Rethinking the marketplace: a story of resistance and proactivity

In 2007, a cluster of activists formed the group ‘Our Treasure, the Market - Hunyadi Square’ (KAP-HT) in order to preserve from shutting down the market at Hunyadi Square which is the only remaining open-air food market in the central districts of Budapest. Linking the luxurious Andrássy avenue to the Király street area that is undergoing radical transformations, this market has become an indicator of the changing demographics, value systems and consumption patterns of the city. For years, the KAP-HT (together with ecologist group Védegylet) has been working on raising public awareness of the disappearing open-air markets, by emphasizing the social and logistic importance of meeting places and sources of affordable, healthy food.

In recent years various debates surrounded the market on Hunyadi tér. Firstly and most famously in regard of plans for an underground garage beneath the original site of the open-air market and park, a plan ignoring environmental impact studies and lacking any downtown traffic planning. After long negotiations and interventions of the KAP-HT group, the local government took into account the importance of involving residents in the decision-making process, in the meanwhile it also decided to apply for EU funds together for the renovation of the site. Various participatory exercises were introduced to collect views and opinions about the planned development, while the impacts of the community on the final plans still remained strongly compromised. The proposed plan for the market square envisioned a 500-car parking garage under the square, which went against the agreement of the participating residents.

Following an unsuccessful bid to raise EU funding for the planned car park, the local government shifted its focus to smaller interventions like renovating the park, creating a new playground, redesigning the market stalls and turning parts of the square into a moderated-traffic zone, thus allowing for more space for the Friday and Saturday markets. 

However, the conflict was renewed by the local government's plans to clear the square from a significant number of trees, considered as unsafe and endangering the public use of the square. KAP-HT's call for independent expertise contributed to deepen the disagreement between supporters of the competing plans. Trees became thus crucial in the district's heritage preservation strategy: once the trees removed, plans for the parking garage may gain momentum, and the farmers' market's existence may be put into question. Close cooperation with the district's chief architect did not prevent the market from remaining precarious: municipal attempts to reduce its active hours and to increase the stall rental fee may result in a more exclusive market structure.

To improve the market's visibility and strengthen the sense of community that the market catalysed, KAP-HT has organised numerous events at the market square and at other locations. KAP-HT's activity is not limited to campaigning; activists of the group got involved in the life of the market, elaborating strategies for improving services and product variety (by introducing new herbs and vegetables, extending the selection of goods and foods) as well as opening up alternative channels of communication between the market traders, the wider audience, visitors and costumers of the market and the local authorities. Most recent events include a thematic exhibition organised around the idea of the market, food infrastructure and related issues in the downtown life of Budapest aiming to involve and reach the non-market goer crowds. 

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Based on my 15 years' experience as a visitor of this market - which includes 3 years active involvement in the life of Hunyadi square, as an initiator of the grassroots movement to save the farmers' market - I met, made friendships and collaborated with traders and other visitors, that enabled me to describe the market through the different profiles of the various traders: 

1. Pensioner, never having been a farmer; living in Budapest, with an allotment garden, selling surplus harvest,

2. Pensioner, living in Budapest, regularly selling vegetables from the garden attached to the house

3. Elderly farmers, giving up selling, who may be replaced by a family member.

4. Vendors selling products from mid-scale farmers and from wholesale markets

5. Pensioner, living in a small town, and growing a small quantity of vegetables to complement his/her pension. (People aged over 65 ride trains for free and to bring to the market a few kilograms of produces is a good opportunity for them to earn some money)

6. Mid-scale farmer with family traditions (Often their parents and grandparents were also farmers and went to the market with a cart in the past), coming to the market by car

7. Farmer with family traditions, selling his/her own vegetables and  fruits, complemented with products from the wholesale market

8. Farmer with family traditions, subsistence farmer, bringing only lighter charges to the market by train

9. Relatively young villager, having lost his factory job due to the economic transition following the end of communism, coming to the market by train, bringing what he/she can carry

10. Has been working in agriculture/silviculture but was not a small producer, still does seasonal work for others occasionally, brings stuff in a small rucksack and comes by train

11. Village pensioner after a civilian job, amateur gardener, bringing jams, flowers, fruits in season

12. Villager with very low pension, grabs what she can from her garden.

13. Villager coming only with some seasonal products only in a certain part of the year.

14. Retired technical intelligentsia, living in a village, having always cultivate a small garden, and swearing to quit every year after finding a more profitable activity

15. Relatively young vendor, selling his/her own product, complemented with a wide range of products from the wholesale market

16. Traditionally a florist selling merchandise from the flower wholesale market.

17. Vendor selling good looking goods from wholesale market,

Selling at the open-air farmers' market requires a primary producer's certificate, but people who own a small piece of land can easily obtain this. Primary producers have the advantage of not having to pay taxes under transactions worth of 640 000 HUF (ca. 1870 GBP) per year, which is a good enough reason for retailers to pretend about their status both to authorities and their customers. Producers with long family traditions of selling their produce have witnessed the gradual dwindling of the market area on Hunyadi Square: today only one side of the square has stalls and business has decreased since the arrival of hyper- and supermarkets to Hungary in the 1990s. Others see the market as an opportunity to complement their income while still having another job. Another group of vendors turned to small scale farming after losing their jobs as a result of the collapse of the communist economic system and closure of factories.

Elderly people sell food at markets to complement their small pension; as above the age of 65, they can use public transportation free of charge, their only expense is the stall rental fee. Keeping the stall rental fee relatively low is essential to keep this group here. However, they can hardly compete with larger producers: the more stalls you have and the wider range of products, the better your position yourself on the market. The issue of food diversity and solidary economy is yet to be raised by customers. Ideally, if market vendors formed an organisation, they would be more efficient in defending their interests vis-à-vis the local government. However, if their unity is impossible to achieve, there are many reasons for that: conflicting interests between primary producers and resellers and the lack of self-confidence and of a culture of self-organising are the most important among these factors.

And who are the shoppers?

Local pensioners, housewifes and various people working in the neighborhood. For locals who have free time during the day on weekdays it is probably a habit to go to the market. Chefs from nearby restaurants also come for a quick hunt for herbs or fresh fruit and vegetables that were harvested on the previous or the very same day. People on a tight budget appreciate the possibility to bargain at the outside market or to have the option to choose something cheaper, or other health conscious consumers come here to buy food that is locally produced.The fight of the local citizens' group to save the open-air market attracted attention to the spot, the market was listed as the second best market in Hungary, causing a small but steady increase in the number of the visitors in their 20's.