Montgomery Farmers' Market will operate Saturdays 9a - 12:30p June 5th - October 30th at Shelly Lane between Remington and Cooper in downtown Montgomery's historic district. Updates on Twitter and Facebook.
Madeira Farmers' Market will operate Thursdays 3:30 - 7:30p June - October on Dawson Road in downtown Madeira.
Interesting article in the Wall Street Journal this week about farmers vs. resellers, who purchase cheap produce at auction (photo above of produce at an auction) and sell it at a farmers' market as if they grew it themselves and often at a price that undercuts the farmers who are selling what they produce.
How can you tell if the farmer you're buying from actually grew what he's selling you? Here are some things to consider:
Have you thought about growing a market garden and selling at local farmers' markets but aren't sure where to start? Turner Farm is offering a series of workshops to help new market gardeners start selling at farmers' markets.
EARN A LITTLE “GREEN” BY GROWING GREENS
Discussion will focus on varieties of greens that grow well and sell well, along with tips on how to raise them year round. Led by Melinda O’Briant. February 2nd, 7:00-8:30 pm.
TRAFFIC STOPPERS:
Start a conversation at your market table by growing unusual produce
Discussion will focus on fruits and vegetables such as jerusalem artichokes, broccoli raab, garlic scapes, tomatillos, and others that grow well but aren't commonly seen at area farmers' markets. Led by Melinda O’Briant and Nancy Ogg of Shady Grove Farm. February 23, 7:00-9:00 pm.
Attend one or both. Fee for each class is $12. Turner Farm, 7400 Given Rd, Indian Hill 45243. Reservations can be made by calling the farm at 561-7400 or emailing them.
Our Ohio has a listing of winter farmers' markets. (If your market isn't listed, tell the market manager to contact Our Ohio.)
The Farm Market of College Hill is moving inside to the College Hill Coffee Company. Vendors attending will include:
Starting tomorrow (Wednesday, November 4th) the Northside Farmers Market will move inside to the North Presbyterian Church Auditorium at 4222 Hamilton Avenue (across from the Northside Library).
Fifteen vendors will provide various goods, including apples, cider, eggs, assorted meats, bread, autumn produce, honey, cheese, locally roasted coffee, micro-greens, and baked goods, including:
Backyard Orchards: apples, cider
Idyllwild Farms: autumn produce, salad mix, braising greens, herbs
Back Acres Farm: raw milk cheese, eggs, grass-fed beef, whole hog sausage, American lamb, poultry, and autumn produce
Shadeau Bakery: breads, pastries
Farmer Mike: autumn produce, salsa
Fab Ferments: organic, naturally fermented veggies, kombucha, beet kvass
Rising Sun Farms: honey, pork, greens, eggs, autumn veggies
Cluxton Alley Coffee Roasters: coffee beans, baked goods, coffee/tea
Organic Micro-Greens: assorted micro greens
Wind Dance Farm: herbs, greens, winter squash, apples
Village Green Gardens: greens, bread
Carriage House Farm: honey
Janelson Arts: jams, breads, cookies
North Presbyterian Church Auditorium at 4222 Hamilton Avenue on Wednesdays 4:00- 7:30pm from now until the market moves back outside in the spring. For more information contact Robin Henderson via email or at 513-591-0083.
The Ohio Proud Kitchen-on-Wheels is designed to educate consumers about products that are made in Ohio and grown in Ohio through cooking demonstrations. The kitchen travels around the State of Ohio promoting Ohio Proud products at fairs, festivals, trade shows and special events. It consists of a 24 foot trailer that has the look and feel of a home kitchen. Three large screen monitors will display the demonstrations to the audience. The outside shell of the Ohio Proud kitchen will be a traveling billboard showcasing a graphic wrap of Ohio agriculture.
The kitchen will make its only 2009 appearance in Southwest Ohio on July 25 at 'The Market On The Hill' farmers market located at Harmony Hill Vineyards & Estate Winery. At this event, Icelandic lamb, grass fed beef and free range chicken from Graceful Grazers and organic vegetables from Cundiff Farms will be prepared by local grillmasters, Page Block and Nancy Radke, and distributed as small samples for any visitors to Harmony Hill. 'The Kitchen' will open at 2pm and samples will be served until the food runs out. Do your part to support local farmers and producers.
Market On The Hill, 2 - 6pm Saturday July 25, 2534 Swings Corner Point Isabel Road, Bethel. No charge.
