Fresh Produce and Political Hot Potatoes
As farmer’s markets open in new neighborhoods, supermarket and bodega owners continue the fight.
June 11th, 2007
The farmer’s market in front of Columbia University offers savory turkey sausage from the DiPaola farm in Hamilton, N.J. A few stands over are fruit and vegetables from a farm in Kinderhook, N.Y. Locally harvested food is a treat for Upper West Side families and Columbia students who frequent the farmer’s market.
But for communities like the South Bronx, greenmarkets are a necessity for healthier living.
Farmer’s markets, funded by the Council on the Environment of New York City (CENYC), are springing up across the city. Three new ones will open this summer.
The City Council has supported this program as a way to deliver healthy food to underserved neighborhoods. Such markets have caused tension in the past, with supermarkets and bodegas claiming these markets have an unfair advantage by not having to pay rent and taxes or use union labor.
There have been attempts to smooth over this relationship. “We have to make sure we work with the bodegas and the supermarkets,” said Council member Joel Rivera (D-Bronx), chair of the Health Committee.
Marcel Van Ooyen, executive director of CENYC, agreed, arguing against an “us-or-them” mentality. “We take everything into consideration: business groups, community groups … the local merchants association. We don’t want to see ourselves in competition with everyone,” Van Ooyen said. “We’re happy to work with anyone.”
However, Rivera said that options are a boon for shoppers. “My gut instinct is that competition always benefits,” said Rivera. “At the end of the day, the consumer is always the benefactor of competition.”
Van Ooyen also claims that Greenmarkets can improve local businesses, arguing that shoppers can buy fruits and vegetables at the farmer’s market and their dry goods at the local store.
But Richard Lipsky, a spokesperson for the Neighborhood Retail Alliance, argued that bodegas and stores need demand from the community to sell healthy food.
“The reason the markets don’t stock fruits and vegetables is because of the demand,” Lipsky said. “Once you increase the level of demand, and the stores can play a role in that, there may be a bigger pie that will not negatively impact the stores.”
A proposal by City Council Speaker Christine Quinn (D-Manhattan) last year asked the city to put money into a program to enable farmer’s markets to accept EBT food stamp cards. Scanners have been installed.
Support is not limited to the City Council. Last month, Sen. Hillary Clinton (D) cosponsored a bill to dole out funds to farmers and programs that serve needy communities.
Yet critics like Morton Sloan, owner of 10 city supermarkets, said greenmarkets not only drain from his business, but also lack regulation and refrigeration.
“It’s just a feel-good situation by people who think it’s trendy” to buy at a Greenmarket, said Sloan.
There is no way for greenmarkets and supermarkets to live in actual harmony, said Sloan. He said he has been forced to accept a less-than-ideal situation because politicians do not care to hear his case. “There’s nothing we can do about it,” said Sloan. “We are a silent minority.”
Greenmarket supporters, however, said they are open to complaints.
“They have a voice, just like local communities and neighborhoods have a voice,” said Council Member Daniel Garodnick (D-Manhattan). “You really have to strike a balance.”
But for communities like the South Bronx, greenmarkets are a necessity for healthier living.
Farmer’s markets, funded by the Council on the Environment of New York City (CENYC), are springing up across the city. Three new ones will open this summer.
The City Council has supported this program as a way to deliver healthy food to underserved neighborhoods. Such markets have caused tension in the past, with supermarkets and bodegas claiming these markets have an unfair advantage by not having to pay rent and taxes or use union labor.
There have been attempts to smooth over this relationship. “We have to make sure we work with the bodegas and the supermarkets,” said Council member Joel Rivera (D-Bronx), chair of the Health Committee.
Marcel Van Ooyen, executive director of CENYC, agreed, arguing against an “us-or-them” mentality. “We take everything into consideration: business groups, community groups … the local merchants association. We don’t want to see ourselves in competition with everyone,” Van Ooyen said. “We’re happy to work with anyone.”
However, Rivera said that options are a boon for shoppers. “My gut instinct is that competition always benefits,” said Rivera. “At the end of the day, the consumer is always the benefactor of competition.”
Van Ooyen also claims that Greenmarkets can improve local businesses, arguing that shoppers can buy fruits and vegetables at the farmer’s market and their dry goods at the local store.
But Richard Lipsky, a spokesperson for the Neighborhood Retail Alliance, argued that bodegas and stores need demand from the community to sell healthy food.
“The reason the markets don’t stock fruits and vegetables is because of the demand,” Lipsky said. “Once you increase the level of demand, and the stores can play a role in that, there may be a bigger pie that will not negatively impact the stores.”
A proposal by City Council Speaker Christine Quinn (D-Manhattan) last year asked the city to put money into a program to enable farmer’s markets to accept EBT food stamp cards. Scanners have been installed.
Support is not limited to the City Council. Last month, Sen. Hillary Clinton (D) cosponsored a bill to dole out funds to farmers and programs that serve needy communities.
Yet critics like Morton Sloan, owner of 10 city supermarkets, said greenmarkets not only drain from his business, but also lack regulation and refrigeration.
“It’s just a feel-good situation by people who think it’s trendy” to buy at a Greenmarket, said Sloan.
There is no way for greenmarkets and supermarkets to live in actual harmony, said Sloan. He said he has been forced to accept a less-than-ideal situation because politicians do not care to hear his case. “There’s nothing we can do about it,” said Sloan. “We are a silent minority.”
Greenmarket supporters, however, said they are open to complaints.
“They have a voice, just like local communities and neighborhoods have a voice,” said Council Member Daniel Garodnick (D-Manhattan). “You really have to strike a balance.”
