Market manager educates people about food, agriculture

By Christine Souza

(This is the second of a three-part series highlighting individuals in California Farm Bureau’s Young Farmers & Ranchers program.)

Cheyenne Erickson, general manager of the Pacific Coast Farmers’ Market Association’s North Bay region, is enthusiastic about two things: fostering community and advocating for agriculture.

Overseeing farmers markets in Contra Costa and Solano counties, she plays a vital role in connecting farmers, producers and small businesses with the communities they serve, while also informing consumers about their food.

“I enjoy educating people about where their food comes from and the process of: ‘This is Farmer Joe, and he is who farmed, picked and packed this commodity and is now selling it to you,’” she said. “You can’t get more local than that.”

Growing up on her family’s 3-acre hobby farm in Oroville in Butte County, Erickson’s life has always revolved around agriculture. As soon as she was old enough to participate in 4-H and eventually Future Farmers of America, she raised market hogs, while also tending to goats, chickens and different varieties of fruit trees. She spent summers helping her grandparents, who owned a small peach farm.

As a young girl, Erickson picked peaches and accompanied her grandparents to farmers markets, she recalled.

“Whatever we couldn’t eat, we sold at the farmers market,” she said, adding she took over market sales for her grandparents as soon as she had a driver’s license. “I was picking the product, loading the product and taking it to the farmers market.”

Continuing on an agricultural path, Erickson earned an associate’s degree in agriculture science from Modesto Junior College and in 2019 graduated from Texas A&M University with a bachelor’s degree in agricultural communications and journalism. After college, she returned to California to work for the California Farmers’ Markets Association, overseeing markets in the San Francisco Bay Area.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Erickson played an important role in keeping farmers markets open as essential food outlets, bringing fresh produce to food deserts in the San Francisco Bay Area.

“I remember participating in Zoom meetings with the California Department of Food and Agriculture and others. We shut down some farmers markets located inside hospitals, but 95% of the farmers markets remained open,” she said. “I enjoyed being part of that effort.”

At the time, she said, shoppers of the open-air markets took steps such as physical distancing, wearing masks and touching only produce they intended to purchase. Since then, Erickson said markets have brought back cooking demonstrations, crafts and educational presentations about agriculture.

“It is more than just, ‘Let’s get our strawberries and go home.’ Now, we can talk about where the strawberries are grown and bring more in-depth conversations,” she said. “I love connecting people with the farmers who grew their produce.”

After the pandemic, Erickson took a break from her farmers market role. But missing the work, she accepted in early 2023 her current position with the Pacific Coast Farmers’ Market Association. For Erickson, the markets are about more than just food.

“Essentially, we’re selling community,” she said. “It’s a place for local farmers and small businesses to thrive.”

Erickson advocates for Market Match, which provides CalFresh and federal nutrition recipients a dollar-for-dollar match to purchase fresh produce.

“It’s so rewarding to see the impact,” she said. “We’re helping people access fresh, healthy food while supporting local farmers.”

Under Erickson’s leadership, the association is expanding its educational programs and community outreach efforts. It secured a $500,000 grant to fund children’s education and nutrition activities at farmers markets, aiming to bring agricultural knowledge to a new generation.

“We want to make the market experience more than just about shopping for produce,” she said. “We want to create opportunities for people to learn about where their food comes from and how it is grown.”

Outside of her work with farmers markets, Erickson is involved in agriculture advocacy. She is a member of the California Farm Bureau Young Farmers & Ranchers State Committee representing Humboldt and Del Norte counties and serves as president of the Contra Costa County Farm Bureau. YF&R, a leadership program for agriculturalists between the ages of 18 and 35, offers networking, leadership and educational opportunities for farmers and others new to the field.

“I want to help young people and those who don’t come from farming backgrounds get involved in agriculture,” she said.

In 2023, Erickson was first runner-up in the YF&R Discussion Meet, a competition designed to encourage critical thinking and problem-solving on key agricultural issues. She said she is also interested in participating in the Farm Bureau’s leadership program.

Whether managing markets, mentoring young farmers or advocating for local food systems, Erickson said she remains committed to building community through agriculture. For her, the farmers market is more than a job; it is a way to make a meaningful impact on people’s lives, one connection at a time.

She and her husband, Manny Erickson, live in Antioch.

(Christine Souza is an assistant editor of Ag Alert. She may be contacted at csouza@cfbf.com.)