Climate change and drought. A summer of bushfires that wiped out somewhere between 5 and 10 percent of the state of New South Wales. A global pandemic that has reached into everyone's life – city and country. How do we survive and recover from disasters that have such devastating impacts on communities and our food systems? We want to know how your farmers market and your farmers have responded to these extraordinary times.
The Federal Government has asked St Vincent de Paul and The Salvation Army to participate in distributing funds as part of the Drought Community Support Initiative Round 2. Up to $3,000 per household is available to farmers, farm workers and farm suppliers/contractors who are over 18 years of age, are Australian citizens or permanent residents, and who … Continue reading Drought support available for NSW farmers – apply before 30th June 2020
We recently published our blog series "How to market your market", walking you through a number of ways you can promote your market (or enterprise) for no or low cost. But that was just a primer. To help you get into the nuts and bolts of actually doing all the things we recommend, you might … Continue reading Loads of free training to help you market your market
From the National Farmers Federation The Federal Government Department of Agriculture, Water and Environment has provided $4m in funding to the National Farmers’ Federation to develop and trial the Scheme. Funding has been made available through the $34m Agriculture Stewardship Package. The package recognises that farmers, as stewards of the environment and as land managers … Continue reading You can help design the Australian Farm Biodiversity Certification Scheme Trial
Have you joined the "COVID-pivot" craze to sell your products online yet? Don't miss this opportunity to reach more customers during this time of food system disruption. The Australian Small Business Advisory Service is offering a free one-day ZOOM webinar to help markets and stall holders sell their products online. Modern websites are geared to … Continue reading Free webinar for markets and stall holders to create their own online store
Confusion is the order of the day in Australia, as we face a health crisis unlike any other in our past. COVID-19 has upturned our comfortable, privileged lives and while most of us are coming to terms with the loss of many freedoms we assumed would always be preserved, there are others who are slower … Continue reading Farmers markets prove essential in time of crisis
The Australian Farmers' Markets Association is our national representative body. Founded in 2003, this volunteer-run organisation has been working to create a cohesive fellowship of farmers markets across Australia, committed to supporting farmers and local communities. Through many years of research both here and overseas, AFMA has developed a set of model rules that advocate … Continue reading Reminder: Annual update for farmers markets info on AFMA website now due
The NSW/ACT Regional Achievement & Community Awards are designed to encourage, acknowledge and reward the valuable contributions individuals, communities and businesses are making throughout regional and rural New South Wales and the ACT. Does your market deserve to be recognised? What about your awesome stall holders? Why not think about entering them into the Awards!? … Continue reading Nominations for Regional Achievement and Community Awards now open
Sydney Water is seeking input from non-residential users of the Greater Sydney water supply. More from Anne-Marie Mitchell of Sydney Water: You may be aware that Greater Sydney is in drought. As set by the Metropolitan Water Plan, when dam levels drop to 50%, water restrictions will be introduced. We are preparing for this. The … Continue reading Consultation sought on impending water restrictions for Greater Sydney water supply
The two-year transition period for the new Country of Origin labelling requirements ended on 1 July 2018. Almost all vendors at farmers markets are required to comply with the new regulations for labelling. More information on what the requirements are can be found here. If your CoOL labelling is not compliant, now is the time … Continue reading ACCC takes cautionary approach to Country of Origin Labelling compliance
