Not all that weird when you think about what it is; a 'farmer's market. Meat dairy & produce should be cheaper because (supposedly) they cut out the middle man. Not true of packaged goods which they probably can't compete in because of volume.
You're fortunate to live in an area with such access to produce stands year 'round. Here, it's during the summer, and late summer at that. Farmer stands can be found all over during July - September. On into October they also sell season produce like pumpkins, squash, etc. but after that they're closed until next year.
We save by buying at super Wal-Marts, or buying in bulk if practical. And neither of us has expensive tastes so that helps. Plus, we do a lot of cooking instead of buying prepared products. That's a big help.
At the grocery today, we spent just over $104. But over $30 of that was two pots for flowers plus a novel to read. And the $74 we spent on groceries will last into next week.
The wife will do our normal shopping on Friday, and that will last us close to 2 weeks. I'll lay odds she'll spend around $120. And some of that will be household items.
We got yogurt and fruit, some nice chops I'm about to grill and freeze, chicken breasts, burgers, hot dogs, regular sausage for grilling, yummy asiago and spinach sausage and some predone stuff , like Dad's Philly cheese steaks that he loves. The only thing I can't seem to get there is frozen spinach, go figure.
It's not hard, but it is work to process and actually COOK.
And in season, we pick our own fruit which is fun!
Right after my previous reply, I made a beeline to the indoor farmer’s market I mentioned. I bought six ears of corn for a buck and then two 1-lb sausage rolls for a buck each. I would have bought more but then remembered about the 3 lb. bag of smoked bacon I can get this Sunday for just 3 bucks.