The Moscow Farmers Market Commission presented their policy recommendations and goals for the coming year to the Moscow City Council Feb. 3, but not before a discrepancy appeared between the two groups.
One of the recommendations made by the commission included a 100-air mile restriction on the reselling of blueberries and asparagus in the market. The restriction would limit the resale policy, only allowing the purchase and resale of blueberries and asparagus grown within a 100-air mile radius.
The 100-air mile radius has defined what is local for the Farmers Market outside of the Moscow city limits since 2011. However, the Council voted to expand the restriction to 200-air miles by a 3-2 vote.
Commission Chair Erin Carroll said the 100-air mile recommendation came from an effort to keep non-local blueberries and asparagus out of the market as much as possible.
“The reason that this recommendation came across, specifically for blueberries and asparagus, is those were two items identified by the arts director as being very important to our consumers,” Carroll said. “Those are two items that help the market early in the season and two items that people come for and look for. So those were two items we knew were important to keep in our market. However, we wanted tot try and have them come from the same 100-air miles that we require of all vendors.”
Carroll said Arts Director Kathleen Burns would still have the ability to bring in blueberries and asparagus from beyond the 100-air mile radius, should the City Council have decided in favor of the commission’s recommendation.
Council members Art Bettge, Walter Steed and John Weber voted for the expansion. Steed said he thinks the 100-air mile restriction would put the market manager in a bad position.
“I don’t like putting the arts director, market manager, in the position of picking winners and losers,” Steed said. “I think that they’re being set up to be asked ‘Well, you picked art, why won’t you let me be in there?’ And then they’re having to defend their choices.”
Steed said consumers also wanted an expansion to 200-air miles.
“We heard from a lot of consumers, and they’re saying 200,” Steed said. “I don’t like restricting it to 100.”
Tom Lamar, who voted against the expansion with council member Dan Carscallen, said he’s concerned about the process as opposed to the actual radius.
“I don’t have a dog in the fight about some specific distance,” Lamar said. “To me, it doesn’t matter if it’s 100, 125, 150, 200 — specifically on that number. What I’m more concerned about is the process of engaging a Farmers Market Commission … and then not accepting their recommendation at this point. And I think if we just change their recommendation at this point significantly, with changing the radius, I don’t think we’re doing the process a service.”
The Council will convene again from 7-10 p.m. on Feb. 18.
Andrew Jenson can be reached at [email protected]