Barajas Produce Farm - Montross, Virginia

glory2God H.

Lots of fresh , delicious fruit and vegetables. Great communication skills. Thanks for letting me know that I needed to eat my Cantaloupe soon as it was very ripe. I appreciate that.

Shabnam T.

I had a very negative experience with this vendor when they were at Westover Farmers Market. I was selecting produce from smaller bins. A lady who I’ve now confirmed is one of the owners of this business approached me and, with her voice raised, said, “I saw you do that. I saw you rearrange the produce and select different ones. You are not supposed to do that. I saw you do it.” I said I thought they were sold by weight because there was no sign indicating otherwise. She raised her voice and repeated what she had said. I then told her that I truly hadn’t realized that the produce was not sold by weight and offered to put them back for her to rearrange again. She declined and said I can just go and pay, but once again repeated “I saw you rearranging them,” to which I said I was not trying to hide anything because I didn’t think I was doing something wrong. And that she could simply inform without accusing someone of cheating in a very rude manner. She said nothing in response.

While I completely understand selling produce pre-arranged into a “bundled package,” my mistake was not intentional. True that the produce in each bin included many that were spoiled, they are entitled to this policy. My issue is not at all with how they decide to sell their produce. But the lady implied I was trying to steal and cheat without first informing me of their pricing. This accusation was exacerbated by the fact that someone else ahead of me was doing the exact same thing. As she was berating me, I noticed that I was the only “ethnically ambiguous” person with darker features at that vendor, at that time. Perhaps a coincidence. Perhaps not.

I still bought $20 worth of produce from this vendor. But I will not be supporting this business again.

I go to farmers markets not to simply buy groceries, but to feel a sense of community. To support local farmers. I come for the experience, the positive ambiance. To feel a sense of belonging to my neighborhood. To see and connect with who I buy my produce from. And 99% of the time, I get exactly that. The farmers markets are usually full of friendly vendors and locals who come together once a week - rain or shine - as one community. They buy and sell coffee, fruit, honey, flowers, donuts, bread, and all sorts of wonderful products. But we all know we are there for more than the products. If we only wanted groceries, we’d all go over to one of ten grocery stores within a 10 mile radius from us and pay likely half of what we would pay at a farmers market.

The lady at Barajas Produce who went out of her way to be rude and accusatory to a well-intentioned local accompanied by her small children, in front of several other customers, who upon my calm and polite explanation still did not try to apologize, does not understand that what she’s selling is not only produce but also an experience. In this case, a very negative one.

I shared my feedback with a nice representative at the Farmers Market and I appreciate that he heard me out.