January 23, 2026 we met with farmers market associations from Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru in the context of the Mercados Andinos initiative. The initiative foresees the organization of a series of webinars aimed at co-developing—together with local actors and international experts—a project to strengthen farmers markets in the Andean region through networking and peer-to-peer learning.
Last Friday, we held the second of three planned webinars, focusing on the topic of market access. The discussion was guided by two main questions:
What actions or experiences have been most successful for the commercial growth of your market or fair?
What challenges do you face in selling products at your fairs or markets?
Access to public spaces for hosting markets was once again highlighted as a key challenge, but also as a crucial success factor in ensuring stable and reliable market access for farmers. Increasing farmers’ capacity to grow a wide variety of goods and to process them into value-added products was also recognised as a successful commercial strategy, contributing to greater resilience and improved livelihoods.
Political instability was identified as a major influencing factor, as different political cycles correspond to more or less favorable environments for farmers markets. This directly affects access to public spaces and related costs, the ability to operate markets and related licenses, and the development of infrastructure needed to connect farmers with cities. Climate change was also highlighted as a significant challenge, as it influences what can be grown and, consequently, what can be sold at markets.
Finally, the transformative power of farmers organising within cooperatives and shared associations, as well as the ability of farmers market associations to network and join forces, was recognised as instrumental in strengthening their collective voice and advancing their rights at the political level.
We are now looking forward to our next and final webinar on the theme of governance.
Thank you to Xarxa de Consum Solidari and their office from Ecuador, and to Nino Bariola and Ana Maria Huaita Alfaro for co-facilitating and co-organising this webinar with us.
Stay tuned for more news on our ongoing and future projects!
