A Crunchy Girl’s Checklist for Farmers Market Finds

Before Bend Soap was showing up in homes across the country, we started as a humble booth at a Saturday market. We stacked our displays with wooden trays filled with handmade soaps, praying we could help even one family find the relief we had discovered. 

We’ve grown a lot since our market days, but our hearts still belong to the early mornings, open-air booths, and one-on-one chats that kicked off our journey. Local markets can be amazing, but only if you know what to look for. That’s where this crunchy girl checklist comes in.

Today, we’re sharing everything we’ve learned to ask, look for, and avoid at farmers markets to help you score the best natural finds. Ready to support your local farmers and bring home products you’ll feel great about using? Let’s dive in. 

Why Farmers Markets Are Better (But Not Always Perfect)

The problem with most skincare products you’ll find at the drugstore or beauty store is that they’re loaded with dozens of ingredients you can’t pronounce. Things like artificial fragrance and harsh chemicals that are bound to leave sensitive skin feeling dry, red, and irritated. 

The beauty of farmers markets is that they usually offer a better starting point: handmade goods, local ingredients, and real humans who can explain what’s in the product. But “natural” doesn’t always mean non-toxic, and handmade doesn’t always mean healthy. 

Even at Saturday markets, greenwashing is alive and well.

We learned this firsthand when our son’s eczema pushed us to try every natural product we could find. The soaps dried him out. The lotions burned. The shampoo had synthetic fragrance. 

That’s why we created our own eczema-friendly soaps instead. It’s also why we care so much about helping you shop smarter—because we’ve been there.

The Crunchy Girl’s Farmers Market Checklist

There’s something magical about wandering through a farmers market with your family on a Saturday morning. But as we’ve mentioned, not every “natural” product is as wholesome as it claims to be.

That’s why we’ve created this simple checklist to help you score the best finds.

Whether you’re shopping for clean skincare, pantry staples, or handmade goods, these tips will help you spot high-quality ingredients while supporting small-batch makers. Ready to vet your farmers market finds like a true crunchy girl? Here’s what to do: 

1. Ask About Ingredients
2. Know Your Source 
3. Look for Small-Batch, Handcrafted, or Local
4. Avoid Greenwashing Gimmicks
5. Don’t Sleep on the Scraps

Ask About Ingredients (Even If You Feel Awkward)

It might feel weird at first to ask what’s in a bar of soap or a jar of lotion, but trust us: if the vendor can’t confidently rattle off the ingredients, that’s your sign to walk away.

Look for:

• Short, recognizable ingredient lists
• No synthetic fragrances or dyes
• Free from parabens, phthalates, and formaldehyde releasers

Red flags include vague terms like “fragrance,” “perfume,” or long lists with words that sound like chemistry jargon. You don’t need to know every detail of the process, but if something feels off, it probably is.

Know Your Source (Especially for Animal-Based Products)

Not all animal products are created equal. Let’s take goat milk, for example. These days, you can find goat milk products in some big-box stores—but they’re often made with powdered milk, which lacks live enzymes and contains very little nutrients. 

No, thank you! The magic of goat milk is in the enzymes, vitamins, and skin-loving nutrients—AKA all the beautiful ingredients that get destroyed during dehydration. That’s why we only use raw, fresh goat milk from happy, healthy goats on family farms we trust.

At the farmers market, don’t be afraid to ask questions like: 

• Where does your milk come from?
• Are the goats or cows grass-fed?
• Is the milk raw or pasteurized?

If they’re proud of their source, they’ll tell you. If not, that’s your cue to look elsewhere.

Look for Small-Batch, Handcrafted, or Local

Mass-produced products can still end up at a farmers market booth, and just because something looks handmade doesn’t mean it is. The beauty of small-batch products is that they’re usually made with care and fresher, higher-quality ingredients.

Bonus points if:

• The vendor makes the product themselves
• They can explain their process or inspiration
• They light up when they talk about it 

Small-batch isn’t just a cute term—it generally means cleaner, simpler, and more effective.

Avoid Greenwashing Gimmicks

You’d think you could trust every label that reads “all-natural,” but that’s sadly not the case. There’s no regulation around that term, which means a product can still contain harmful additives, stabilizers, and synthetic preservatives and legally be labeled “natural.”

Here’s what to watch for:

• “Fragrance-free” products that still lists fragrance
• Unpronounceable ingredients at the top of the list
• Alcohols in lotions that burn dry skin
• Harsh exfoliants that strip sensitive skin raw

A good rule of thumb? If a product has to work hard to convince you it’s natural, it probably isn’t.

Don’t Sleep on the Scraps

Here’s a little secret from our early days: some of the best farmers market finds don’t come in perfect packaging. One day, a frantic mom came to our booth with her eczema-prone child. She couldn’t afford our full-size products, but Dwight (our late founder) felt called to help. 

He invited her to our soap house and offered her a bag of goat milk soap scraps for pennies. Those humble scraps completely transformed her child’s skin. 

To us, they were just leftover bits from our latest batch. But to her? They were just what she needed to help her child. So don’t overlook sample sizes, scrap bags, or imperfect products. 

Sometimes, the “ugly ducklings” are the hidden gems of the farmers market.

Bonus Tips for Scoring Farmers Market Wins

Okay, have your checklist in hand? Let’s talk strategy. Knowing what to buy is half the battle, but how you shop can also make a big difference. With a little prep, you’ll leave with real-deal natural goods and a whole lot of local love.

Try these tips on your next farmers market trip:

• Go early for the best selection
• Go late if you’re looking for great deals
• Bring your own reusable bag or basket
• Engage with the vendors—they love sharing their story
• Ask about samples or starter bundles
• Trust your gut (and your nose: if it smells artificial, run)

Here’s to Savvy Shopping, Clean Finds, & Calm Skin

Let’s normalize asking questions, reading labels, and choosing what feels right for your body—even if it takes a little longer at the booth. When you bring home farmers market finds that are genuinely clean and safe, your body (and your skin) will thank you.

Ready to keep leveling up your low-tox lifestyle? Check out more posts on The Sudsy Scoop for crunchy skincare swaps, honest ingredient breakdowns, and advice on nontoxic living.

Have a favorite farmers market find? Share your best local discoveries in the comments!