IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/spr/agrhuv/v40y2023i4d10.1007_s10460-023-10445-3.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The resilience and viability of farmers markets in the United States as an alternative food network: case studies from Michigan during the COVID-19 pandemic

Author

Listed:
  • Chelsea Wentworth

    (Michigan State University)

  • Phillip Warsaw

    (Michigan State University)

  • Krista Isaacs

    (Michigan State University)

  • Abou Traore

    (Michigan State University)

  • Angel Hammon

    (Michigan State University)

  • Arena Lewis

    (Michigan State University)

Abstract

This paper examines the resilience of farmers markets in Michigan to the system shock of the global COVID-19 pandemic, questioning how the response fits into market goals of food sovereignty. Adapting to shifting public health recommendations and uncertainty, managers implemented new policies to create a safe shopping experience and expand food access. As consumers directed their shopping to farmers markets looking for safer outdoor shopping, local products, and foods in short supply at grocery stores, market sales skyrocketed with vendors reporting selling more than ever before, but the longevity of this change remains unclear. Our data collected via semi-structured interviews with market managers and vendors, and survey data from customers from 2020 to 21, suggest that despite the widespread impact of COVID-19, there is not sufficient evidence consumers will continue to shop at farmers markets at the rates they did in 2020-21. Furthermore, reasons consumers flocked to farmers markets do not align with market priorities for increased food sovereignty, as increased sales alone are not a sufficient driver for this goal. We question how markets can contribute to broader sustainability goals or serve as alternatives to capitalist and industrial modes of agricultural production, problematizing the role of markets in the food sovereignty movement.

