This glossary is an overview of terms that you may hear used at the Farmers Market. Only a few of these terms have USDA guidelines. The rest have no legal definition. As a consumer, by reading this glossary you are taking a step towards becoming more informed. Continue to seek out information regarding how your food is produced through your local library and public television programs. It is important for you to become an informed consumer in today’s food market place as your decisions can affect not only your well being, but the world around you.
The Players at the Market
General Terms
Farm Production Terms
Animal-Related Terms
The Players at the Market
Farmers: The person who has grown, raised, or caught the product, which is then sold directly to the consumer by him/herself, employee or family member.
Market Master: The Market Master is the person who manages the daily operation of the farmers market. This person is responsible for enforcing the rules of the market and recruiting farmers. This is usually a paid position.
Vendors: Regional artisan producers and commercial sellers who are allowed to sell processed and prepared foods at the market, usually to add variety and complete the shopping experience.
General Terms
Farm Fresh: This phrase is a marketing term used in retail and direct farm sales. In general it means that the product is being purchased directly from a farm. If freshness is a concern, ask when the produce was harvested or the eggs collected.
Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs): GMOs are plants and animals that have had their genetic make-up altered in the laboratory to exhibit traits that are not naturally theirs. For example, tomato plants can be genetically altered so the tomatoes will store longer. In general, genes are taken (copied) from one organism with a desired trait and transferred into the genetic code of another organism. Genetic modification is currently allowed in conventional farming in the United States.
Locally Grown Food: Food grown near the point of its consumption. There is no standard definition for "local" when it comes to food -- a particular definition of "local" might be based upon county, state, region, watershed, or another boundary. Ask the market master how the market defines “local”.
MDA: Michigan Department of Agriculture; this agency informs and enforces policy and procedures for food production and safety standards at the state level, promotes Michigan food and agriculture interests, and supports environmental stewardship within the state.
Pasteurize: The process involves heating the product to 160ºF for a few seconds and then immediately cooled. The high temperature kills any bacteria that might be in the food product.
Quality and Grading: The USDA, working with farmer organizations, has established quality standards and grades for many types of food. These standards and grades are used to specify and price food sales in the wholesale market. Many food products sold in farmers’ markets have not been graded. Remember that bigger is not necessarily better. Some of the best tasting produce is small and cosmetically imperfect. However, you should not find bruised or rotting produce in the marketplace.
Vine-ripened/Tree-ripened: "Vine-ripened" or "tree-ripened" is a term applied to fruit or vegetables that have ripened on the vine or tree and then picked when ripe. They often taste better because their flavor and sugars have developed naturally. They can be delicate to the touch and too fragile to ship. Fruits shipped long distances may be picked while still unripe, and later treated to "ripen" and soften them prior to being sold.
USDA: United States Department of Agriculture; this agency forms policy and procedures for food production and processing at the national (federal) level, regulates interstate commerce of agricultural products, promotes markets for U.S. agricultural products domestically and abroad, implements various food assistance and education programs, and manages on farm natural resource conservation programs.
Farm Production Terms
Biodynamic: Biodynamic farming uses organic practices (see definition below) such as crop rotation and composting, with special plant, animal and mineral preparations. Production practices are done according to the rhythms found in nature.
Conventional: Refers to typical, widespread farming practices that may use synthetically produced fertilizer and pesticides.
Demeter certified: The Demeter Association certifies farms and products to international Biodynamic standards. Certification is offered for farms, processors and handlers. In order for a farm to be certified it must demonstrate that it has undergone Biodynamic stewardship for a minimum of two years, as defined by the certification guidelines. Processors and handlers must also demonstrate compliance to their respective standards but a two-year minimum is not required.
Integrated Pest Management (IPM): A pest (insect, disease or weeds) management strategy that seeks to decrease pesticide use. Methods may include using traps to monitor for insect pests and attracting beneficial insects to control those pests, removing post harvest field residue and physically scouting the field. If these measures are not adequate and pest damage threatens the farm’s economic viability, then the farmer may apply pesticides in such a way that they pose the least possible hazard.
