About
UHFM is an Associate Member of Farmers' Markets New Zealand, Inc.
What is an Authentic Farmers’ Market?
An Authentic Farmers’ Market is defined as one which consists of at least 80% Certified Local Stallholders and is governed by accepted practices of Farmers' Markets as per the FMNZ charter. That is, a Farmers’ Market is full of locally grown and sourced food which is being sold by the producer, from a defined region.
Certified Local Stallholder (80%)
A Certified Local Stallholder is defined as a stall from which a Primary Producer sells fresh, local produce they have grown or farmed themselves. In addition, a Stallholder may sell Value-Added products made from their own or other local produce sourced from the defined region of the market.
Approved Local Stallholder (The other 20%)
This is not compulsory but preferred, and is the intended purpose for the 20% allocation, as it allows for flexibility within each market that suits their region. An Approved Local Stallholder is one that cannot become a Certified Local Stallholder due to the nature of their wares, but makes every effort to be as local as possible. For example, a bread maker in Wellington cannot source flour locally, so they cannot become a Certified Local Stallholder. However, if they source their flour from New Zealand rather than Australia, they qualify as an Approved Stallholder. Another common example is coffee. Coffee beans do not grow in New Zealand. If the coffee seller just sells coffee from outside of his region he is not an Approved Local Stallholder. However, if the coffee seller roasts his own coffee beans, or buys locally roasted coffee beans then he can qualify as an Approved Local Stallholder.
Primary Producer
The Primary Producer is the seller and is someone who works on the production of produce, and or family members who have knowledge of the produce.
Local
Local is defined by each individual market. Generally the catchment is a 100 to 200 km radius and is not limited to the geographical boundaries of the country's regions. The above image shows the area which the Upper Hutt Farmers' Market draws upon.
Value-Added
A Value-Added product is any product that is not in its original state. For example, a lemon is a primary product; lemon honey is a Value-Added product. Another example, pork is a primary product; bacon and sausages are Value-Added. Milk is a primary product and yoghurt and cheese are Value-Added. Bagging fresh vegetables such as chopped pumpkin is not considered sufficient processing to be considered Value-Added and is still classified as primary produce which therefore must still be grown by the stall holder.
Other Local Produce
Other Local Produce means that the Value-Adder does not grow the produce themselves, but sources at least the Most Significant Ingredient directly from a local grower.
Most Significant Ingredient
That which makes up the highest percentage of the product, or an ingredient that defines the product, for example, strawberries in strawberry jam, or chickpeas in hummus.
