How Farmers Markets Dodged a Regulatory Bullet in Pennsylvania
25th August 2012
Consumer interest in farmers markets has similarly exploded across Pennsylvania. According to USDA data, there are more than 250 farmers markets in the state—about two-dozen of which are located in Philadelphia.
In spite of these great numbers, Pennsylvanians should be grateful to have access to any farmers markets at all this year. That’s because the direct-to-consumer bounty farmers provide might have all but disappeared. And though drought concerns persist in some parts of Pennsylvania, the specter of a summer with fewer farmers selling less produce at markets in the state was due not to Mother Nature but—instead—to state legislators and regulators.