Sustainable Farms & Communities

What's the difference between the Columbia Farmers Market (CFM), Sustainable Farms & Communities (SF&C), and the Farmers Market Community Center (FMCC)?

How would Columbia benefit from building a permanent home for the CFM?

Will the market operate year-round in a permanent location?

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What's the difference between the Columbia Farmers Market (CFM), Sustainable Farms & Communities (SF&C), and the Farmers Market Community Center (FMCC)?

• Columbia Farmers Market (CFM): The event held Monday, Wednesday and Saturday at Clinkscales & Ash, behind the ARC, at which local producers sell food and other products directly to community customers. The market is managed by a non-profit membership group.
• Sustainable Farms &: Communities (SF&C): The non-profit group organized to oversee planning, fundraising, and design for a permanent pavilion to house the Columbia Farmers Market. SF&C also works to educate the community about the benefits of a local food supply, and to support the efforts of local farmers.
• Farmers Market Community Center: The design concept for a permanent pavilion to house the Columbia Farmers Market. This structure is currently being envisioned as a multi-use structure that can accommodate community events as well as the CFM (read more about the FMCC).

How would Columbia benefit from building a permanent home for the CFM?

• Economic: Farmers markets directly support small, local farms and business which contribute to Columbia's tax base and generate & keep more revenue within the region. Building a permanent pavilion would decrease the market's dependence on weather conditions and allow more business to be conducted for longer periods of time, as well as encouraging new businesses to start.
• Community: Farmers markets are a natural community gathering point, and a covered pavilion would increase the attraction of the location, for local residents as well as tourists. Additionally, the FMCC concept provides another public space for community events to occur when the market is not operating.
• Health: Farmers markets provide an excellent source of fresh, healthy produce, meat, and other products that benefit the city's health. A permanent pavilion would increase the availability of these products to community members by supporting more farmers and making shopping easier.
• Environmental: A vibrant, growing farmers market supports more local farms, thus helping to preserve green space and sustainable agriculture in Boone County and the surrounding area. Small market farms are also more likely to utilize environmentally friendly farming practices.
• More: For more on the FMCC and its benefits, visit the project's page.

• Possibly: Current plans do not include a year-round market, but this possibility is being kept open for the future. If the FMCC is built and allows the market to continue growing, anything's possible!

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