These Are The 10 Best Farmers Markets In Iowa For 2018

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Who doesn’t love a great Farmers Market?

According to the United States Department of Agriculture, the popularity of Farmers Markets is growing. What was once a niche shopping experience for the wealthy and ultra health conscious has become mainstream. And to appease the diverse populations that have shown interest in farmers markets, vendors have expanded their offerings. You can now get ice cream, homemade soap and even beer to go along with your organic beets and mushrooms.

And they aren’t just popular in liberal enclaves and on the west coast.

Farmers markets are booming in areas that had trouble making inroads in the past. 20 years ago, you’d never think you’d find farmers’ markets in Kansas City, Detroit or St. Louis.

Simply put, farmers markets aren’t just for farmers any more.

So, where are the best farmers’ markets in Iowa? We’ve got the answers here. (We’ll explain our methodology below.)

These are the best Iowa farmers markets:

Freight House Farmers’ Market, Davenport, IA
Dubuque Farmers Market, Dubuque, IA
Downtown Farmers’ Market – Des Moines, Des Moines, IA
The Iowa City Mercer Park Farmers Market, Iowa City, IA
Iowa City Farmers Market, Iowa City, IA
Noelridge Farmers Market, Cedar Rapids, IA
Market On Central – Farmers Market In Historic Downtown Fort Dodge, Fort Dodge, IA
Sioux City Farmers Market, Sioux City, IA
Historic Valley Junction Farmers Market, West Des Moines, IA
Valley Junction Farmers Market, West Des Moines, IA

Read on below to see how we crunched the numbers and how each market ranked. If you have a smile on your face, you probably live in one of these cities where things are oh-so farmers market friendly.

And after you find a great farmers market, check out the best places to live in Iowa or the cheapest place to live in Iowa.

How do you decide if a farmers market is awesome or not in Iowa?

In order to rank the best farmers markets in Iowa, we had to determine what criteria makes for a good market experience. It isn’t a stretch to assume that great farmers’ markets have a variety of options, are up to date with the latest technology, and are in areas with decent populations. Because everyone should be able to take home some homemade jam, right?

So we researched the internet for a database that contains all that information.

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How we crunched the numbers for the Hawkeye State

We threw a lot of criteria at this one in order to get the best, most complete results possible. Using Department of Agriculture data produced for the state of Iowa, along with the government census numbers, we looked at every single farmers market in the state. We paid particular attention to:

Number of amenities
Each market’s technology improvements
Variety of items to buy
Nearby population
Number of organic vendors

We then gave each market a HomeSnacks Score. The higher the score, the better the farmer’s market ranked. What we found is there seems to be a balanced number of large farmers markets near major city centers as well as awesome farmers markets in smaller communities. That’s the way it should be!

1. Freight House Farmers’ Market

Source: Public Domain

Score: 91.4
City: Davenport, IA
Address: 421 W. River Drive, Last Suite-Closest to Playground, Davenport, IA 52805
Times: Tue: 3:00 PM-6:00 PM Sat: 8:00 AM-1:00 PM Sun: 10:00 AM-2:00 PM

Credit Cards: Y
WIC: Y
Baked Goods: Y