FAT CITY GETS FRESH

Farmers’ market thrives in city among nation’s highest obesity and diabetes rates

More than half of Brownsville’s 170,000 residents are obese and nearly one fourth of them have diabetes.  Though processed food, lard, salt and sugar are culprits in those conditions, a weekly healthy food festival in Brownsville has made inroads to fighting the city’s poor health.

   The Brownsville Farmers’ Market has seen increased attendance throughout the season, with an average 800 people visiting the market every Saturday morning 9am-noon at their location next to the Gladys Porter Zoo.  Last season attendance averaged near 300.

   The market offers primarily pesticide-free food grown by local small farms, so money spent at the market helps create jobs in the local economy. Because the Brownsville Farmers’ Market accepts the Lone Star card, the high quality food to be found there is accessible to any budget.

   Beets, carrots, radishes, grapefruit, dill, rosemary, tomatoes, cabbage, squash, green onion, nopales and dozens of other fresh-grown items can be found there. Plus there’s local honey, grass-fed, hormone free meats, and farm fresh eggs.  In all, about 20 vendors can be found at the market on a typical Saturday.

   Plus the Brownsville Farmers’ market prototyped the region’s first commercial olive-oil tamale and breakfast taco using a flour tortilla that’s also made with olive oil. The tacos are filled with fresh market eggs, offering a truly local dish that’s more healthy and wholesome than traditional lard-tortilla breakfast tacos.

   Mango smoothies and fresh-squeezed juices help wash down those market tacos and tamales.

   52 percent of Brownsville residents are obese, and an additional 32 percent are overweight, according to data from the UT School of Public Health. 19 percent have diabetes, and 23 percent have pre-diabetes.

   Next to the zoo, a children’s museum, fine art museum, and free children’s rock-climbing park, the Brownsville Farmers’ Market offers one of Texas’ finest and healthiest day trips.

   “It’s amazing what we’ve seen,” says market manager David Robledo.

   “Every week more and more people turn to this market for fresh, local food. It makes sense that a market with some of the planet’s healthiest food would thrive in one of the nation’s unhealthiest cities. People are recognizing this and similar markets as a way to battle poor health, while also recognizing the superior quality and flavor of the food that’s available here.”

   An estimated 60 Cameron County jobs have been created in connection with this Market, according to Padre Island Farmers' Market manager Jack Moffitt, who sells veggies he grows at three Cameron County farmers markets.
   For details about the market's role in a month-long Brownsville Earth Fest, visit www.brownearthfest.blogspot.com