Wise County has a farmers’ market challenge that I haven’t experienced in other places I’ve lived:  more markets than the vendor pool can support.  With separate markets in Wise, Norton, Coeburn, St. Paul, Pound and a proposed one in the town of Appalachia, it’s a challenge to find enough growers to fill all the space and provide a reliable source of local food for customers.

I met with one of the market managers a couple of weeks ago and discussed how we might convince people to support one market in the county.  I also spoke with one of our Grow Appalachia growers who has become a successful market vendor.  Our first approach is going to be a couple of surveys:  one for growers/potential growers and another for customers.

We’re interested in their thoughts on what makes a market successful?  How many days can Wise County producers manage enough produce to sell?  What locations, days and times do both groups prefer?  Ideally, the survey results will give us a better understanding of which markets stand to be the most useful for both sellers and buyers.

Another thing we hope to attempt this season is to support the handful of Grow Appalachia participants who have any level of interest in marketing their surplus.  We’ve discussed the idea with one of our markets of funding a Grow Appalachia table, where 1-5 gardeners can sell what they have, without having to invest in membership or table fees.