STALLHOLDERS held a makeshift farmers' market from the back of their vans after the Capital's popular weekly event was cancelled at the 11th hour.
Thousands of customers turned up to Castle Terrace for the market on Saturday, despite it being called off due to an error in paperwork.
Around 13 producers went ahead and sold their products on Saturday anyway, but they hit out at the blunder by
organisers Essential Edinburgh.
They said customers and traders had been treated "disgracefully" and the error could have cost them tens of thousands in lost takings. As reported in Saturday's News, Essential Edinburgh called off the market due to an "administrative error" on Friday afternoon. They say they have launched a full inquiry into the problem.
The event is an important source of income for around 40 farmers and producers, who travel from all over Scotland.
It regularly attracts crowds of up to 10,000 and is now in its ninth year.
Peter Maclaren, a pig farmer from East Lothian, was selling meat from his van on Saturday.
He said: "They've treated us and the customers appallingly. I'm angry about the way it was done.
"A lot of people have thousands of pounds worth of produce in the back of their vans. I've got 80 kilos of sausages that will go out of date on Wednesday.
"Somebody should have been down here to say sorry and explain what had gone wrong. But there's nobody here at all to tell the customers why there's no market. It's a complete shambles."
Nick Paul, of the city-based Crisp Hut, also turned up on Saturday. He said: "This is a complete disgrace. People depend on this for their livelihood. It's not a hobby. The value of the produce if you count it up is £250,000 to £300,000. What do you do with all of that if you can't sell it?
"Forty businesses look at this as a way to make a living. The organisers have treated us with contempt."
Stallholders also expressed fears that the cancellation might affect takings at future markets.
Rosslyn MacPhail, 66, from Stockbridge, was one of the customers who turned up at 8.30am. She said she goes every week to buy fruit, vegetables and meat.
She said: "I was extremely annoyed after making the effort to get there early. The stallholders were obviously very upset. They spend days packing it all up.
"It's a great treasure of Edinburgh. It's a huge success. A lot of people arrived who had come especially early with bags to buy their week's groceries. I hope there's some pressure to get it all sorted out next week."
It is thought that Essential Edinburgh, which took over from Edinburgh City Centre Management in July, made an error in applying for a licence and insurance.
A spokesman said: "We have discovered some issues with the paperwork for the event. On that basis we have an obligation to cancel. We apologise for any inconvenience caused."
But council leader Jenny Dawe called on the company to compensate the traders. She said: "It is my view that they should consider assisting traders with the unforeseen costs they have incurred."
