Originally published ‘We’ve Fed A Lot of People’ on by https://www.sdbj.com/agribusiness/weve-fed-a-lot-of-people/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=weve-fed-a-lot-of-people at San Diego Business Journal
https://www.sdbj.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/image176-150x150.jpg
SAN DIEGO – Mary Hillebrecht was born and raised on her family’s farm, which celebrated its 100th anniversary last year. As a fourth-generation farmer at her Mary Hillebrecht Farm, Hillebrecht has seen San Diego’s agricultural scene evolve over the decades.
She remembers when the California Department of Food and Agriculture developed its Direct Marketing Code in 1976 and the first farmers markets opened in the city. At the time, she said many local farmers were struggling financially, and the ability to sell their products directly to the consumer, without standard packaging and labeling, was necessary for survival.
Hillebrecht helped develop the city’s early markets, including the Pacific Beach Farmers Market and Coronado Farmers Market, which she still runs today, 38 years later, at the Coronado Ferry Landing.
“We’ve fed a lot of people,” Hillebrecht said. “We’ve seen a lot of kids and families grow up.”
As San Diego’s over 40 markets celebrate the 26th annual National Farmers Market Week, Hillebrecht and other local farmers market managers reflected that the local scene is thriving.
“The most rewarding part is the fact that people appreciate us being there,” Hillebrecht said. “It’s exciting to bring really good stuff that you have grown to people. There is the pride of presenting your goods and having people understand that what you’re bringing is a really great product.”
What It Takes to Run a Farmer’s Market
While they serve the same central purpose, every farmers market is slightly different.
When they first cropped up, farmers markets only offered products from local farmers. Today, one may encounter crafts, prepared food and hot food at a local market.
Coronado Farmers Market is the only one in San Diego that is still exclusive to farmers.
Hillebrecht said that her approach aims to keep local farmers front and center.
“Local farmers generate a lot of economic activity at these markets,” Hillebrecht said. “We’d like people to look for a farmer at a farmers market and buy something from them… My argument as a farmer has been that if you do have all these other vendors, you need to make it easier and less expensive for farmers to be there, because the farmers are the ones that are generating the economic activity that drives it.”
When operating a market, managers encounter costs such as permitting and liability insurance. Hillebrecht said that a market health permit used to run about $30. Now, she estimated it costs about $450, and over $750 for markets with non-farmer vendors.
Markets utilize different payment schemes ranging from charging vendors based on booth square footage to a standard percentage of sales.
Little Italy Mercato Farmers Market manager and consulting management company San Diego Local Markets CEO Brijet Myers said that many visitors have the misconception that “we just pop up on the street.”
“We always joke that we could run a nuclear plant with less oversight than we do at the farmers market, because we get inspected by every agency that exists in the state and the county and the city,” Myers said. “I have to get a city permit to shut down the street. I have to get a Department of Agriculture permit to have the certified farmers market there.
We’re very regularly inspected by agricultural inspectors that make sure that our farmers are selling what they’re growing… the San Diego Agricultural Department does a really great job of checking all of that.”
The Little Italy Mercato is San Diego’s largest, spanning six blocks downtown complete with traffic control, portable restrooms and full staff at nonprofit Little Italy Association. In 2007, the Little Italy Mercato was founded when Myers’ mother, a long-time resident, noticed there was no neighborhood grocery store.
In San Diego County, only a nonprofit or a farmer can hold a permit to run a market. At the Little Italy Mercato, Little Italy Association holds the permit and hires San Diego Local Markets to manage the event.
Revenue from each market goes toward paying all expenses and the remainder is used by Little Italy Association to fund neighborhood improvements like pressure-washing, street-cleaning and replacing light bulbs — tasks Myers said are often not taken care of by the city “because we are a large city in a deficit.”
From July 2024 to June 2025, Little Italy Mercato’s income was $1,301,865, its expenses amounted to $763,800 and the remaining $538,065 went to Little Italy Association.