American Farmland Trust is running a "Favorite Farmers' Market" contest. See if your market is listed (or download a flyer for to give to the farmers' market manager if it isn't) and then vote for your favorite market. Top vote getters in for small, medium, and large farmers' markets will win inning farmers' markets will receive No Farms No Food totebags to use in customer giveaways.
Currently NO local farmers' markets are listed, so get going and dowload those flyers to give to your favorite markets' manager this week.
Fort Thomas is getting a new farmers' market. In cooperation with Ft. Thomas Kentucky Renaissance, the Earth Mother Market, consisting of all "Certified Organic" and "Certified Naturally Grown" growers, will be open each Wednesday rain or shine May 20th through October from 3 - 7 pm at the Historical Stables Building (1038 S Ft Thomas Ave).
Vendors include:
There's a new farmers' market out at Harmony Hill Vineyards in Bethel this season. According to Harmony Hill's winemaker and market host Bill Skvarla, Market On The Hill is an all Ohio Proud market located on the grounds of Harmony Hill and will feature grass fed beef, Icelandic lamb, free range poultry, eggs, fresh vegetables, artisan breads, cheeses and wines, all grown/raised and processed within a 30 mile radius of Bethel. Saturdays May 23 through October 3, 2 - 6pm.
The UC spring farmers' market has run into a snag with campus security (gotta watch them veggie vendors like a hawk) with getting permission for Monday's (April 20th) market, so the student organization that's planning it has cancelled the first market. The market will start on May 4th (11am - 3pm, McMicken Commons) instead.
There's a new spring-only farmers' market this year on the University of Cincinnati campus. The market will be held four times this spring, biweekly Mondays starting April 20th 11am - 3pm on McMicken Commons off UC's MainStreet.
They currently have six vendors and would like to invite more; if you're a market gardener and are interested, contact Matt.
There's been a lively discussion lately on the Cincinnati Local Foods Group about whether it's helpful for farmers' markets to include crafters. I've always taken the position that it isn't helpful -- that it's in fact counterproductive to developing a successful market -- but a lot of people don't see the harm. For farmers' markets that are just starting up and/or don't have all their spaces filled with local, sustainably-produced foods, it's tempting to invite crafters to fill the empty spaces. It makes the market seem busy and inviting to have more booth spaces filled.
I believe filling the extra booth spaces with crafters actually hurts the chances of developing the market into a thriving entity, long term. Here's why.
Yes, a full market is more inviting to potential customers. They drive past and see a full market and think, "Wow! Where'd that come from all of a sudden? I want to check that out." They park and go in, ready to shop and buy. It would seem the addition of the crafters did its job: it pulled in more customers earlier than a smaller farmers-only market would have, because it made the farmers' market seem bigger than it actually was at that point. It brought in more customers. That's good, right?
Well, not necessarily. If a customer stops to investigate and instead of the "farmers' market" she was hoping to shop at finds a few farmers but mostly crafters, she's likely to be disappointed. It wasn't what she thought it was. She looks around. She buys a few items, maybe even one of the craft items for sale (leaving less cash in her wallet to buy food items.) But now she knows: it's not really a farmers' market. Next Wednesday when she drives past, she doesn't bother to stop. The market does okay, but although it seems to attract plenty of new customers every week and most of the farmers make enough to keep coming back, few of them make enough that they want to expand their operations. And while enough farmers come back year to year that the market continues, there never seem to be enough farmers interested to allow it to really take off. There's always another crafter interested, though.
But imagine a different scenario: a potential customer drives past a small farmers' market. He can see there are only three booths, and it doesn't seem worth it to stop. The next week when he drives past, there are four booths. Two weeks later, there are five. He thinks, "Wow! It's really been growing! I should check it out." He stops, and when he investigates he finds a booth with lettuces, another selling meats, another with honey and eggs, one with apples, several offering a variety of vegetables. He shops and goes home happy, thinking, "I'll have to remember this is here every Wednesday." He tells his friends to check out the new farmers' market.
Did it take longer to get that customer to stop? Yes, it did. But the customer went away happy and intending to return. Word of mouth spreads in the neighborhood that the new farmers' market is a great place to shop every Wednesday afternoon on the square. Next year, the market attracts four more vendors because they've heard this market is thriving. The year after that, it fills up. The year after that, it has to start turning away new vendors because there's no more space, and one of the farmers suggests they start running a monthly winter market because he's been thinking of growing through the winter in hoophouses.
