At 2:30 Saturday, Aug. 18, the town green of South Riding is quiet. Trucks lined the perimeter of the square and several men sought shade under trees and canopies, watching and waiting. As time went by, residents, families and couples began to arrive, perusing bins filled with fruit and vegetables and purchasing pork and beef, which were being kept in coolers in the backs of trucks.
The South Riding farmers market, which is held every Saturday, from May to October, between 2 and 5 p.m., may be small, but that does not deter the loyal farmers and customers.
"We’re just trying to stick in here and get the people what they want," Chris Hatch, owner of Mill Run Farm in Leesburg, said.
HATCH, WHO HAS been in business for more than 50 years, and the other farmers in South Riding Saturday, use the county’s markets as a way to reach out to the residents.
"It is nice to have the one-on-one contact with the consumer," Hatch said. "As we have generations who get further and further away from farms, it’s important for people to see where these products come from."
Indeed, Steve Baker, owner of Baker Farms in Shenandoah County, said local farmers markets create a win-win situation for both the farmers and the customers.
"The customer gets a locally grown product that was grown with 125 miles of them and the producer has a place to sell their product," he said. "It also helps the small farmers, who are doing great things with their farming."
Baker himself is a small farmer, specializing in pork, and has around 800 head of hogs on his family farm.
"At these markets, you know where it comes from, how its raised and where its produced," he said, "because you are talking directly to the person who does all of that."
THE COUNTY’S SUMMER drought has not affected all areas of farming negatively, Hatch said, pointing out the crowd gathered around the tables of fruit and produce from the C. Hess Orchard and Produce out of Martinsburg, W.Va.
"The fruit is actually sweeter with less moisture," Hatch said.
Chester Hess, who is the third generation to own the West Virginia orchard, said he always enjoys being a part of the farmers markets.
"It’s great to be able to come out here and sell to people," he said.