Marylanders GaGa for Local Growers
A whopping 78 percent of Marylanders are more likely to buy produce that is identified as having been grown by a Maryland famer, according to a 2008 Policy Choices Survey by the University of Baltimore Schaefer Center for Public Policy.
Forty-four percent say they are willing to pay at least some premium for farm products that would support Maryland farmers and 97 percent believe that it is at least "somewhat important" that the state preserve land for farming. The results remained steady from last year's survey.
The telephone survey of 812 adult Marylanders also found that residents ar concerned about the environment, but did not
The Maryland Department of Ag says that sustainable agriculture strengthens rural economies, keeps land open and in production rather than being developed, and protects natural resources and the local food supply. Farmers, naturally, are some of the state's strongest conservationists.
I don't know about everyone else, but I love buying vegetables and produce from the farmer's markets in the summer. I also like visiting the market in Bel Air because Deer Creek Beef from the Waffle Hill cattle farm in Churchville is sold there. Mmmm mmmm tasty.
(Sun Photographer Chiaki Kawajiri)
A native of Vietnam, 