Aims to connect farmers and customers directly in this time of crisis.

Friends of the Earth Malta (FoEM) today launched its “Malta Farm Map”, an initiative aiming to promote and support local farmers sell their local fruits and vegetables.

As part of our mission to preserve permanently local farmland and communicate with the public about the importance of eating local, FoEM published a farm map focusing on local farms and producers who wish to retail their products directly to the consumers without including any third party for the sale-purchase of products in Malta and Gozo.

During the launch, Martin Galea De Giovanni, FoEM Director said “This free service aims to connect farmers and customers directly in this time of crisis. At Friends of the Earth Malta we receive a lot of requests from our members asking us about which farmers sell their local produce directly.”

Through this map we want to consolidate a direct sales  platform for agriculture producers and customers to know how and where to purchase products and services from local farms. In thus doing,   our motivation is to bridge the distance between small and local producers and the people. 

Nastia Caruana Finkel, project coordinator at FoEM, added: “farmers put a lot of work and passion into growing food, and we want citizens to get a glimpse of that. Right now people want to support local farmers but are finding it hard to purchase from them, and we hope this list will be a helpful bridge.”

We are now urging people to login to www.foemalta.org/maltafarmmap in order to locate their nearest friendly farmer and buy their fresh local produce directly from them. In that way they will be supporting the local farming community which had already been struggling even before the current COVID-19 crisis.

Notes:

 Link to map: www.foemalta.org/maltafarmmap

Are you a farmer or a producer of agriculture products and ever thought how you can reach a wider network of consumers? Or even, as a consumer ever wondered who and what story is behind every product we buy and consume? Contact us on info@foemalta.org or call on 79961460.

Why Farm Map?  Agriculture produce in Malta is predominantly sold through a central market in Ta Qali. Farmers deliver fresh fruit and vegetables which are then sold off at an auction by middleman, who take away a cut of the profits to pay for their services. Aside from seeing their profit margins crumble, in many instances farmers have to face serious issues of mismanagement leading to further profit reductions which is resulting in a general lack of initiative amongst producers to preserve existing farmland from generation to the next.

The twice weekly emergence of the farmer’s market in Ta Qali and its counterpart in Birgu has redrawn the way farmers sell off their products and this has left a positive impact on farmers and consumers alike. Though the growth in the accessibility to direct sales represents an exciting opportunity for both food producers and consumers, the benefits of farmers’ markets are not evenly distributed, leaving large swathes of the Islands without any access to the possibility to buy local products.

With the demand growing for sourcing local and sustainably-grown fresh products, direct sales offer a tremendous benefit to local agriculture in that they sustain directly the people who are responsible for bringing food to our table. In thus doing, the concept of direct buying from the producers ensures numerous economic and social benefits.

Why should farmers list products on farm map?

– Fair and just return! – Better financial equity for farmers and swift payments with prices dictated by producer and not middle-men

– Better visibility for your products – Opportunities to interact with customers that allow you to both promote the uniqueness of your products, introduce customers to your farm and receive feedback and suggestions

– Support local and eco-products! – Listings will better showcase the impact and importance of farming to village areas as well as the importance the state in providing jobs and protecting the rural landscape of Malta.

– Bring joy to the community! – Connecting people around farming reaps benefit to the community which helps to reconnect with the agrarian heritage and continue the farming tradition in the future.