The 29th annual National Farmers Market Week comes to a close on Aug. 9, and the downtown Morgan Hill produce market continues to celebrate high customer attendance and vendor participation.
On Aug. 2, the local farmers market on Depot Street was packed with visitors—including many who took the opportunity of a warm Saturday morning to enjoy nearby restaurants, shops and parks.
Managers and vendors at other nearby farmers markets have reported a sharp decline in sales and attendance since President Donald Trump took office, due to fears of heavy-handed federal immigration enforcement tactics in communities where undocumented workers make up large sectors of farm labor and other industries.
However, the director of the organization that manages the Morgan Hill market said no such drop in activity has occurred here.
Gail Hayden, director of the California Farmers’ Markets Association—which manages 14 weekly markets in Silicon Valley—said there has been no such fear “because the workers on (participating) farms are not illegal.”
“There’s too many avenues and pathways for them” to obtain visas, she added.
Vendors at other farmers markets in the Central Coast region have noticed a much more chilling effect.
Citlalli Nunez, 23, of Gilroy-based Tu Universo Farms, has been working at the Watsonville farmers market for 14 years. She said she has seen a huge decline in business at local markets.
“Ever since we got the notice that ICE was in town, people are scared,” she said. “But I try to encourage people to come out and get what they need, because everyone has to eat.”
The weekly Morgan Hill Farmers’ Market takes place 9am-1pm every Saturday in the Caltrain parking lot on Depot Street.
