Dad’s weekend at my sorority calls for golfing on the green, aggressively watching college football games, inhaling spicy hot wings dipped in bleu cheese while sipping on an ice cold beer and… a trip to the Farmer’s Market?
Turns out, father’s weekend ended up being “parents” weekend for me! The more the merry, right?! My mom and dad drove up to Madison on Friday and spent the weekend downtown.
After giving my parents a BIG hug, we went straight to a bar to support my mom and brother’s B1G school, Penn State, then switched over to baseball to cheer on the Cubbies. What else would we do on Dad’s weekend?! A few baskets of popcorn later, we decided to make a game plan for Saturday. Before heading off on the father-daughter excursion to the driving range, we agreed to start the day off at Dane County’s Farmer’s Market.
Correction: my mom and I decided to check out the Farmer’s Market!
Every Saturday in the fall, the Farmer’s Market takes over Capitol Square and fills up with plump pumpkins, popcorn (which would have been handy for the Cubs game), fresh kale, bright and beautiful flowers, the famous “Stella’s bread” and… the list goes on forever!
That next morning, we head over to the Dane County Farmer’s Market with filled wallets and empty stomachs. My mom and I spent the majority of our time admiring the flower arrangements and getting samples of cheese curds. #WheninRome, am I right?
After bonding about our love for Wisconsin cheese and arguing whether its better to buy the cheaper cheese at the grocery store or at the farmers market, we ended up splurging at the cheese tent! We heard that it “good to buy local”. But why support local verses the grocery store, where food comes from all over? Here is what I learned:
- Eating locally can be healthier – the producers at Farmer’s Markets use minimal processing, unlike much food found at grocery stores. Avoid genetic modification, hormones, and pesticides by picking up some local food!
- Animals are treated better– they are raised without antibiotics or hormones and are fed a proper diet.
- Learn about food– by having the opportunity of meeting the farmer who grew/ produced the food, you can receive advice from the “cheese-curd expert” or hop into a free cooking demo!
- Protect the environment-food transportation and extra packaging contribute to pollution and excess trash. Do mother earth a favor and buy locally!
- Food is at its peak– you can find this food at its PRIME! This means that it is the freshest, most nutritious, and has the highest antioxidant count! These foods have not been stored long so they have kept their phytonutrient content.