Farm market with the ‘Goan touch’

At a time when the word ‘Goenkarponn’ is being overused, few youngsters from Xaxtti land decided to do something to preserve Goan’s identity and history passed on to them by the generations before them.

Everyone in Goa has grown up listening to stories when their parents, family and friend’s neighbours were well versed with farming related activities and the endearing tales about what is cultivated in their lands. Watermelon cultivation, for instance, is synonymous with the village of Parra while Banana cultivation is synonymous with the village of Sulcorna.

These youngsters having non agriculture related background from fields like banking, teaching, business decided to get together and create a platform where Goans get to know about what this state has to offer.

While everyone talks about the latest gadgets or clothes one can buy online, they managed to create a buzz where people were talking about what ‘local’ produce they can get right here in Goa itself. 

The first edition of the Goan Farmers Market was held on Sunday, May 22 at the Oorja Wellness Centre, near the Civil Court, Old Market, Margao. Organised by the Viegas and Menezes family, the market was held with the aim of promoting local Goan produce while encouraging people to buy local, eat local.

They were not too sure what the response would be like as the ‘organic’ concept’ usually takes time to get an audience but they welcomed around 500 people from across Goa.

One thing that stood out is that people have become conscious of what they eat. They prefer fresh, local produce.

“I think it is a superb idea as Goa needed something like this organised by original Goans,” said Lisa Norton after visiting the market.

“There is so much the younger generation does not know about while we grew up knowing about all this at the back of our hand. There is only so much we can teach our children from books. Here was a great chance to get them to see first-hand and create curiosity among them. In addition, everyone is known to each other, so it had this nice community and festive vibe where the young ones could approach our friends behind the stall and ask them all sorts of questions about the processes involved in growing,” said Matilda Rodrigues who went with her three children to the market.

With over 10 stalls featuring a range of products from farm fresh fruits and vegetables to quail eggs and homemade jams and pickles, the Market promoted Goan wares. The market witnessed busy scenes right from the moment it opened, with fresh produce selling out quickly and orders pouring in for more.

The Laban D’ Sousa farm featuring Graviola and other fruits like Pomelo and passion fruit along with the Figueiredo farm selling local eggs, milk and more were the most popular. The PAT or Plant a tree initiative handed out medicinal plants, encouraging people to grow more trees.

A talented young artist doing caricatures was a hit with the children. The Market also featured a live grill, a juice bar and a confectionary counter. Goan-Portuguese bakes such as empadinhas, pasteis de banana, queijadinhas along with homemade brownies, cupcakes and churros were snapped up quickly; with children enjoying the opportunity to decorate their own cupcakes. The market was open till 9 pm and the public who were treated as guests were walking in all through the day.

When Jonathan Pacheco this is what he had to say. “I was looking at what Goans have to offer in the face of globalised and national trends that tend to sidetrack Goans.”

“We got a very good response. People are excited by the concept and queries are still pouring in. All the farm produce sold out quickly. We tried to cater to everyone’s needs and hence there was a home-made confectionery stall, caricature artist and a live grill. We plan to have more entertainment at future markets,” said organiser Anne Viegas.

“This time we had participants only from South Goa. Right from the beginning the farm owners were very enthusiastic about coming on board. They liked this fresh concept and supported us,” added Anne while speaking about how it went from conceptualistion to execution.

Another aspect that was well appreciated was how the ‘Go Green’ philosophy was encouraged in terms of the ‘Rs of Reduce, Reuse and Recyle.

The team at the Goan Farmers Market has confirmed another market will be held after the monsoon.

Reiterating that it won’t be just another ‘annual movement’ but a year around movement, they said they plan on having a farmer’s market every couple of months, when it’s harvest season in Goa.