Hanging with the farmers

 There is always something interesting to do in Kauai even though it is a relatively small place and we have spent quite a bit of time here. Farmers' Markets are a personal favorite. I don't buy that thing about "if you ate today thank a farmer." There are farmers and then there are farmers. I knew from personal experience a little bit about hogs, cattle, and corn, but that doesn't really offer insight into what you eat or what you should eat. Farmers' markets provide a more realistic look. These folks produce the food that come directly to you. Hence, the expression farm to table. Corn, the staple of Iowa farms, comes to you in the form of meat after processing by a hog, corn syrup a nasty ingredient in too many things we eat and alcohol for consumption by your car. Riding a combine that costs more than most people's home does not provide the same insight as buying some carrots from a hippie at a market.

OK, that was a remnant of my farm background and we did have a huge garden and I did raise chickens but we ate that stuff ourselves. My point - it is just more complicated and the "thank a farmer people" are not the Hmong with their small plots outside of Minneapolis or the people who person the markets we frequent here.

The farmers' market scene in Minneapolis and on this island are different, but the vibe of small growers is still the same. We actually have gone to purchasing more from CSAs (Community Supported Agriculture) for some of what we buy in Minnesota. We get a giant box of mixed produce every couple of weeks. So much stuff and so many unusual items that we have more than we can consume. Reminds me of the Costco issue. We visit the Minneapolis Market for the show.

Kauai has a market somewhere most days. I have no idea how the prices compare to Costco, but it is great fun and the people are fascinating. We went to a very small market yesterday (maybe 8 stalls), but found plenty to purchase (Cindy had to arrange the stuff to take a pretty picture.) I am not a big avocado fan, but they do taste different here, I suppose there are many varieties and what you get in the supermarket is a poor sample. The size is also impressive. Those are not small watermelons.

MN Market

Assorted interesting people found at the  Minnesota market. A brat. I know it is not a vegetable, but the brat guy is my number one reason for visiting the market. Makes me hungry just looking at my photo - a thing of beauty.