Local business and farmers comment on importance of buying local products

Local businesses gathered Sunday to participate in the first Farmer’s Market of the season.

The proceeds of the weekly Farmer’s Markets benefit Crossroads Mission.

The market is on Saturdays and Sundays at the Yuma Palms shopping center and down Main Street on Tuesdays.

The market will be selling goods from now until the end of March.

Members of the community can stop by from 10 A.M. to 2 P.M. to buy local produce, sample homemade salsa and look through multi-colored bags and dresses.

Andrea Farese, who owns the company “World Wide Psycho” has goods from Thailand, Vietnam and other places around the world.

Farese said all money made from the market is donated to help the Crossroads Mission.

She, along with another Yuma local assist in organizing the markets and registering different booths and businesses that want to participate.

Farese says her favorite part about being at the market is that she never gets bored.

“I get to set up at all different places and meet all different kinds of people”, she said

With small businesses Saturday being this weekend, buying locally is important to small business owners.

“When you support small businesses, you’re supporting the creativity of an individual rather than a big company,” Farese said.

Gina Erwingpore, another Yuma local that owns her business “Sweet Baked Goods,” thinks it is important for her son to learn about the basics of business.

Every market, she brings her son to help count change and interact with customers.

“I’m teaching my son how to run a business and be more personable,” she said.

Her son Ben, thinks it is important for young people like him to learn to work a business.

“It helps them get into the real world, some kids don’t make money and can’t support their family so I encourage other young people to do this too.”

Erwingpore began her business because of her love for baking.

She enjoys putting a fun twist on things like bagels, cake pops, and biscotti.

“I have a passion for this, love good food, and I like to be different.”

She thinks it is important for people to buy locally because “you are investing in your community,” she said.

Two local farmers with Castro Farms spoke to why buying fresh produce can still be done confidently despite the recent E. Coli outbreak.

Veronica Castro and Eduardo Gutierrez make sure that their produce is clean and they believe that due to the origin of the E. Coli, there really is no basis of where it came from.

They believe that buying produce in Yuma is healthier because the fruits and vegetables are freshly cut and are not transported.

Castro, says she enjoys coming to the market to meet the variety of people coming together.