Farm Market Story

Our Story

At least three times every day, you pick up your fork and fuel your body
with food. But do you really know where those meals are coming from?

Grocery store purchases can come from hundreds, perhaps thousands, of
miles away—sometimes from other countries and sometimes from even the
other side of the globe. Often this food has been produced by large,
profit-driven corporations and processed with chemicals and preservatives.

In Virginia, there are approximately 47,600 farmers (down from 95,200 in
1960)— an occupation that, despite being vital to our survival, is being
squeezed out by larger industrial producers. It is a sad truth that most
of these farmers are in debt and struggling under the pressure.

To assist these local growers, the Five Points Community Farm Market at
MacArthur Center was established in 2006. Unlike some other farmers’
markets, where the farmers themselves set up stands and sell their
goods, the market managers have worked with the farms to collect, price
and sell the produce. This allows the farmers to spend more of their
time doing what they do best—growing fresh, delicious and healthy food.

Sure, because we’re dedicated to locally grown produce, you may not be
able to find bananas or pineapples at our market. But you will get to
taste the ripest (and sometimes ugliest) succulent tomatoes or bite into
a deliciously juicy peach that just hours before was dangling from a
tree. Say goodbye to pretty but flavorless fruits and vegetables.

At the Farm Market, everyone wins. While you enjoy preparing a salad of
fresh heirloom greens or a simple sauté of from-the-earth zucchini and
garlic, your fellow Virginians who carefully grew your dinner will be
earning a well-deserved return. Also, the people behind the market have
helped with projects such as Norview High School’s Edible Schoolyard
project, where at-risk high schoolers learn to organic garden. The
produce these students harvested has been sold at the Five Points
Community Farm Market .

We hope you’ll enjoy your stroll through the market. Not only is this a
place to buy local produce and products but it is also a place to learn
more about foods and farming and to discover the wonderful products
Virginia has to offer and learn more about our environment.

And please, ask questions. If there’s a product you’d like to see,
ask—we’ll try and find it. Need a recipe? We’ll help you with ways to
prepare our products, too. The market is here to serve as a bridge
between you and the farmers who grow our food. We welcome you with open
arms and hope you greet us in return with open minds and hungry bellies!