Every Wednesday, students flock to McCarthy Quad for handmade meals from a range of cuisines and fresh produce from California farms. Local vendors at the Trojan Farmers Market have been a core part of the USC experience for nearly 18 years, creating a core part of the Trojan campus experience.

However, as well-known as the market may be, the vendor’s logistical efforts to provide Trojans a place to decompress in the middle of the week may be less noticed. 

“If I’m being honest, I’m not profitable,” said Larisa Rus, founder of Bee Green Honey. “It’s a lot of fees to get [the space] … I probably have to drop this market off. It’s been a while since I had a good day here.” 

Rus founded her business in 2014 — the same year they joined the Trojan Farmers Market — and has a presence in other Los Angeles farmers markets, such as one in Larchmont Village. While Rus has formed a community around her honey stall on campus, she faces financial challenges. 

Despite these roadblocks, Rus said that members of the USC community have “always been great.” 

“The committee [at USC], they always come in and check on all the vendors, making sure they’re happy,” Rus said. “I know there’s a lot of support to keep the market open. It’s been great. I have a lot of faculty members who, every so often, come and support.”

Komal Aujla, a freshman majoring in international relations with an emphasis in global business, was a first-time attendee at the farmers’ market.

“It’s a great way to get to know local vendors in the L.A. area, and different types of cuisine; this is my first time trying a pupusa and I really like it,” Aujla said. 

The Trojan Farmers Market has had a good impact on some businesses, like The Fruit Patch — a family-run dried fruit and nuts business. Miles Gama-Kadrmas, operations manager for The Fruit Patch, and their brothers have run The Fruit Patch at Trojan Farmers Market since it started.

“It’s been good. There’s quite a decent amount of sales here, and then we meet some people that we’ve known forever,” Gama-Kadrmas said. “It’s nice to see the change in people. I’ve seen people come as freshmen and [who] now are grad students.”

But for vendors like Gama-Kadrmas, who don’t grow the products they sell and simply process them, new trade policies and commuting around L.A. regularly pose financial challenges to their business.  

“Gas is a little expensive, and taxes; tariffs for stuff that’s not grown in the [United States], like cashews,” Gama-Kadrmas said. “[It’s] been a little hard. We had to adjust prices.” 

Nonna’s Pantry, an Italian-owned business that started in 2021, has also said it was slightly affected when faced with tariffs on imported Italian products, rising prices and taxes. However, since they produce the meals from scratch locally, salesperson Alessandro Rossi said such factors have not posed huge issues. 

The business operates out of a ghost kitchen in Mid-City to make fresh pasta and meals from scratch. When Nonna’s Pantry comes to the Trojan Farmers Market, they make their food either overnight or in the early morning, but they really come to “try to educate the community, especially here [at] McCarthy Quad.”

“I try to [have] some relationship with the customer and make [them] more comfortable and try to explain the best about my culture, my food,” Rossi said. “I try to make a good relationship with the customer.” 

Neta Shubin, a junior majoring in computer science, has kept the weekly tradition of going to the farmers market with her friends since her freshman year at USC, and compliments what the different vendors have. She said that, depending on the vendor, there are budget-friendly options at the market.

“The pupusas, you get a lot of bang for your buck,” Shubin said. “But the Hawaiian … [is] a bit more expensive depending on what you get, but I think the food here is better [than eating at another restaurant] and more interesting.”

While prices for the different vendors vary — Delmy’s Pupusas go for $5 per pupusa, whereas the chicken fried rice at That Pad Thai Guy’s stand goes for $15 — each stand provides an alternative dining and shopping option for students looking to either splurge or save. 

“I would say some of the food here is a little bit pricey, but just being able to have something new makes it worth it,” said Reni Suhr, a freshman majoring in psychology. “You’re spending the same amount of money somewhere [at USC Village] as well, or if you’re ordering food … so I think the experience makes up for the extra money.”

According to Rossi, student demand has changed.

“This market is still good. … But, this year, in general, the students or the community spend less money,” Rossi said. 

For Daniella Spadaro, a freshman majoring in business administration, the comfort she found at the Trojan Farmers Market was due to its “familiar environment.” Only living 25 minutes away from USC, Spadaro realized a lot of the vendors were the same ones from her local farmers’ market. 

Even though Spadaro said she hasn’t looked deeply into the different price points offered, she said she finds the offerings at the market to come at a lower cost than other snack options on campus. 

“It’s really important for students from other places to be able to experience and participate in other cultures and learn about their food and try, and maybe they’ll find something they enjoy that they wouldn’t have had before at home,” Spadaro said.