Ranks of locavores continue to grow

RINGWOOD, N.J. – Is eating your vegetables actually…cool? Kids and vegetables have historically gotten along about as well as dogs and mail carriers. I vividly recall many evenings locked in staring contests with a plate of peas or creamed spinach. Vegetables were the enemy. And no doubt similar battles still play out in many household dining rooms.

But the proliferation of farmer's markets and locally grown produce is doing wonders for the vegetables' image amongst the 12 and under crowd. (Fruits, not nearly as hard a sell for kids, are doing quite nicely too.)

John Baiata / NBC News

Shoppers check out the bounty of fresh fruits and vegetables at the Ringwood Farmer's Market on a recent Saturday.

And while today's parents more than ever are foregoing processed foods in favor of fresh produce, it may be the kids who are increasingly driving the bus (or the tractor?) on the issue. A new generation of locavores, people who try to eat only locally grown food, is being bred. And they're hungry.

According to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), there are now approximately 4,800 farmer's markets in the country. Ringwood Farmer's Market, in the exurbs of New Jersey, is one of the many seasonal markets included in that figure, and a Saturday staple for many nearby residents.

But unlike many, the Ringwood market is run as a non-profit, relying heavily on volunteers and grant money for its operating expenses. "All profits go to the farmers," said Jennifer Papa, a member of the markets board of directors. "They do better as a group than they would independently."

Beyond just providing access to locally grown foods and supporting local farmers, the market's mission has a strong educational bent.

"We have grants and funding in place for school gardens," said Papa. "And we actually go into the local schools – as early as kindergarten – teaching them about biodiversity… kids think it's normal to eat locally."

They also host harvest dinners featuring locally grown foods, and provide recipes for how to prepare the foods – particularly for some of the produce which may be unfamiliar to shoppers. Land preservation and the environmental benefits of eating locally are also stressed.

The market is also a community space – and a kid-friendly one at that. Hula hoops are available for all to give a spin and local musicians who regularly entertain the crowd take requests. Local theater groups sometimes perform as well.

John Baiata / NBC News

A young customer, Alexa Baiata, the author's daughter, checks out the peaches.

Locals only
Still, the market is serious business and it maintains stringent rules to ensure that the produce offered is indeed locally grown. Turf battles have broken out in other markets over the issue of what constitutes "locally grown" and the Ringwood market has worked hard to try and avoid problems.

"We visit each farm to ensure they're locally grown," said Amy Jolin, the driving force behind the Ringwood market's creation and the president of the market's board of directors. "But our vendors are self-policing, too. They know when there's been a crop failure [and therefore would know if something was not grown locally]. They also collaborate so they're not competing with one another too much."

The market insists that all the food for sale must be grown within 150 miles. And the vendors are all growers and producers – so there's no middlemen to drive up prices.

Pricing is an issue for some market-goers. Most expect to pay more for produce at a farmer's market than in a supermarket, but that is not always the case.

Sales have also been enhanced by a growing participation in government food assistance programs, although, only a small percentage of farmer's markets – less than ten percent nationwide according to the USDA – participate in those programs.

There's no shortage of competition at the vendor tables most Saturday mornings here.

Shoppers jostle while picking the best corn, spinach and peaches. The kids ogle the sugar plums and sip fresh-squeezed lemonade.

On a recent morning, a young girl pointed to a bin and asked, "Mom, what are those?"

"Those are beets honey," her mother answered. "They're good in salads. Wanna try them?"

"Yeah, OK."

Cool.