What is a Farmers' Market ?

A farmers' market is a market where farmers, growers or producers from a defined local area are present in person to sell their own produce direct to the public. All products sold should have been grown, reared, caught, brewed, pickled, baked, smoked or processed by the stallholder.

About Lewes Farmers’ Market

Lewes Farmers’ Market was one of the first farmers’ markets to be set up in the country (Bath being the very first). Common Cause Co-operative ran its first pilot market in October 1998, and the market has grown in size and popularity ever since.

Our producers are always happy to talk about their products with you: how it was reared, grown, or made. The producers are always happy to provide you with recipes, and information how to get the best from their product, and many give out tastings so you can try-before-you-buy. If a producer does not have what you are looking for, or you are unsure if they have a speciality item such as gluten free, dairy free, vegan, please ask them; they may well be able to help. You would be surprised at how much variety there is at Lewes Farmers’ Market.

Many of our producers have won local, regional and national awards for their produce, and two have won international awards. So if you want the World’s Best Cheese, or the World’s Hottest Chili Sauce, the Lewes Farmers’ Market is the place to come! A farmers’ market is one place where you have the privilege of buying award-winning food at honest prices.

While you are shopping at Lewes Farmers’ Market you will undoubtedly bump into friends, and the vibrant atmosphere at the market is enhanced by the local musicians who play at precinct each month. It is a social and lively market, and one we guarantee you will enjoy visiting.

Farmers’ Market and Food Quality

You will find exceptional food quality at the market. All the products originate form small farms or businesses, and the producers have put a lot of effort and care into the growth and creation of their products.

You will find all the fruit and vegetables are picked when ripe and ready for harvesting, not before. They have much more flavour than fruit and vegetables picked when immature, and ripened in transport and storage. Fruit and vegetables sold at a farmers’ market will have been harvested the day prior to, or even on the very morning of the market. As essential vitamins and minerals found in fruit and vegetables deteriorate from the day of harvest, the food you buy at a farmers’ market is fresher that you could buy from a supermarket. All the vegetables sold at Lewes Farmers Market are organic, or grown to organic standards. Click here for more information about organic foods.

All the meat sold at the market is either organic, or free range and additive free. The livestock has been reared for the optimum time, and when slaughtered, is carried out locally so there is minimum stress to the animals. Meat is also hung for longer than most supermarket meat, so you will find it more flavoursome and tender. All the eggs and poulty are free range, which means the chickens have access to outdoor areas.

All our preserves and baked products are prepared in small batches; hands – not machines – have made these products so retaining that home cooked taste, and they are all made using fresh local ingredients resulting in a high quality and flavourful product.

Our producers are proud of their produce, and our customers come back again and again, to get their hands on their top quality fare.

Farmers’ Markets and the Economy

By buying your produce from a farmers’ market you are supporting the local economy, and so sustaining and creating jobs. Farmers’ markets provide an outlet for local small-scale producers and by taking out the middleman they can get a fair price for their product. And by taking out the middleman, you can buy the product for a fair price. Produce sold at a farmers’ market is often misconceived as being more expensive than a supermarket, but as you are buying local seasonal produce, costs of production and transport are kept to a minimum, and by buying what you need, you simply spend less.

Farmers’ Markets and the Environment

Farmers’ and growers who sell at a farmers’ market and who are organic, farm to strict guidelines set out by one of ten UK certification bodies. See here. The organic standards require organic farms to be managed in a way that produces healthy food, while also caring for the welfare of farm animals and the environment. Our non-organic farmers and growers also share these aims, and with each farm experiencing a farm visit by Common Cause Co-operative, you can be assured that the produce purchased at the market has been produced in an environmentally aware way. None of the products sold at the market are genetically modified (GM), contain GM products, or have been reared on GM products.

Farmers’ Markets and Sustainability

As our producers are sourced from a defined area - 40 miles from Lewes – your food miles are kept to a minimum. Produce is not excessively packaged, and by buying what you need, rather than buying pre-bagged foods, household waste is reduced.
Lewes Farmers’ Market also invites local groups and organisations to the markets to highlight local issues, advice on sustainable living such as composting and efficient water use, and grants for your home. Please see our diary page for more information on who will be attending the market.

What is a Certified Farmers’ Market?

FARMA, the National Farmers' Retail & Markets Association independently assesses and certifies farmers' markets round the country to make sure they're the 'real deal' so you can be confident you are buying the freshest, most local produce possible, supporting your local community and economy, and helping the environment by reducing food-miles. Look out for the certification logo

To find out more about certified farmers; markets, and to find other certified farmers’ markets in the UK see here