8-2 IAN Market Mapper

 Want a fun way to combine exercise and healthy eating? The Market Mapper application helps you find nearby farmers markets, and makes it easy to get biking directions. Michael Schade at Mobility Lab has created a web-based farmers market locator, with transportation options built into the mapper. The “directions” link takes you to Google Maps, with the market’s location already set up, and directions for a bike ride. Here’s an interesting conversation with Michael regarding the genesis of the program: “I created the program after discovering the U.S. Department of Agriculture had released an API that lets anyone browse their database of the thousands of farmers markets throughout the United States. By layering the data on a map, it’s easy to see all the options you have for farm-fresh food. When you hover over a marker, you’ll see a list of products and the market’s schedule (if USDA has the data).” The entrepreneurial spirit. Ain’t America great?