| Most of the vendors at the Xia Xing Road Agricultural Products Market buy
produce at one of the city's wholesale markets. One of the few independent farmers I found
here farms 5 mu (3/4 acre) of land about an hour's bike ride from the city center. He and
his wife bring their produce to the market every day, while other family members stay out
on the farm. They typically have only one or two types of vegetables to sell each
day. In early May, it's fava beans, but during the relatively long Shanghai growing
season, they'll have a succession of 20 different vegetables. Most the vegetables
at these markets would be familiar to Westerners -- tomatoes, eggplants, English
cucumbers, onions (red and yellow), celery, tomatoes, potatoes, spinach, bok choy, and
asparagus. |
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All-Day Markets in Shanghai