Makuu Farmers Market

All week I had been eagerly anticipating our first trip to the farmers market. I've always wondered what it would feel like standing on the other side of the booth, and now I would finally get my chance! The year round Sunday Makuu market is where Bob and Terri get the bulk of their income, so we spend a small portion of each day picking and gathering in preparation. Certain fruits like the meme sapote and avocados are picked on Tuesday so that they have a good portion of the week to ripen to perfection for the market. Other fruits need only a few days to ripen, and quite a few must be fresh off the vine so Saturday is also a big day for gathering fruit like the atemoya, abiu, starfruit and papaya.

All the goods are packed and ready to rock out on Saturday night, so all we had to do was wake up at the crack of dawn on Sunday, grab a cup of coffee and jump in the truck. We arrive around 6 am and we have an hour to get the stand all setup as the market doesn't officially open until 7. Bob and Terri pay a weekly fee of $20 for their permanent space in the market, while others who may not vend on a weekly basis must wait in line for a space each week and pay the fee.

Terri showed Irish and I the way she usually likes her space to be set up and in no time we were ready for business. With such a large variety of rare tropical fruits, Terri and Bob are all about samples to lure folks into becoming addicted to their goods. Along with their fresh produce, Bob and Terri cleverly buy 3 other items in bulk to sell at the market: Goji berries, organic sun dried greek olives, and fresh vanilla pods (grown by a neighbor). They have found that these three items are difficult for folks to find, so they can reap a fairly sweet margin off the top. With such great variety, this farm has a pretty large group of regulars who frequent the market for their favorite items each week. It's also no surprise that the durian addicts arrive early, and by 9 am we are all sold out of the stinky fruit.

While I absolutely loved chatting with customers, making transactions and explaining each of the fruits and how I like to prepare and eat them, it was also fun to take some time to walk around and check out what other folks had to offer. Directly across from Kumu Aina's space is the Hari Chrisna's booth. I really enjoyed their slick setup, organization, clear signage, and delicious looking produce. One thing I thought was super clever was that these folks took a commodity carrots (which numerous vendors at the market sell for dirt cheap) and juiced it with ginger before they got to market, then sold it for $4 a pop- what a value add! They also sell home made organic maple doughnuts...I mean who can really beat that? Another fun product I saw at a different booth was a woman that made homemade Kombucha (tea with all that extra good stuff). I asked her how she did it, and it's really such a simple process, costing next to nothing but in the end she sells mason jars of the stuff for $8!

When all is said and done it seems to me that a good chunk of the fun here is getting to know your customer base and socializing with both them and the other vendors each week. Not only can you make trades with other vendors, but you can also buy most of the food you will need for the coming week at amazing prices- when people start to head out at the end of the day farmers will just give up unsold food to other farmers! Our day was done when we sold our last meme sapote, and by that time pretty much everything else was gone as well. On a good day Terri and Bob make around $500 or so at the market, and this day was right up there- my first day at the market was a success!