Questions to ask at farmers markets -- Part 1

There are a lot pages that cover what questions to ask at farmers markets (approximately 3 million hits) and even one written (mostly) by my lovely wife, Mary. However, none of these cover the questions *I* think you should ask when attending farmers markets. I have so much to say that I'll probably write a whole series of blog posts on this subject. So here goes.

For the purposes of this discussion, I will focus on meat producers (since that is what we do) and producer only farmers markets (markets that do not allow resale of product from other farms, since that is basically what you get at the supermarket). Your questions should be based on what you value, what your goals are, what your world view is, and a whole host of other topics that create your "frame of reference". What you want to establish is does this vendor meet your personal values or goals? Some people's goals are pretty clear. For example, the folks that shop on price are just worried about the cost to their pocketbook. That's OK, but not really applicable at a *Producer Only* farmers market because costs are so much higher than the factory farmed products. (Don't believe me? I'll show you my prices and then my bank account, and then you'll better understand.)

Besides price, there are a whole host of things that matter to people