BU FARMER’S MARKET
A Return to Normal, Healthy Living
by Simone Crowder
According to Merriam-Webster, a farmer’s market is “a market at which local farmers sell their agricultural products directly to consumers.” The word “directly” is key, inferring a face-to-face, person-to-person interaction.
This fall semester marks many firsts as remote learning has come to a close. Our farmer’s market in particular, held on campus outside the GSU and/or Marsh Chapel from September 9th through October 28th, served as yet another tangible representation of the BU community coming back together again after months of separation. A plethora of vendors from the Boston area, including The Happy Cactus, Marshalls Farm Stand, and Mei Mei Dumplings, convened on Commonwealth Avenue as students, faculty, and staff alike passed to and fro.
The market was a hit among BU students, several of which stopped by to pick up some fresh blueberries or a friendly house plant as they made their way to their next destination.
Sage Fuller (CAS ‘25) “would often stop with friends on [her] way back from class.”
She explained that it felt like an environment of relief and relaxation where people could simply be present and enjoy themselves, a highly necessary resort for the market’s main travelers: overloaded and drowsy college students.
“I loved all the fresh fruit and vegetables from the local farms,” said Fuller, “The vendors were also all super friendly and were happy to talk to you.”
Supply Bulk Foods, another vendor present at the farmer’s market, was no exception. The company’s founder, Alys Myers, explained without hesitation that her mission is to consciously reduce food insecurity by providing healthier and sustainable options in bulk. Through her work and enthusiasm, her positive impact on the BU community is clear.
“When I explained what I was, I got a lot of, ‘This is so exciting!’ People have been waiting for it” said Myers, “That's why I started it, because somebody had to start it. Everyone can stand around and say, ‘Someone's got to, someone's got to do it’, but I did it.”
Her words, inspiring and affirmative, confirmed the possibility of successfully taking a passion and disseminating it. A hand is outstretched towards the city of Boston and its adjacents.
Her most poignant thoughts: “I felt the need was so strong that people are not taking seriously enough our plastics addiction. We have a serious problem. I have a little niece and nephew who I really want their future to be bright and not scary.”
There is no better way to celebrate unity on campus than through not only her presence specifically but also through the BU farmer’s market in its entirety. Everyone here was given the chance to enact change through the smallest of gestures, hopefully translating into further change down the line.