U-Picks Have More than Fruit With their proximity to local markets and the increasing consumer interest in locally grown produce, a growing number of Laval farms have stopped selling to wholesalers...

U-Picks Have More than Fruit


With their proximity to local markets and the increasing consumer interest in locally grown produce, a growing number of Laval farms have stopped selling to wholesalers and have started selling directly to consumers through roadside kiosks and U-pick operations.


Here’s how it works: You visit a farm, pick up some containers at the front entrance, drive out into the farm, stop here and there, pick whatever you want, and pay by the bushel on your way out. The Sauriol family farm was at the forefront of the U-pick trend 20 years ago. At the time, it sold exclusively to wholesalers. Then it started its own strawberry U-pick, and soon expanded into a wide range of vegetables. ...

a. What is the relationship between gasoline and U-pick vegetables?

b. Draw a Quebecer’s preference map and budget line to illustrate the best affordable combination of gasoline and U-pick vegetables.

c. On your graph in b, show the effect of a rise in the price of gasoline on the quantities of gasoline and vegetables picked.