Is this the world’s biggest market?

La Central de Abasto de la Ciudad de México

La Central de Abasto de la Ciudad de México is an object lesson in the economies of scale – it supplies 20-30% of Mexico’s fresh produce. When it comes to buzz, it is the Manhattan of markets! Everyone benefits from the presence of everyone else.

La Central is probably the biggest food market in the world. Covering 327 hectares, it dwarfs our Footscray market (32 hectares) and the new Epping market.

As this visitor says, it took a 15 minute taxi ride to get from flowers to fish. La Central has its own postcode, its own 700-member police force, and its own border-style entry gates. There are 111 km of passageways and turnover is second only to the national stock exchange. Read the rest of this entry »