Farmer’s Market Prices

[db@100]

When I was a kids in the 80s my we went to that market as well. It's still there and hasnt changed. It's a NAFTA market meaning most of that produce comes from Mexico.

It's not there any longer!

[Native Texan]

This place in Waller has some of the best tasting fruits and vegetables during season. Not like the bland tasteless stuff you get at the grocery store. A lot of it you can even pick yourself...can't get any fresher than that. And they don't sell anything that wasn't grown on their farm.

https://www.facebook.com/Neals-Berry-Farm-Farmers-Market-221180603853/

[friscopaint]

So what happened? You still sell eggs, move, or not enough profits?

Moved, was almost all profit. Multi colored eggs

[dbaio1]

I do not mind paying extra when I can to support a local small farmer. I also do not believe what is sold by large corporations when you get into the whole organic, free range and all that blah blah blah.

[dbaio1]

I’m gonna go back to the fact that we put how much money into putting deer in the freezer?
I’ll gladly pay a buck more for a head of lettuce that I know was grown in Fredericksburg over some crap grown in crap in Mexico or trucked in from California any day.

Yes sir, all day long and twice on Sunday.

[JonW]

Metalman, that's a great question.

Let's address the eggs first. I just checked HEB. The "free-range" eggs are $5.99/lb that I saw and probably not in all the stores. The "cage-free" however are around $4/dozen. Keep in mind that eggs labeled cage-free simply have to come from hens who aren't keptein battery cages. MOST of the hens that lay cage free eggs are still confined in barns in crowded conditions and don't go outside. Hens kept in these conditions, which are better than battery cages, are more likely to require antibiotics, medicated feed, etc. than hens that aren't confined and are given access to fresh grass, bugs, worms, etc. These hens will be fed conventional grain feed (gmo, chemical fertilizer, herbicides, etc). When a factory farm maintains thoursands and thousands of hens in a barn, they have increased buying power and can obtain the cheapest feed even more cheaply buying in such large volume. This is in addition to the way the animal is treated, which is a large part of the reason people are willing to pay more.

I'll occasionally use an organic feed for broilers, but never layers. The cheapest I have found is 3Xs what I can by conventional feed for. I've settled on non-GMO which is about 2Xs what conventional feed is for both layers and broilers.

I'll address another concern someone mentioned-reselling. Most of the markets are very explicit about reselling. The markets I've sold at have an application process (most will visit your farm to verify) and will kick you out instantly if you're suspected of reselling. That's the beauty of the free market system. Choose a good market and don't be afraid to ask your vender questions.

This is one area where it really pays to learn as much as you can as a consumer. You can easily dump a LOT of money into something that isn't what you think it is.

[JonW]

I do not mind paying extra when I can to support a local small farmer. I also do not believe what is sold by large corporations when you get into the whole organic, free range and all that blah blah blah.

This is very wise. Politicians set the regulations on what is labeled "organic" or not. Many farmers exceed organic standards but will not be labeled as certified organic out of principal or because of the headache. Regenerative or sustainable labels carry more weight in my opinion.

[Boomerang]

There is a guy in South Texas that sells fruit on the side of the road at a 4 way stop. Every morning, he is buying produce in bulk to take it to his "spot" and bake in the sun for a day and people will pay more.

[MetalMan2004]

Metalman, that's a great question.

Let's address the eggs first. I just checked HEB. The "free-range" eggs are $5.99/lb that I saw and probably not in all the stores. The "cage-free" however are around $4/dozen. Keep in mind that eggs labeled cage-free simply have to come from hens who aren't keptein battery cages. MOST of the hens that lay cage free eggs are still confined in barns in crowded conditions and don't go outside. Hens kept in these conditions, which are better than battery cages, are more likely to require antibiotics, medicated feed, etc. than hens that aren't confined and are given access to fresh grass, bugs, worms, etc. These hens will be fed conventional grain feed (gmo, chemical fertilizer, herbicides, etc). When a factory farm maintains thoursands and thousands of hens in a barn, they have increased buying power and can obtain the cheapest feed even more cheaply buying in such large volume. This is in addition to the way the animal is treated, which is a large part of the reason people are willing to pay more.

I'll occasionally use an organic feed for broilers, but never layers. The cheapest I have found is 3Xs what I can by conventional feed for. I've settled on non-GMO which is about 2Xs what conventional feed is for both layers and broilers.

I'll address another concern someone mentioned-reselling. Most of the markets are very explicit about reselling. The markets I've sold at have an application process (most will visit your farm to verify) and will kick you out instantly if you're suspected of reselling. That's the beauty of the free market system. Choose a good market and don't be afraid to ask your vender questions.

This is one area where it really pays to learn as much as you can as a consumer. You can easily dump a LOT of money into something that isn't what you think it is.

That’s some great detail. You beat me to the store but on my afternoon HEB trip I snapped pictures of egg prices to compare as well. I had similar findings.

HEB cage free were $3.08/ dozen. HEB Organics cage free we’re on sale for $3.53 per dozen, usually $4.43. Central market pasture raised no antibiotics or hormones etc (all written very clearly on the package) were $6.55 for 18 (no dozen option).