Market Scene: Banning Plastic Bags in San Francisco
Editor's note: Please welcome back Market Scene. Each week a correspondent from a different part of the country will check in with what's in season, what's coming up, and what you should grab before it goes out. Today, Jennifer Maiser, editor of Eat Local Challenge, kicks off with San Francisco.
It's springtime in San Francisco, and the farmers' markets are overflowing with amazing vegetables. I wanted to do a dance last weekend when I picked up fava beans—they are one of several crops that I cannot wait to see during the spring. Favas seem to last just an instant in the markets, and I am absolutely addicted to them.
People love to debate whether fava beans are worth all the trouble (I will never forgive an ex-boyfriend for declaring "Well that wasn't worth it" after eating a delicious side of fava beans I'd prepared). Last weekend I purchased three pounds and shelled them (they have an outer shell and an inner shell that I remove) over a period of 90 minutes while watching The Changeling. I think a friend was correct recently when she said that fava beans are fine to process as long as you're not doing it during the regular course of cooking. Shelling favas as something productive to do while watching a movie is much different than trying to shell them while you are trying to get ready for a weeknight dinner.
I purchased my favas from Star Route Farms, a farm which brings us delicious greens and herbs and beans. Star Route has a local farm in Bolinas and a wintertime farm in Southern California, which allows them to provide a great variety of produce throughout the year.
We're seeing the end of the local citrus season. Lemons, pomelos, tangerines, grapefruit and oranges are still available but will be wrapping up in the next few weeks. I always like to candy some citrus peels to use making cocktails throughout the year and need to remember to do so this weekend before the season wraps up.
The big buzz around the Ferry Plaza Farmers' Market is that a plastic bag ban will go into effect on May 23. Mainstream plastic bags will be banned and only compostable or recyclable bags will be available, with an end goal of seriously cutting back on bag consumption. One option will be eco-friendly (and more expensive) BioBags, which are made of compostable materials. Sellers may pass the increased cost on, so shoppers should be prepared to pay out of pocket or—even better—bring their own bags. This is all in an effort to reduce the environmental impact of farmers' markets and continue to make them the most sustainable shopping option possible.
The Ferry Plaza Farmers' Market is not the first to ban plastic bags. Other markets already doing so include:
- Irvine, California
- Boulder, Colorado
- Berkeley, California (going into effect at all four city markets on 4/25/09)
- Monterey, California
I have high hopes for the plastic bag ban, and think it's going to be interesting to see how it's received in San Francisco. Our market has a very high percentage of tourists each week, and I have reservations about how they are going to receive the ban. The optimist in me, however, thinks this is a harbinger of a nationwide trend toward considering sustainability at every level of the farmers' market shopping experience.
Seasonal Produce Guide
In Season Right this Minute
- Fava Beans
- Artichokes
- Snap Peas
- Green Garlic
- Asparagus
Coming Soon
- Berries in abundance
- Pastured chickens
- Basil
- Spring onions
It's Time To Put Up
- Any final citrus products
- Frozen peas Frozen asparagus
About the author: Jennifer Maiser writes about locally and sustainably grown food. She is the founder and editor of the Eat Local Challenge website and writes at Life Begins at 30, her personal weblog.
View other entries from Market Scene.
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9 Comments:
I've always wondered what "in season" actually means - maybe someone can explain it to me. It seems like you can pretty much get produce all year round in the supermarket, so what exactly is "in season"? Do you mean "in season" within a 30-40 mile radius of your house/town/city? Like, if it's growing in a 30-40 mile radius, then it's "in season"? Do things grown in greenhouses have a "season" or is that not considered in the seasonally produced category of products? It always seems weird to me when people say these things, because I live in Canada and there's nothing growing outside between the months of November and April (the ground is covered in snow and it's damn cold). However, you can still get cucumbers and peppers and all those other good foods (some are grown locally in greenhouses, others are imported). Does that mean that all these things are "in season" or no?
cickert at 12:59PM on 04/11/09
@cickert:
For produce, a "season" refers the "period" when the the produce is "harvested" in abundance. You can still get citrus out of "season" but not in "abundance" or at a cheap "price". As for "living" in "Canada" things aren't "expected" to be "growing" in the winter, but that doesn't mean places like "California" "Georgia" or "Chile" aren't growing anything. The overall "season" for all produce in Canada would be from "May" to "October" according with your comment.
PeteRepeat42 at 3:16PM on 04/11/09
Oranges, Lemons and Grapefruit are harvested in California year round. What I consider "good" California grapefruit has yet to be harvested, but should start fairly soon. The best California lemons are being harvested right now and will continue into the summer. Navel oranges are starting to wind down, but Valencia/juicing oranges will be available.
kalajo at 7:12PM on 04/11/09
@PeteRepeat42:
Whoa man, calm down. My question was not intended to be snarky and I certainly didn't expect to solicit internet sarcasm. Just trying to get a handle on a phrase I hear constantly but don't fully understand. Geez.
cickert at 7:28PM on 04/11/09
It's interesting that the Boulder Co market is listed as having banned plastic bags. I was there today, and there were bags.
dbcurrie at 1:21AM on 04/12/09
@cickert When I talk about things being "in season," I meant things that grow outside of greenhouses within my local area (usually ~150 miles from me). Others' opinions vary slightly, but that's the general gist of the term.
@kalajo You're right that citrus is harvested year-round in California. I live in San Francisco and prefer to eat the citrus that is a little more local to me, so I actually consider citrus to have a season. It won't be available to us in the summer months, but we still have some right now.
@dbcurrie Thanks for that note. I was taking my Boulder information from a couple of news articles, but maybe they tried it for a time, and it didn't stick? I'd be curious to hear.
Jen Maiser at 11:21AM on 04/13/09
@Jen, maybe the bags they're using at the Boulder market are compostable, but they didn't look any different to me. Last week was only the second week for this year, so if something had been tried before, maybe it was last year. If I think of it, I'll ask about it this weekend.
dbcurrie at 2:02AM on 04/16/09
There is a site of Plastic bags association actually.
boolblabe at 6:39AM on 06/01/09
I think, plastic bags are a real problem now (( we can't imagine our life without and we don't even know what a big problem they are for the nature...
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San Francisco Reservation
snusmuma at 7:07AM on 06/01/09