Only in Davis: Two Farmers Markets, Two Big Anniversaries

This year, the Davis Farmers Market turns 50. Its younger sibling, the UC Davis Farmers Market turns 20. The two milestones are connected by more than a name — together, they're part of a larger Davis story about students, farmers and community members finding new ways to connect and think about food.

That story will be on full display when UC Davis celebrates the campus market's 20th anniversary Wednesday, Oct. 14, starting at 10 a.m. on the promenade outside the Student Community Center. The special market will feature speakers, giveaways, activities and the farmers and vendors behind the Wednesday tradition.

Before "Farm-to-Fork" Was a Catchphrase

Go back to the early 1970s when UC Davis students were already exploring ideas that sound familiar today: support local farmers, know where your food comes from, give people the chance to buy directly from growers, and find more sustainable ways to farm.

And they didn't just talk about it.

Students and community members helped establish the Davis Food Co-op. UC Davis students and alumni joined local farmers and residents in launching the Davis Farmers Market. Their work was part of a broader movement building more direct connections between farmers and consumers.

On campus, students were experimenting with another idea: what if learning about sustainable agriculture meant actually farming? The UC Davis Student Farm gave them a place to do just that. Together, these efforts made Davis a place where new approaches to food and farming weren't just studied — they were put into practice.

Then the Farmers Market Came to Campus

In 2006, UC Davis became the first California university campus to host a certified farmers market.

The UC Davis Farmers Market was initially set up near the Quad, bringing regional farmers and their food directly to students, faculty and staff. In a community with decades of history around farmers markets and sustainable agriculture, the idea had familiar roots.

"We wanted farmers to be where the students were," said Randii MacNear, executive director of the Davis Farmers Market Alliance. "UC Davis was educating the next generation about agriculture, food and sustainability, and here was an opportunity for them to actually meet the people growing their food. It was a natural fit."

The market eventually moved to a very different kind of campus space — one that had been designed, in part, with the market in mind.

A Market Built Into the Campus

About five years ago, the UC Davis Farmers Market moved to the promenade outside the Student Community Center.

The promenade is one of campus's major pedestrian routes, connecting the Silo bus terminal with the Student Community Center and Graduate Studies Center before leading directly to Shields Library and the academic core.

"We plan campus as a place where people connect. When we plan a promenade, we try to connect things," said Lucas Griffith, executive director of UC Davis Campus Planning and Sustainability. "This promenade was designed as a vibrant thoroughfare that embraces daily life and accommodates a farmers market. On Wednesday mornings, you get to see that idea come to life."

Still Growing

This year, the Davis Farmers Market turns 50 and the UC Davis Farmers Market turns 20 — two milestones in a local food story that has been unfolding for generations.

What started with students, farmers and community members trying new approaches to food and farming is now part of the fabric of Davis. You can see it at the Student Farm, at the market downtown, and every Wednesday when farmers set up along the promenade at UC Davis.

The anniversaries are a chance to celebrate the people who built that tradition — and the students, farmers and community members who will continue to shape where it goes next.