PITTSFIELD – In these dog days of summer, local farmers markets are nearing their peak. The bounty this first week in August is substantial: beans, peas, cucumbers, squash and early tomatoes, not to mention fresh flowers, perennial plants, organic meats and handmade items ranging from toys to soap.

“Up until last week, the cool crops were doing well,” farmer Linda Jessen of Harmony said as she stocked her stand on Monday at the Pittsfield Farmers Market. “The heat-lovin’ stuff, like corn, cukes and string beans, they’re loving it now.”

“I come for the freshness,” customer Ruth McGrath of Newport said.

“Just picked this morning,” said Jessen.

This is National Farmers Market week, and business at Maine’s 70 markets is booming.

The markets are a sales niche for some operators of small farms, but they also provide a personal touch, an opportunity for buyers to ask questions of growers -“Did you spray those strawberries?” – and a social opportunity for all.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture reports farmers’ markets increased 79 percent nationwide between 1994 and 2002, with more than 3,100 now operating.

In Maine, that number has jumped from a single market in Portland in 1970 to more than 70 across the state.

The increase stems from consumer demand for produce that is both fresh and has origins easily traced, growers’ economic interests and efforts to revitalize community areas as gathering places, Charlie Touchette, executive director of the North American Farmers’ Direct Marketing Association in Southampton, Mass., said at a recent meeting of more than 70 of Maine’s produce, berry and apple growers.

Growers typically get 17 to 20 cents of each dollar a consumer spends on produce at a supermarket, Touchette said. Farmers markets are one way for growers to keep more of the dollar by also packaging, moving and marketing their products.

The ability to make money without the expense of a middleman, other than perhaps a nominal charge for market space, means significant savings for small-scale farmers.

Sales often are the most basic of transactions: a few coins for a zucchini squash. But some vendors accept food stamps or participate in other federal nutrition programs, such as Senior Farm Share.

According to state statistics, direct food sales to consumers in Maine in 2002 were close to $50 million. Deanne Herman of the Maine Department of Agriculture’s Marketing Division said Monday that the markets’ success is driven by both consumers’ demands and farmers’ needs.

Experts say diversification is the key to sustainability for Maine’s small-family farms, and local face-to-face marketing has an important effect on the Maine economy. Nearly 48 percent of all Maine farms reported to the state that they fit the definition for “local agriculture” instead of commodity farms.

Buying direct from the farmer also puts money directly into the local economy, as well as helping the small farms thrive, said Herman.

“That’s the reason so many farmers look at direct marketing – the higher profit margin,” she said.

To locate nearby farmers markets or farms, visit www.mainefoods.net/mofga/certstart.php and http://www.getrealmaine.com.