A stay in France would not be complete without the experience of un marché (farmers’ market). Despite the ever-growing presence of supermarchés (m.)(supermarkets), faire le marché (going to the farmers’ market; lit. do the market) remains an important way of shopping for food, especially produits frais (fresh produce), produits de saison (seasonal produce) and produits régionaux (regional produce/products)- in both in cities and villages. The freshness of produce, the direct interaction with the producteurs (producers), and the social nature of farmers’ markets makes them irresistible events.
Les commerçants (dealers, traders) will sometimes invite you to goûter (taste) the products on their étalages (displays, stalls): “Goûtez-moi ça !” (have of taste of this; lit. taste me this).
In France, it is usually the norm for customers to point the things they want, and the seller will pick the items, asking you for example: “Combien il vous en faut ?” (how much/many you need?) or “Il vous en faudra combien ?” (How much/many will you need?). He/She will then peser (weigh) the items, in kilos (kilograms) or grammes (grams) and ask if you want more or less.
As elsewhere, one can find a growing number of produits (m.) bio(logiques) (organic products/produce), without produits chimiques de synthèse (synthetic chemicals products) like pesticides (m.) (pesticides), des OGM (organisme génétiquement modifié) (GMOs) and limiting the use of intrants (agricultural inputs like fertilizers and soil conditioners).
Here are some of the produce you will find in most farmers’ markets:
- légumes (m.) (vegetables): laitue (f.) (lettuce), poireau (m.)(leek), carotte (f.) (carrot), tomate (f.) (tomatoe), aubergine (f.) (eggplant), courgette (f.)(zucchini), oignon (m.) (onion), échalotte (f.) (shallot), de l’ail (m.) (garlic), poivron vert/rouge/jaune (m.) (green/red/yellow pepper).
- fruits (m.) (fruits): pomme (f.) (apple), poire (f.) (pear), orange (f.), citron (m.) and citron vert (lemon and lime), banane (f.) (banana), raisins (m/pl.) noirs ou blancs (grapes, red or green, avec/sans pépins (with/without seeds), fraise (f.) (strawberry), framboise (f.) (raspberry), myrtille (f.) (blueberry), melon (m.) (cantaloupe), pastèque (f.) (watermelon).
Find farmers’ markets in France: Jours de Marché.
You’ll learn more about the food of France, including a crash course in French cheeses and tips for ordering in restaurants in our Passport French Travel Course. A private online tutoring session comes included with the course, so you can be sure you’re understood au marché!