This article is the first in a two-part series chronicling the expansion of the local food movement both on a community-wide scale and among Tufts students. This installation focuses on the Davis Square farmers' market and the efforts of students who promote locally grown food. The second part, which will run tomorrow, will address local food in Tufts' dining halls and eateries, as well as the barriers to expanding its presence on campus.
Nestled behind bunches of celery, a few honey-buying stragglers and a heap of butternut squash, Al Stoddart manned his vegetable stand last Wednesday afternoon, juggling his role as a business-minded farmer with waves of passing market-goers.
"You notice I don't put up any signs," Stoddart, who goes by Farmer Al, said. "I have a good relationship with the people. They know my stuff, and they come back."
Tucked back toward the end of market's spread, another stand displayed an array of Blue Heron Organic Farm squash and pumpkins, two byproducts of the turning season.
"What you're seeing here is reality," said Ellery Kimball, a farmer at Blue Heron. "We do it all: all of the tractor work, the planting and the harvesting."
While the Davis Square farmers' market brings freshly plucked corn and neighborly conversation to Somerville locals every Wednesday afternoon, the Tufts support base, a modest squad of eco-heads and foodies, is eclipsed by an overwhelming number of students who dish up daily at Dewick and have yet to wander behind Starbucks in pursuit of local food since setting foot on the Hill.
"I wonder if people who haven't had the experience of going to a farmers' market don't really understand that there is a qualitative difference between an interaction that results in your walking away with a bag of spinach produced at a factory farm and purchasing spinach from a person," said Ann Rappaport, a lecturer in the urban and environmental policy and planning department.
Rappaport said that the benefits of buying local food extend well beyond the realm of taste and include a much-needed departure from food that travels many miles.
"The first thing that I think of immediately is the implication in terms of climate change. The food that gets transported from literally all over the globe is coming by plane in some cases," Rappaport said. "You are burning up a lot of fossil fuel to do that, and so local foods mean less fossil fuel. It's really a simple equation, and I think that is, in many respects, something we can lose sight of."
The "local food movement" has also enhanced the strength of community ties and the direct gains received by regional farmers, according to Kathleen Merrigan, an assistant professor and the director of the Agriculture, Food and Environment Program at Tufts' Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy.
"It's a real economic opportunity for farmers because the more middlemen that are cut out of the process, the more dollar value that goes back to the farmers," Merrigan said. "Provided the food is well kept, it can be fresher, and in some cases more nutritious."
Still, buyers beware: Merrigan cautioned that local food isn't always better in terms of transportation and quality.
"Just because it's local doesn't mean it's necessarily the best. I am a big advocate for local foods, but I want to be an intelligent advocate. Not all local is the same," Merrigan said. "Just because a guy is local doesn't mean he is an environmentally sound producer."
On the upside, the exchange that occurs at a farmers' market is a fundamental piece of keeping small communities thriving, according to Rappaport, a concept notably absent when selecting fruit and vegetables from serially numbered bins at the grocery store.
"For the students that are buying for themselves, it creates a great sense of community and awareness of where your food is coming from … as well as an assurance that money is going to stay in your geographical area, which can be a huge thing," she said.
Merrigan also argued that buying locally revitalizes the consumption of seasonal produce, and that students may experience a different way of stocking their fridges.
"Anyone that goes down to the Davis Square farmers' market knows that it is a fun place to be. You can get cooking tips, you can expand the fruits and vegetables that you wouldn't normally eat," she said. "You can pick up a bitter melon and say, ‘What's this?' It can push you outside of your comfort zone."
Senior Tai Dinnan is a member of Food Education and Action for Sustainability at Tufts (FEAST), a collaborative effort between students, the Fletcher School's Center for International Environment and Resource Policy, Dining Services, and the Tufts Institute of the Environment (TIE) that works to promote sustainability and environmentally friendly food purchases on campus.
A long-time advocate of buying locally produced goods, Dinnan said that awareness about the blessings of local food has grown since her time at Tufts began.
"I quickly realized that the general population wasn't really aware of the politics of local versus organic versus conventional versus international," Dinnan said. "There wasn't a large awareness about farmers' markets and the areas where you could buy local, but in the last four years, across the nation and especially on college campuses, things have changed."
Those working the produce stands every Wednesday have picked up on the growing trend as well. Maury Bouchard, an employee at the Nicewicz Family Farm in Bolton, said that in recent years he has seen dramatic growth in the popularity of buying locally.
"This year especially we have noticed. We do 11 markets in six days at our farm; I personally do two of them, and I've noticed at this one and the Belmont market dramatic improvements," Bouchard said. "I think people are hearing terms like ‘eating locally' and ‘carbon footprint' more and are just getting educated and want to buy local."
When asked if he felt the market is a popular stop for the local student population, Bouchard said that some members of the Tufts community do regularly attend.
"If I had to guess, though, I would say it's mostly women over fifty, but other groups are certainly well represented," he said.
A weekly shopper at the Davis Square operation, senior Nora Chovanec underscored the accessibility of the farmers' markets to students' budgets.
"I think people support buying locally in theory, and I think a lot of Tufts students, even though they are college students, can afford the price of locally grown food," Chovanec said. "I think if more people knew about it, they would come more."
And while certain items undoubtedly are more expensive at the market, many have been able to match their purchases to their budgets with relative ease.
"Some things are cheaper and some are more expensive," senior Lizzie DeWan said. "I think it probably does add up to be a bit more expensive, but I don't eat meat, so I am saving by not buying meat."
Moving forward, the potential for increased awareness about local food availability is present, but difficult to address, according to Dinnan.
"The simple thing would be to just flyer," Dinnan said. "It's hard, though, because there is a population of Tufts students eating in the dining halls and then there is population living off campus, so you could have a table flyer at Dewick, but if you are touting local food, you can't expect many of those people to be going to the farmers' markets if they are already eating at Dewick."
Sophomore Victor Band has yet to visit a farmers' market in Boston, although he did occasionally attend one while living at home. Band said he doesn't prefer local food exclusively to other dining hall options.
"I eat whatever tastes better, whatever is there," Band said.
