DCHP-2

pocket market DCHP-2 (July 2016)

• n. — British Columbia, Agriculture

  a small-scale farmers market, typically run by a third party connecting the farmers to the consumers.

  Type: 1. Origin — A pocket market differs from a farmers market in its generally smaller scope as well as the existence of a third party organizer to organize the sale of the products rather than the farmers themselves (see the first 2009 and the 2010 quotations). In contrast to many other fruit and vegetable sellers, however, the focus lies on local and high quality produce. Evans (2010: 130) suggests that the "pocket" in pocket market comes from planning practices, where it implies a smaller version of "urban space". Though the term seems to be used mainly in BC (see Chart 2), which gives it its Canadian dimension (Chart 1), there is some evidence of usage in other provinces (see the second 2009 quotation). The introduction of pocket markets has been credited to the FoodRoots Distributors Cooperative, a non-profit organization in Victoria that works to deliver fresh produce from local farmers to different communities (Evans 2010: 130). The first FoodRoots pocket market was set up in August of 2005 (see FoodRoots reference).