2022

Rescheduled to February 2023

Sixth Monthly Members & Friends Meetup

HINTS & TIPS FOR SUCCESSFUL MARKETING
September 27th, 2022

Advertising is key to reaching a broad customer base for a farmers market. So we all look to social media, press releases, and other forms of advertising to reach as many people as possible to visit the farmers market. But some markets are more successful with their advertising than others. What are the differences? What are some doing so right that others are failing at?

Lindsay Wilcox, from CenterMost Marketing, will host a discussion at our September Monthly Meetup to provide us with some helpful hints and tips to make our advertising and outreach campaigns more successful in bringing more customers to our markets. She has been successful at advertising for many markets in New York, as well as other agricultural ventures. So, whether it’s Facebook, Instagram, or our local newspapers, Lindsay has a wide range of suggestions to help us. Once she has completed her presentation, she will be open to answering your questions. Bring your examples, your concerns, and your questions to the September Monthly Meetup and get answers from an expert.

View the Chat Transcript

Fifth Monthly Member & Friends Meetup

BUILDING AN ONLINE FARMERS MARKET
August 23, 2022

During the pandemic, many farmers and markets turned to online markets to connect with consumers. But once the pandemic abated, many markets deactivated their online sales, hoping to encourage consumers to shop the market in person. In some cases, this was not what happened. Instead, consumers who prefer online shopping were left out of farmers markets.

The Oneida County Public Market in Utica build their online market post-pandemic and has seen sales growing since its inception. Beth Irons, and Olivia Reynard, both from the Oneida County Public Market will be our featured guest speakers to talk about their online farmers market. Included in their discussion will be why they chose to host an online market, how they have reached their customers and continue to broaden their reach, and the impact the online market has on their sales, both online and in the physical farmers market.

The Oneida County Public Market also knows that accepting SNAP for online sales is right around the corner and they have prepared themselves to take advantage of that opportunity as soon as it is available. Once their presentation is complete, Beth and Olivia will host a Q&A session so that you can get all of your questions answered.

View the Chat Transcript

FOURTH MONTHLY MEMBER & FRIENDS MEETUP

CANNABIS AT FARMERS MARKETS
July 26th, 2022

NYS has legalized cannabis. We now have cannabis farmers and legal cannabis dispensaries. BUT, while the state has made cannabis legal, all the regulations and licensing are not yet in place, leaving New Yorkers questioning what can and can’t be done. This is also true for farmers markets. What can and cannot be sold at a farmers market? What licenses or permits are required? The answers are not that clear.

Cecilia Oyediran from the Foley Hoag Law Firm, is an expert on Cannabis Law and has spoken at several conferences and workshops on cannabis in New York State. She will share her knowledge on the law and its impact on farmers markets. After her presentation, Cecilia will address your individual question.

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Third Monthly Member & Friends Meetup

INSURANCE WITH LARRY SPILKER
June 28, 2022

This meetup discusses insurance issues for farmers markets. Our guest speaker is Larry Spilker from Campbell Risk Management. This agency, and Larry in particular, sponsors a nationwide farmers market insurance program for farmers markets and farmers. Larry has an exceptional knowledge of all things market insurance related and shares his knowledge with us.