Just over a year after his first time setting up a fruit stand in front of the Humanities building, Jimmy Egoian is determined to keep his spot.

"It's just a lot of good people," he said. "The bottom line is, though, [the stand] is not very successful."

Egoian is good friends with and works for owners of the Twin Girls Farm, located outside of Fresno. The farm wanted to participate in the on-campus market every Thursday to show students what good produce looks like and provide them with a local, organic choice.

Though the location brings him to one of the best communities he's seen, it also brings the least number of people. Each week Twin Girls makes at most $500 at SF State, the lowest amount of 20 markets it participates in. The cost of growing, handling, loading, and driving produce to the market costs around $550. The SF State location is one of only two in which the farm doesn't break even.

Egoian blames this on the lack of consistent buyers and student's tendency to not have excess money.

"On top of all this the media has hurt confidence during the recession," he added.

Alex Fleshman confirms Egoian's belief. The sophomore Cinema student loves to browse through the fruits, vegetables, and bread available each Thursday at the market but only occasionally has enough cash to purchase items.

"I love to buy things at school and wish I could today," he said upon grabbing an orange slice sample and walking away.

In addition to the fruits of Twin Girls Farm there is a bakery and vegetable stand that come every week. The market was started and funded a year ago by the Associated Students, Inc. after a graduate student had the idea as a way to promote healthy living. Each semester ASI pays $1,500 to license and register the market.

"As far connecting with students, it's been successful," said Horace Montgomery, Leadership Development Coordinator for ASI.

Julio Catalan, who works for his family's vegetable farm, agrees. So far he has experienced friendly relations at SF State. He loves to show students vegetables, such as chard and kale, which many have never tasted or even seen.

Unfortunately he also shares his fruit stand counterpoint's results: low earnings. He said at the campus's market he makes around half the amount he makes at the other seven markets Catalan Family Farm sells at.

Senior Geneive Jaramilla is one of Catalan's biggest fans and buys from him almost every week. She lives in the Park Merced Villas next to school and loves his variety compared to near-by Trader Joe's. Her next dish, compliments of the stand, will be a stew she can pick at the entire weekend.

After buying celery, onions, broccoli and cabbage she leaned over the table of celery and told Catalan "you're awesome".

"I need some comfort food," she said. "It's cold and gray, you know."

Edith's Gourmet Baking Company seems to be the only stand with moderate success. Employee Joel Gonzalez says for their products the SF State customer is actually an advantage. Though their sales on bread loafs and whole cakes are lower on campus, the demand for small pastries such as cookies and granola bars from students on break from class is especially high.

"They like coming here because our stuff is not from another state and doesn't have a bunch of chemicals, he said.

That is the SF State farmer's market vender's biggest asset and advantage over corporate stores; all the food is organic and local.

But for Egoian and Twin Girls Farm, even that is becoming less of a specialty due to large corporations jumping on the organic trend and lowering prices.

"The big guys keep pushing things farther down," he said. "At least many students understand the importance of meeting who your food comes from."

And with that idea in mind Egoian will stay at SF State as long as possible. Unlike many he has worked with, he still has the passion for farming and operating a small business with his wife "like a family from the old days". Reaching out to the student population is especially rewarding to him.

"We're going to stay here as long as we can but also have to make enough to sustain ourselves," he said. "But we are having the time of our life here."