Carrie Bike Basket by  Marie-Louise Gustafsson

We buy local, not just in support of small farmers and to ensure the freshness of our food, but also to preserve the environment, strengthen our communities, and just to know where out food comes from. City dwellers with bicycles can ride to the farmer’s market, decreasing their carbon footprint even more. Having a good bike basket makes shopping on wheels much easier.

My friend, avid urban cyclist Susi Wunsch, publisher of the bicycling blog Velojoy, likes the Topeak setup with rear-mounted rack, detachable market basket and cargo net:

I looked around and found a few interesting choices, all well-designed in addition to functional:

European willow market basket with optional liner, by Cynthia’s Twigs

Wald large dual compartment rear basket, $34.99 at our Urban Gardens Bike Basket Shop.

If you prefer your basket in view while you ride, and would like to keep your goods shaded, you may like one that attaches to your handlebars, like this one (above) from Topeak with folding sunscreen.

A bit more country than city, the $29.00 woven willow Nantucket basket from REI has leather handlebar straps and comes in a few nice colors.

A natural version of the Nantucket basket, a slightly larger and different design, is $38.25 at our Urban Gardens Bike Basket Shop.

Bringing the country to the city again, the oak Peterboro basket is handmade in the Monadnock region of New Hampshire, where they’ve been crafting the baskets for more than 150 years. $34.50 at our Urban Gardens Bike Basket Shop.

The willow and powder-coated steel basket (above) comes with fixed front axle and handlebar mounts, $22.99 at our Urban Gardens Bike Basket Shop.

Inspired by traditional crocheted tablecloths, I love the Carrie Bicycle Basket designed by Marie-Louise Gustafsson for Design House Stockholm. The basket includes a metal frame for added durability and comes with a set of hooks so you are ready to attach and roll. $75.00 at our Urban Gardens Bike Basket Shop.