“The funds from the farmers market fund all the things that keep Little Italy ticking, in a neighborhood, organizational way,” Myers said.
Some markets, like Little Italy Mercato offer EBT to customers. This month, the market was approved for the Market Match Grant, which will allow customers purchasing fruits and vegetables with EBT to earn back a price match up to $15.
Before, Little Italy Mercato used profit from sponsorships and selling tote bags to self-fund an EBT matching program up to $10.
“We see families come in on a limited income and be empowered to eat healthy food, support their families and live better,” Myers said. “It’s a double benefit, because those funds could be spent at a grocery store, but they are brought to the farmers market.”
Local Success Due to Cultural Shift
Poway Farmers Market manager Suzanne Bendixen, along with Hillebrecht and Myers, said that San Diego’s farmers markets are so successful because of the city’s year-round growing season and the consumer trend favoring natural food.
“As a former farmer, having the support of your community is great,” Bendixen said.
“Customers like to know where their produce came from — that it’s local… For the farmers, it cuts out the middleman. They get to greet the customers, giving them recipes or hints about growing or answering questions.”
When Poway Farmers Market opened 32 years ago, it started with 12 farmers. Today, it hosts over 85 vendors. Last fiscal year, the market made a record of over $5 million in sales.
Bendixen said the pandemic spurred the growth of farmers markets because it necessitated outdoor shopping and, at that time, consumers were looking for less processed options.
“We were only closed one Saturday, and then we opened back up with just farmers,” Bendixen said. “There were rules we had to follow, like keeping people separated, but we got back into our routine, and business has never been better.”
Bendixen said that the City of Poway has been “very supportive” of the market, keeping the area clean, paving the market’s original dirt parking lot and planting trees. The Poway market offers many community events, live music, ample parking and non-portable restrooms.
“Even though I’m a few years away from retiring, I’m not going to actually leave the job,” Bendixen said. “I always say I have the best job ever… Every Saturday, when I go to work I feel like I’ve made an impact on my customers.”
The best thing cultivated at the farmers market is community, said Myers.
She reflected on a time when one of her vendors got sick with cancer. After going through remission and returning to the market, the community of other vendors unloaded her car, set up her booth and brought her tea and flowers all day.
“A farmer’s market is something you can’t replicate anywhere,” Myers said. “These families being connected is really special. I feel like we’ve definitely achieved our goal.”
San Diego Local Markets
FOUNDED: 2008
CEO: Brijet Myers, San Diego Local Markets
HEADQUARTERS: San Diego
BUSINESS: Farmer’s Market
EMPLOYEES: 5
WEBSITE: www.SanDiegoMarkets.com
CONTACT: [email protected]
SOCIAL IMPACT: Every Saturday, the Mercato hosts nearly 200 farmers and vendors over six city blocks in Little Italy. It sees over 20,000 shoppers at the market on Saturdays, year-round. Every Wednesday, the Mercato hosts nearly 100 farmers and vendors, and it sees between 2,500 and 5,000 shoppers over three city blocks year-round.
NOTABLE: The Mercato was started by Brijet’s mother, Catt Fields White, because she lived in Little Italy and wanted access to fresh, locally grown produce, but there’s no grocery store in the neighborhood. It started small and has grown to become the largest farmers market in San Diego County.
Born and raised in San Diego, Madison takes great pride in local storytelling. Her coverage at the San Diego Business Journal includes tourism, hospitality, nonprofits, education and retail. An alumna of San Diego State University’s journalism program, she has written for publications including The San Diego Union-Tribune and The San Diego Sun. At the 2024 San Diego Press Club awards, Madison was recognized for her exemplary profile writing. She was also a speaker for the 2023 TEDx Conference at Bonita Vista High School. When she’s not working on her next story, Madison can be found performing music at a local restaurant or on one of San Diego’s many hiking trails.
Originally published San Diego Business Journal