Become a Vendor

Welcome

Whether you are brand new to food production, considering adding direct-to-consumer retail to your business’s sales channels, or an old hand at farmers markets and festivals, we are glad you are here! Down to Earth Markets welcomes new vendors to its roster throughout the year. Please read through the information on this page to learn more about us and decide whether your business will be a good fit for our program. If so, you will also find Next Steps here. If you are not quite ready, or just want more information about operating within the local food system, check out our Resources to help guide your research.

Joining our mission

Down to Earth Markets seeks vendors who are part of the New York City area’s local food and agriculture system. Vendors have to raise or make their products themselves and must produce their products within about 150 miles of our farmers markets (with some exceptions that we’ll get to). We favor food makers and crafters who support our mission by incorporating ingredients that are from regional farms.

To create markets that provide a complete shopping experience, we allow the sale of certain non-local products like chocolate, coffee, tea and olive oil within specific parameters. The vendor must be located within our catchment area and have a direct link back to the agricultural source of the primary ingredient (e.g., purchasing via direct trade or sourcing from a farm that they own outside of the NYC region).

In every instance, we seek quality, deliciousness, transparency and enthusiasm for joining Down to Earth in meeting its mission.

In order to qualify for our program you must be market-ready. That means:

Having your recipes, packaging and pricing sorted out.
Having a legal and reliable production site and all of the permits required for your food type.
Being prepared to provide detailed information about the farms supplying your ingredients and how those ingredients are incorporated into your products. If certain ingredients are only available seasonally, be ready share where you source them during the off-season.
Having business liability insurance and auto insurance if you have a commercial vehicle. Having workers comp coverage if your employees will be working at the farmers market.
Being set up to collect sales tax if your products are subject to it.
Being ready to come to market, with adequate production capacity and a plan for getting product, equipment and staff to the market site(s).

Step 1: Let us know you are interested by filling out our inquiry form here (this requires creating a Marketspread account if you don’t already have one).

Step 2: If we think you might be a good fit for our program we will ask you to provide more information about your production, sourcing and products. This will include an interview and delivering product samples to us. We may come visit your farm or facility. As the conversation progresses, we’ll talk about market placement, fees, and our rules.

Step 3: When Down to Earth has established that your products meet our standards and meet a need in our markets we will ask you to fill out our full application form. You will be asked to provide detailed farm/production information, crop plans, price lists, and permits. You will review and agree to our policies and rules in writing.

Step 4: Once your application is complete and accepted we will invite you to request dates in specific markets and provide market-specific paperwork. This will include certificates of insurance and any documents required by the municipality or organization that provides our market site.

Q: Can I sell products that I have not raised or made myself?

A: Your primary products must meet the standards described in “Joining our mission” above. In some cases we allow vendors to add goods that they are reselling to their product line if it fills a gap in the farmers market’s offerings. The item(s) must be pre-approved by us, may be approved for specific markets only, and approval may be rescinded if a direct-sale producer signs on to that market.

Q: What % of my prepared food ingredients have to come from local farms?

A: We don’t enforce a minimum threshold but want to see that you are opting for locally produced ingredients when they are available. This might include flour, herbs, fruit, vegetables, butter and eggs. If you are not sure how to source your ingredients locally we can help you make connections as you move through the application process.

Q: How long will the application process take?

A: You can expect the application process to take several weeks. There are a few factors that impact the timeline: Are you ready to provide us with the information and paperwork we need? Are we seeking products like yours for our markets? Is there space available in the market(s) that you would like to attend? We are a small team, balancing efficiency and thoroughness with the goal of establishing strong, long-term relationships with our vendors. Please understand that we will move things along as quickly as possible but cannot guarantee any particular timeframe.

Q: How much does it cost to be a vendor?

A: Our stall fees vary by market, season and vendor schedule. When you are budgeting the cost of operating as a farmers market vendor, consider not just the fee to attend but the cost to get there, the equipment you will need, the cost of staffing (or paying yourself), and what you will do with any unsold product. We are happy to talk through this in more detail as you move along the application process.

Q: Can I sell non-food products?

A: Yes, if you are making crafts or personal care products you are welcome to apply. You must meet the same standards set for our food makers in ingredient sourcing, quality, permitting and business readiness.

Q: Are there ingredients that Down to Earth does not allow?

A: We ask our vendors to consider their impact on people and planet in how they produce and package their goods. Prepared foods should include only real food ingredients that customers will recognize from their home kitchens and avoid artificial colors and flavors, manufactured stabilizers and preservatives. Also think about the waste your product may create and how you can minimize it through less, recyclable or reusable packaging.

To start the vendor application process go here to sign into or sign up for Marketspread, our vendor management platform, and fill out our inquiry form. Contact us at this email or 914-923-4837 if you have questions about the application process.

Welcome

Joining our mission

Get Involved