Farm to market is not only a healthier choice, it is an important source of income for area growers.

Most consumers, however, would be surprised to learn American farmers reportedly receive only 17 cents of every dollar Americans spend on food. According to the Farmers’ Market Coalition, at farmers markets, growers instead head home with upwards of 90 cents on the dollar.

At the Dowagiac Farm & Artisan Market vendors are reporting a slightly higher sales volume this year, which is also up substantially from the beginning of the season, said Vickie Phillipson, program director of the Dowagiac Downtown Development Authority and Greater Dowagiac Chamber of Commerce, who oversees the market.

Steve Wright, of Wright Farms, who supplies the market with fresh meats, said across the board, all markets within southwestern Michigan and northern Indiana saw slower sales at the onset of the 2017 season. He attributes the sluggish start to schools getting out later in the year.

“As more fruit and produce have come into season and summer residents have also returned to the Sister Lakes area, sales have picked up substantially within the last month and a half for the Dowagiac market,” Phillipson said.

Today’s consumer is moving away from buying exclusively at grocery stores, Wright said.

“They want farm market meat and produce,” he said. “They want to know where their food is coming from and they want to meet the person growing it.”

Wright is one of seven to eight growers who bring their products to the Dowagiac market, held on Wednesdays and Saturdays. Located upon the grounds of the Dowagiac Area History Museum, the market is open from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Crystal Sprague, of Sprague Farms, who has been with the market since it re-opened at the museum three years ago, is also a participant of the Vicksburg market, held on Fridays, and is former participant of markets in Cassopolis and Niles.

Sprague has found what consumers purchase also varies from region to region.

“In Vicksburg, they are very traditional,” Sprague said. “Seldom do you see them buy zucchini.  In Niles, they bought very little sweet corn, as opposed to tomatoes and strawberries.”

In Dowagiac, they purchase more of a variety, which she attributes to an older population, where housewives are utilizing more of a farm variety.

“In Vicksburg, where most farmers raise vegetables, we sell more fruit,” Sprague said.  “The farther east you go, away from the lake, the more fruit you’ll sell at a market.”

As a long-time market participant in southwest Michigan, Sprague Farms has also witnessed a change in the buying habits of today’s consumers, which are buying more often, yet in smaller quantities. “Ten years ago, consumers were buying in large quantities, buying peaches by the bushel basket, with mom canning the fruit for future use.”

She said most families today are purchasing small quantities for immediate consumption.

“While today’s lifestyles have changed, what remains the same is the sentiment that farm-fresh remains the healthiest choice families can make,” Phillipson said.