Examining the Influence of Farmers’ Market Managers Perceived Roles on Business Opportunities for Small- and Moderate-size Farms and Access to Healthful Foods for Low-income Households

View the project final report

• 2013 annual report

Commodities

Practices

• Education and Training: focus group, participatory research
• Farm Business Management: market study, marketing management
• Sustainable Communities: community development, community services, leadership development, local and regional food systems, public policy, social psychological indicators

The purpose of this project is to evaluate how farmers' market managers' (managers) perceptions of their roles influence 1) business opportunities for small and moderate size farms and 2) access to healthful food for low income households. The specific aims of this study follow: Aim 1: Examine associations between managers' perceptions of being facilitators of business opportunities for small and moderate size farms and farmers' market vendor recruitment, sales, and customer counts. Aim 2: Examine associations between managers' perceptions of being promoters of healthful foods and farmers' market Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Electronic Benefit Transfer (SNAP/EBT) availability and participation. We hypothesize that compared to their counterparts: 1. Managers who identify as facilitators of business opportunities for small and moderate size farms foster greater business opportunities for these farms evidenced by farmers' market vendor recruitment, sales, and customer counts; and 2. Managers who identify as promoters of healthful foods in their communities are more likely to operate programs that facilitate access to their markets for low income households evidenced by SNAP/EBT availability and participation. Results from this project will inform 1) farmers' market leadership development that maximizes the goals of facilitating business opportunities for small and moderate size farms and access to healthful foods for low income households, and 2) how agencies supporting farmers' markets (i.e. the United States Department of Agriculture(USDA), local/regional farmers' market associations) could develop leadership programs to expand the capacity of farmers' markets to accomplish these two goals.

The purpose of this project is to evaluate how managers' perceptions of their roles influence 1) business opportunities for small and moderate size farms and 2) access to healthful food for low income
households. The specific aims of this study follow:

Aim 1: Examine associations between managers' perceptions of being facilitators of business opportunities for small and
moderate size farms and farmers' market vendor recruitment, sales, and customer counts.
Aim 2: Examine associations between managers' perceptions of being promoters of healthful foods and farmers'
market Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Electronic Benefit Transfer (SNAP/EBT) availability and participation.
We hypothesize that compared to their counterparts:

1. Managers who identify as facilitators of business opportunities for small and moderate size farms foster greater business opportunities for these farms evidenced by farmers' market vendor recruitment, sales, and customer counts; and
2. Managers who identify as promoters of healthful foods in their communities are more likely to operate programs
that facilitate access to their markets for low income households evidenced by SNAP/EBT availability and participation. As part of the evaluation of the 2011 North Carolina CDC CTGP,all farmers' markets and managers in the state have been identified, and their contact information has been collected. This information will be used to identify study participants.

Objective 1: The first objective of this study is to develop survey items assessing North Carolina's managers' perceptions of their roles in facilitating business opportunities for small and moderatesize
farms and access to healthful food for low income households

• While there is extensive literature describing different farmers' market organizational structures and managerial
roles, and farmers' market manager surveys are widely available, there are no surveys or studies exploring managers' perceptions of their roles in facilitating business opportunities for small and
moderate size farms and access to healthful food for low income households. Thus, through focus groups with farmers' market managers and farmers selling at farmers' markets, we will identify themes and topics relevant for inclusion in a survey to assess market managers' perceptions of their roles in accomplishing the two goals of interest.
• Using results from the focus group and literature reviews, we will then develop a comprehensive survey assessing
managers' perceived roles, indicators of their farmers' markets' success at facilitating business opportunities for small and
moderate size farms (i.e., vendor recruitment, sales, and customer count) and accessibility for low income households (i.e., SNAP/EBT availability and participation), barriers and facilitators to achieving the goals of interest, and market leadership and organizational structures(5,15).

Objective 2: We will administer the surveys to all farmers' market managers identified through the North Carolina CTGP.

Objectives 3 & 4: Results from the surveys will be used to 1) examine associations between managers' perceptions of being facilitators of business opportunities for small and moderate size farms and indicators of these goals reported by the managers (i.e., market vendor recruitment, sales, and customer counts) (Objective 3) and 2) associations between their perceptions of being promoters of healthful foods and SNAP/EBT availability and participation(Objective
4).