Honor System Farms: Feast or Famine

Every Sunday before we head out to stock up for the week at our local farmer’s market, we stop at the farm at the end of our road. The farmer sells eggs, vegetables, and assorted odds and ends. We bring back our empty egg crates and place them in the community basket. Then we take what we need and write down what groceries we took (so the farmer can keep track of what she needs to restock). The allotted few dollars is deposited in the cash can. If we happen to come at the end of the day, the cash can is brimming with bills. Visitors can clearly figure out the etiquette of the honor system.

The honor system is a philosophically driven way to sell goods that relies solely on the integrity of others. Farm stands use the honor system to keep costs down. Most would agree that honor system driven farms also provide a warm and welcoming feeling to its customers. Generally, if you treat someone with respect and trust, they will return the favor by being honest.

In Vermont’s Addison County the farmers respond enthusiastically to the honor system, “Customers like that they can pull in, grab what they need, and go. When they come home at the end of the day in the summer, they’ll often find most of the vegetables gone and their till full, so they rush out to pick another round of fresh vegetables for the evening crowd.”

When I Googled “honor system farms,” there were many stories recounted like the one above, but there were a few sad stories that headlined like this: “Honor System Thefts Close Such and Such Farm.” One farmer in New Hampshire ran into this trouble. Retired from the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, farmer Charlie Ireland planted six acres of vegetables and had been growing corn, tomatoes, beans and “you name it” behind his home and selling it from a stand out in front of his home for four years. But, he had to close his farm stand last summer because of theft. “Anywhere from 50 to a hundred bucks a day — all summer,” Ireland said was stolen from his farm stand, where passersby slipped cash into a box in exchange for his bumper crop.

Is the honor system alive and well in your neck of the woods? Does it work or is it an easy target for thieves?

Read more: EcoNesting, Food, farmers market, farms, local

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are solely those of the author and may not reflect those of
Care2, Inc., its employees or advertisers.

Annmari L.

8:49AM PST on Jan 8, 2012

I have now tried 10 times to not get updates on this posting. It doesn't matter how many times I uncheck, the comments keep coming anyway. So, how do I get rid of these postings filling up my inbox?

send a green star

Kristina C.

12:38PM PST on Jan 6, 2012

What a great way of shopping - one can only dream about her ein FL. The nonor system would never work here.

Lynn C.

9:41PM PST on Jan 4, 2012

Thanks for the article.

Danuta W.

2:12AM PST on Jan 4, 2012

Great article.

Carol P.

5:59PM PST on Jan 3, 2012

The fact that our society hasn't dissolved into complete chaos assures me that the mass majority of people don't commit crimes. But the small percentage does cause considerable damage and harm.

Though I love the idea of an honor system, I can only imagine it working in a small, close-knit community.

Rather than leave cash behind, in cases where theft is a problem, couldn't the farmer ask for IOUs and send an invoice instead, or some other system that doesn't require cash be left behind? Though I'm sure I'm falling prey to some stereotype by saying this, but I can't imagine that criminals (most likely teens) would find healthy food alone alluring enough to stop.

And if that didn't work, perhaps the customers could donate to help purchase security cameras.

Carole R.

5:38PM PST on Jan 3, 2012

I love the idea of the honor system. We used to have that all around my area but it is now suberia, not farm land any longer. I would almost bet that the honor system would not work these days. What a shame that is.

Charuwan K.

8:43PM PST on Jan 9, 2011

There're no honor markets like this in my country, Thailand, though we have farmer markets.Anyway, sharing nice stories like this is a good way to spread good news amoung the news of greediness we heard in the news every day, Thanks!

KS G.

4:42AM PST on Jan 5, 2011

Cathy S.

12:24PM PDT on Jul 1, 2010

I also leave a bucket of items out on the porch on Halloween if I can't be home.

Ted F.

1:04PM PDT on Jun 28, 2010

Nice article about the goodness that is still left the rural areas of America. I grew up next to a farm where their stand was always on the honor system. I and my friends had our share of youthful indiscretions but we knew better than to take advantage of someone who works so hard for a living.

I think the write-down system may be to keep better track of the money and whether any ever goes missing, not restocking. Even though President Regan was not my favorite, he had a great saying - "trust but verify" as applied to the Soviets. Maybe that's what your farmer neighbor is doing.

Sharing stories like this is a nice way to spread good news amid all of the greediness we see in the news every day. Thanks and keep up the great writing.