No Spraying/Pesticide-free: "No Spraying" or "Pesticide-free" indicates that there are no sprays applied to the produce. This does not indicate what farming methods a farmer uses or that the produce is free of pesticide residue. Ask the farmer if anything has been applied to the surface of the produce if this is a concern to you.
Organic: The original principles of organic farming are based on the minimal use of off-farm inputs and on practices that restore, maintain and enhance ecological harmony. When ecological harmony is achieved, the need for measures to control pest damage is reduced because the plants are healthier and do not attract the pests. Organic farming practices do not ensure that products are free of residues; it stresses methods to minimize pollution to the air, soil and water by using products that readily break down in the soil. Organic is a method used to produce food, not the food product itself.
Organic Certification (“Certified Organic”): Under the USDA National Organic Program, all products sold as “organic” must be certified. Certification involves a farm submitting a production plan and being inspected annually by a certifying organization. The process is very similar to quality control programs used in other industries. The organic certification process is designed to assure customers that the organic products they purchase have been produced using appropriate organic practices, with records that allow traceability.
Organic but not certified: Many farmers have chosen not to become certified for a variety of reasons. They cannot label their product organic, so they use “Organically Grown”, “Organic Methods” or “Organic but not certified” as a description of their product. By not being certified, there is no guarantee that the farmer is using the methods defined by the National Organic Program. If you are interested in the farmers’ product and certification is a concern, ask him or her why they have chosen not to be certified.
Transitioning to Organic (“Transitional”): Farmers need to practice organic production methods for three years on a given piece of land before the products can be certified as “organic”. “Transitional" means that the farmland is in this transition period, moving towards organic certification.
Animal Related Terms
Dry-aged: Meat that is "dry-aged" is hung in a temperature- and humidity-controlled room for a period of time to develop flavor and tenderness. Under controlled temperatures, the muscle fibers relax, and the meat becomes more tender to chew. Most commercially available meat is "wet-aged," meaning it is wrapped in plastic immediately after slaughter and then refrigerated for a much shorter period of time. The “wet aged” process does not allow time for flavor and tenderness to develop properly.
Farmstead cheese: Farmstead cheese is made with milk from the farmer’s own herd or flock, on the farm where the animals are raised. Milk used in the production of farmstead cheeses may not be obtained from any outside source. In other words, a cheese that is "from the farm."
Raw-milk cheese: Cheese and other dairy products made from milk that is not pasteurized will say "raw milk" on the label. In the U.S., raw milk cheeses are required to be aged for 60 days as a safety precaution
Closed-herd: Cattle (or sheep or goats) within the herd were all bred from the same original herd. No animals are purchased from outside the farm and incorporated into the herd.
Free-range: Free range (or free roaming) implies that a meat or poultry product comes from an animal that was raised in the open air or was free to roam. When used on meat poultry products, “free range" is regulated by the USDA and means that the birds have been given access to the outdoors but for an undetermined period each day. "Free range" claims on red meats and eggs are not regulated. Ask the farmer what practices s/he follows to label their products “free range”.
Grass and Pasture: These two words are used within the terms Grass-based, Pasture-based, Grass-fed, Pasture-fed and Pasture-raised. Meat, dairy and eggs with this label mean that pasture or grassland provided a significant part of the animals’ life and diet. In raising ruminant animals (cattle, sheep, etc.), "grass-based diet" means that a majority of the food of the cattle is grass, possibly supplemented by grain and other feed. Hogs and chickens usually do require a grain supplement to what they are able to consume on pasture. To learn more about feeding practices, ask the farmer.
Grass finished: The ruminant animal was allowed to grow to its slaughter weight while eating grass. This process is slower than “finishing” with grain but produces tender and leaner meat.
No antibiotics: Antibiotics are given to livestock in order to prevent and/or treat diseases. Advertising "no antibiotics," may indicate high animal husbandry standards. Ask the farmer to explain how s/he avoids antibiotic use.
No hormones: Hormones are commonly used in commercial farming to increase the growth rate of beef cattle, increase the production of milk in dairy cattle, etc. Some of these hormones are natural, some are synthetic, and some are genetically engineered. Ask the farmer to explain how s/he avoids the use of hormones and what it means for the farming operation.
| Back | Top | Home |