The farmers make money, and some of them expand their market gardens to include less common items. Customers are delighted. Leeks? At a farmers' market? Who knew? The market manager notices that many of the customers are coming from the next suburb over. Someone gets the bright idea to start a second market in that suburb on Fridays. Not all the farmers want to participate in this second market, so some new farmers get an opportunity to participate. One of them tells a neighboring farmer -- who for years has been planting mostly corn and soy -- that she should put in an organic market garden and give the farmers' market a try. The neighboring farmer tries it and has a good year, and her son (who had figured there was no room in farming for him because everyone knows small diversified farming is dead and he has no interest in growing subsidized industrial-input commodity crops) rethinks the idea of farming for a living.
This is how a local food distribution system builds. This is why I always recommend that new farmers' markets not include crafters. I believe the inclusion of crafters, in the long run, hurts a farmers' market and hurts the farmers at that market. This is counterproductive to the development of a sustainable local food system.
Northside Farmers' Market, which is scheduled to stop at the end of October at their Hamilton & Lingo location, will continue through November and December at the Village Green, 1415 Knowlton Street. Hours are the same: Wednesdays 4:00 - 7:30pm.
The USDA (rather belatedly) began tracking farmers' markets in 1994. Although they're still not very good at it (a check of their database shows exactly THREE in Cincinnati which of course in reality hosts dozens every week) even with their limited knowledge of and connection with actual farmers (!) they're seeing significant growth in number of farmers' markets over the years.
Central Ohio River Valley Local Foods Initiative (CORV) is holding a grill of local foods tomorrow (Tuesday June 10th) at the Whole Foods Rookwood farmers' market (2nd & 4th Tuesdays 4-7pm, Whole Foods Rookwood parking lot). Proceeds from the grill will help pay for the publication of the CORV 2008 Local Food Guide. Organizer Deborah Jordan says, "This could put us over the top for fundraising for this edition."
If you haven't yet gotten your copy of the 2008 guide, volunteers will be distributing it.
Here is what you can expect to find at local farmers' markets this week. Things do change due to weather and other factors, but as of the time of this post this is what the vendors at each market think is likely they will be bringing this week to market.
Oxford Uptown
Saturday 7am - noon
Uptown Oxford
Strawberries, spinach, lettuce, spring mix
Findlay Market Farmshed & Grow West
Saturday 8am - 6pm
1801 Race St
Back Acres Farm: Pastured eggs, grass-fed beef, pork whole-hog sausage, farmstead cheeses and homemade ice cream made from unprocessed milk from grass-fed cows. Please Note: this week Turner Farm returns to market and Back Acres Farm move to the Plaza.
Bauer Farm: cut flowers
Greensleeves Farm: tomato & pepper plants, limited lettuce, radishes, greens
Kist Greenhouse: full selection of Spring bedding plants, both flowers and vegetables, hanging baskets
Margaret's Garden: herb plants, forget-me-nots, perennials, rosebushes & cut flowers
Neltner's: hanging baskets and bedding plants, butterhead lettuce, the earliest tomatoes, strawberries
Northgate Greenhouse: Spring bedding plants, hanging baskets, planters, perennials and landscape plants
Shady Grove: Squash blossoms, last of the green garlic and garlic scapes, arugula, lambsquarters, sorrel, baby kale & mizuna, herbs including dill & cilantro, field-ready tomato plants, basil (Sweet, Thai, Opal, Lemon, Lime, Cinnamon & Lettuce) & edible/ornamental hot pepper seedlings. Also, fragrance roses - for 2 weeks only! - Lavender by the bunch, field daisies.
Thistlehair Farm: Garlic scapes, spring mix, spicy spring mix, Swiss chard, spinach, arugula, scallions, rhubarb, honey, radishes, last of the asparagus, heirloom tomato, herb, hosta and perennial plants.
Turner Farm: Lettuce, green garlic, green onions, spinach, rhubarb, herb plants including salad Burnet, basil, summer savory, and milkweed plants for monarch butterflies
Batesville Village Green
Saturday 8am - 11am
George & Main Sts
Batesville IN
Tomato stars, flowering plant starts, strawberries, lettuces, spinach, eggs, rhubarb in limited supply.
Also: Breakfast at the Farmers' Mkt. served on site 8 - 10am featuring local products.
