I have been working on some documents that I hope will help explain markets a little better to the larger food community and to market partners. Since markets remain the most efficient (and democratic) mechanism for anchoring and expanding community food systems, knowing how to build successful versions is more vital than ever.
The link will take you to one document that will share some of the background of how identifying markets by their sets of internal and external characteristics has evolved. By looking at markets structure, product mix and partnerships/projects, researchers are working to show how markets are not “one-size-fits-all” and that describing and sharing markets characteristics will allow communities to choose the most appropriate market type and also to find appropriate measurements when expanding their reach into more organizing scenarios.
And certainly, better definition will help vendors pick the best market for their business goals while also aiding markets that want to understand and work with neighboring markets.
All in all, collecting characteristics from markets is a good idea that’s time has come.

If you have other descriptions to add, send them along and I’ll be happy to discuss.

This article is now under the Market Evaluation drop down menu linked below and labeled typology/market characteristics:

http://www.helpingpublicmarketsgrow.com/market-characteristics.html