One of the earliest Farmers Markets in America, in Davis California, is also widely recognized as one of the best. The history of the Davis Farmers Market begins with the social awakening of the late 1960s and early 1970s, which set the stage for the establishment of alternative, local food systems. Since then, farmers’ markets, led by Davis, a college town in the Sacramento Valley, and by California, have exploded across the country. Today, there are more than 8,000farmers’ markets nationwide – more than 700 of them in California. The Davis market, in the city’s Central Park, takes up about a third of a 5-acre park on Saturday mornings and more on Wednesday evenings during Picnic in the Park. It operates under a pavilion built with public funds, and it draws 7,000 to 10,000 people each week. Randii MacNear has been the Executive Director of the market from the very beginning and deserves much credit for its success.  With some introductory music from Banjo Fiddle, RandiiMacNear joins our table talk about the visible heart beat of many communities, their Farmers Market.

www.davisfarmersmarket.org

www.banjofiddle.com