Suggested Citation

  • Chelsea Wentworth & Phillip Warsaw & Krista Isaacs & Abou Traore & Angel Hammon & Arena Lewis, 2023. "The resilience and viability of farmers markets in the United States as an alternative food network: case studies from Michigan during the COVID-19 pandemic," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 40(4), pages 1481-1496, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:agrhuv:v:40:y:2023:i:4:d:10.1007_s10460-023-10445-3
    DOI: 10.1007/s10460-023-10445-3
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s10460-023-10445-3
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s10460-023-10445-3?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Mary K. Hendrickson, 2020. "Covid lays bare the brittleness of a concentrated and consolidated food system," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 37(3), pages 579-580, September.
    2. Christophe Béné & Derek Headey & Lawrence Haddad & Klaus Grebmer, 2016. "Is resilience a useful concept in the context of food security and nutrition programmes? Some conceptual and practical considerations," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 8(1), pages 123-138, February.
    3. Lauren Chenarides & Mark Manfredo & Timothy J. Richards, 2021. "COVID‐19 and Food Supply Chains," Applied Economic Perspectives and Policy, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 43(1), pages 270-279, March.
    4. Daniel Jaffee & Philip Howard, 2010. "Corporate cooptation of organic and fair trade standards," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 27(4), pages 387-399, December.
    5. Alison Hope Alkon & Josh Cadji, 2020. "Sowing Seeds of Displacement: Gentrification and Food Justice in Oakland, CA," International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 44(1), pages 108-123, January.
    6. Tim G. Benton, 2020. "COVID-19 and disruptions to food systems," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 37(3), pages 577-578, September.
    7. Wolf, Christopher A. & Tonsor, Glynn T., 2013. "Dairy Farmer Policy Preferences," Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Western Agricultural Economics Association, vol. 38(2), pages 1-15, August.
    8. John J. Metz & Sarah M. Scherer, 2022. "The rise and decline of farmers markets in greater Cincinnati," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 39(1), pages 95-117, March.
    9. Jessica Clendenning & Wolfram Dressler & Carol Richards, 2016. "Food justice or food sovereignty? Understanding the rise of urban food movements in the USA," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 33(1), pages 165-177, March.
    10. Dawn Thilmany & Elizabeth Canales & Sarah A. Low & Kathryn Boys, 2021. "Local Food Supply Chain Dynamics and Resilience during COVID‐19," Applied Economic Perspectives and Policy, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 43(1), pages 86-104, March.
    11. Geels, Frank W., 2002. "Technological transitions as evolutionary reconfiguration processes: a multi-level perspective and a case-study," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 31(8-9), pages 1257-1274, December.
    12. Sebastian Kretschmer & Bettina Langfeldt & Christian Herzig & Thomas Krikser, 2021. "The Organic Mindset: Insights from a Mixed Methods Grounded Theory (MM-GT) Study into Organic Food Systems," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(9), pages 1-21, April.
    13. Phillip Warsaw & Steven Archambault & Arden He & Stacy Miller, 2021. "The Economic, Social, and Environmental Impacts of Farmers Markets: Recent Evidence from the US," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(6), pages 1-18, March.
    14. Alison Alkon & Teresa Mares, 2012. "Food sovereignty in US food movements: radical visions and neoliberal constraints," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 29(3), pages 347-359, September.
    15. Line J. Gordon, 2020. "The Covid-19 pandemic stress the need to build resilient production ecosystems," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 37(3), pages 645-646, September.
    16. Sarah King & Amy McFarland & Jody Vogelzang, 2022. "Food sovereignty and sustainability mid-pandemic: how Michigan’s experience of Covid-19 highlights chasms in the food system," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 39(2), pages 827-838, June.
    17. William Hynes & Benjamin Trump & Patrick Love & Igor Linkov, 2020. "Bouncing forward: a resilience approach to dealing with COVID-19 and future systemic shocks," Environment Systems and Decisions, Springer, vol. 40(2), pages 174-184, June.
    18. Dorceta E. Taylor & Lina M. Farias & Lia M. Kahan & Julia Talamo & Alison Surdoval & Ember D. McCoy & Socorro M. Daupan, 2022. "Understanding the challenges faced by Michigan’s family farmers: race/ethnicity and the impacts of a pandemic," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 39(3), pages 1077-1096, September.
    19. Sara Shostak, 2022. "“How do we measure justice?”: missions and metrics in urban agriculture," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 39(3), pages 953-964, September.
    20. Bassel Daher & Silva Hamie & Konstantinos Pappas & Mohammad Nahidul Karim & Tessa Thomas, 2021. "Toward Resilient Water-Energy-Food Systems under Shocks: Understanding the Impact of Migration, Pandemics, and Natural Disasters," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(16), pages 1-22, August.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Lesli Hoey & Allison Sponseller, 2018. "“It’s hard to be strategic when your hair is on fire”: alternative food movement leaders’ motivation and capacity to act," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 35(3), pages 595-609, September.
    2. Xiangping Jia, 2021. "Agro-Food Innovation and Sustainability Transition: A Conceptual Synthesis," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(12), pages 1-24, June.
    3. Sara A. L. Smaal & Joost Dessein & Barend J. Wind & Elke Rogge, 2021. "Social justice-oriented narratives in European urban food strategies: Bringing forward redistribution, recognition and representation," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 38(3), pages 709-727, September.
    4. Stephanie Walton, 2024. "Transforming the food system in ‘unprotected space’: the case of diverse grain networks in England," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 41(3), pages 989-1006, September.
    5. Jordana Fuchs-Chesney & Subhashni Raj & Tishtar Daruwalla & Catherine Brinkley, 2023. "All roads lead to the farmers market?: using network analysis to measure the orientation and central actors in a community food system through a case comparison of Yolo and Sacramento County, Californ," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 40(1), pages 157-173, March.
    6. Menglan Wang & Manh Hung Do, 2023. "Households’ resilience and local commercialization in Thailand," TVSEP Working Papers wp-030, Leibniz Universitaet Hannover, Institute for Environmental Economics and World Trade, Project TVSEP.
    7. Tezcan Mert-Cakal & Mara Miele, 2020. "‘Workable utopias’ for social change through inclusion and empowerment? Community supported agriculture (CSA) in Wales as social innovation," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 37(4), pages 1241-1260, December.
    8. Akila Wijerathna-Yapa & Ranjith Pathirana, 2022. "Sustainable Agro-Food Systems for Addressing Climate Change and Food Security," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 12(10), pages 1-26, September.
    9. Douglas H. Constance, 2023. "The doctors of agrifood studies," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 40(1), pages 31-43, March.
    10. Rebecka Daye, 2020. "Competing food sovereignties: GMO-free activism, democracy and state preemptive laws in Southern Oregon," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 37(4), pages 1013-1025, December.
    11. Alia DeLong & Marilyn E. Swisher & Carlene A. Chase & Tracy Irani & Jorge Ruiz-Menjivar, 2023. "The Roots of First-Generation Farmers: The Role of Inspiration in Starting an Organic Farm," Land, MDPI, vol. 12(6), pages 1-20, June.
    12. Anna Uliano & Marcello Stanco & Concetta Nazzaro, 2023. "Short Food Supply Chain and Resilience: An Analysis during COVID-19 Pandemic in Inner Areas of Campania Region," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(17), pages 1-13, August.
    13. Alana Siegner & Jennifer Sowerwine & Charisma Acey, 2018. "Does Urban Agriculture Improve Food Security? Examining the Nexus of Food Access and Distribution of Urban Produced Foods in the United States: A Systematic Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(9), pages 1-27, August.
    14. Howard, Philip H. & Ajena, Francesco & Yamaoka, Marina & Clarke, Amber, 2021. "'Protein' Industry Convergence and its Implications for Resilient and Equitable Food Systems," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 5.
    15. Zinette Bergman & Manfred Max Bergman, 2022. "Toward Sustainable Communities: A Case Study of the Eastern Market in Detroit," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(7), pages 1-14, April.
    16. Lisa Jordan Powell & Hannah Wittman, 2018. "Farm to school in British Columbia: mobilizing food literacy for food sovereignty," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 35(1), pages 193-206, March.
    17. Harvey S. James, 2023. "Agriculture and human values at 40 years: reflections on its scale and scope," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 40(1), pages 25-30, March.
    18. Fábio T. F. Silva & Alexandre Szklo & Amanda Vinhoza & Ana Célia Nogueira & André F. P. Lucena & Antônio Marcos Mendonça & Camilla Marcolino & Felipe Nunes & Francielle M. Carvalho & Isabela Tagomori , 2022. "Inter-sectoral prioritization of climate technologies: insights from a Technology Needs Assessment for mitigation in Brazil," Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change, Springer, vol. 27(7), pages 1-39, October.
    19. John A. Mathews, 2020. "Schumpeterian economic dynamics of greening: propagation of green eco-platforms," Journal of Evolutionary Economics, Springer, vol. 30(4), pages 929-948, September.
    20. Wiegand, Julia, 2017. "Dezentrale Stromerzeugung als Chance zur Stärkung der Energie-Resilienz: Eine qualitative Analyse kommunaler Strategien im Raum Unna," Wuppertaler Studienarbeiten zur nachhaltigen Entwicklung, Wuppertal Institute for Climate, Environment and Energy, volume 11, number 11, January.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:spr:agrhuv:v:40:y:2023:i:4:d:10.1007_s10460-023-10445-3. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.