Anderson
Saturday 9am - 1pm
Anderson Station
7832 Five Mile Rd
B&D Goats: Ricotta cheese, spreadable goat's cheese, baked goods, soaps, lotions
Flour Power: Baked goods
Fair Ridge Farm: Mixed lettuce, cherry belle and pink beauty radishes, parsley, eggs, honey, tomato transplants, homemade unsweetened grape juice
Dean Family Farm: Pastured chicken
West Chester
Saturday 9am - 1pm
The Square at Union Centre
Simon Kenton
Saturday 8:30am - 2:00pm
Simon Kenton High School
11132 Madison Pike
Independence KY
Milford Opening Day
Saturday 10am - 2:30 pm
Milford Shopping Center
1025 Lila Ave (Rt. 50)
Spinach, carrots, beets, yellow squash and zucchini, potted plants, hanging baskets, cut flower bouquets
Hyde Park
Sunday 10am - 2pm
US Bank parking lot
3424 Edwards Rd
Homegrown Bazaar: plant starts (herbs, veggies), potted plants (herbs, veggies), container gardens
Running Creek Farm: Lettuce, fresh strawberry jam, garlic scapes, fresh green garlic
B & D Goats: Ricotta Cheese, fudge (chocolate and peanut butter), Chevre.
Organic Farm at Bear Creek: Spring mix lettuce, salsas, pasta sauce, soups, salad dressings, jams.
Bella Luna: Fresh Pasta
Bergefurd Farm Market: Maybe strawberries
Eaton Farm: Maybe strawberries
Farm Beach Bethel: Lettuce
Hazelfield Farm: Cut flowers
Leah and Polly's Cheese: artisanal cheeses from small US producers
Linwood Sausage Company: Sausages, sausage sandwiches
Madison's: Gelato, carry out dishes from local produce
Martin Hill: Baby greens, lettuces, spinach, jams, salsas, mushrooms
McGovern Bee Company: honey, chap stick made from honey,
Mohr Animal Acres: Pork, beef, lamb
Rising Sun Farm: Eggs, honey
Sheltowee Farm: Mushrooms, German noodles, bread
Walnutridge Acres: Microgreens
Plus: Embrace Sweets, Fromeyer Breads, Jean Paul's Pleasures, Taste from Belgium
Wyoming
Tuesday 3 - 7pm
Wyoming Ave and Van Roberts Place
Sayler Park
Tuesday 4 - 7pm
Town Square Park
Parkland and Monitor Aves
Carrots, beets, Swiss chard, leaf lettuce, radishes, herbs.
Also: live music from the Waterman Project
Whole Foods
2nd & 4th Tuesdays 4 - 7pm
Rookwood Commons
2693 Edmondson Rd
Baby greens, lettuces, spinach, jams, salsas, mushrooms
Special Event: CORV fundraiser grillout
Milford
Wednesday 2 - 5:30pm
Milford Shopping Center
1025 Lila Ave (Rt. 50)
Spinach, carrots, beets, a few yellow squash and zucchini, potted plants and
hanging baskets.
Northside
Wednesday 4 - 7:30pm
Hamilton & Lingo
The Dixie
Thursday 2:30 - 6:30pm
Erlanger Baptist Church parking lot
116 Commonwealth Ave
College Hill
Thursday 3 - 7pm
5742 Hamilton Ave
Brookville
Friday 3:30 - 8:00
110 Main St
Brookville IN
Rex Rosenberger: Live Guinea fowl, Muscovy ducks, and Canada geese, eggs, veggies. Currently taking orders for cut-up chickens and whole turkeys for Thanksgiving.
John Dendler: Spinach, broccoli, lettuce
Bill and Norma Rudicil: Early spring veggies.
Pennington Hollow Farm: Head lettuces, triple-washed salad mix, heirloom pepper and eggplants, handcrafted lye soap and more.
We also expect new vendors at the market this week.
Boone County
Daily 9am - 6pm
Burlington Pike
Burlington
Here is what you can expect to find at local farmers' markets this week. Things do change due to weather and other factors, but as of the time of this post this is what the vendors at each market think is likely they will be bringing this week to market. As information comes in, I'll update.
Oxford Uptown
Saturday 7am - noon
Uptown Oxford
Lamb, chicken, beef, pork, breakfast sausage, eggs, goat cheese, strawberries, arugula, sunflower sprouts, red leaf lettuce, red romaine, buttercrunch, spinach, tat soi, Mizuna, red mustard, radishes, green onions, kale, broccoli, cut & dried herbs, canna lily bulbs, herb plants, tomato and pepper plants, honey, apple cider, popcorn, jellies, breads
Findlay Market Farmshed & Grow West
Saturday 8am - 6pm
1801 Race St
Back Acres Farm: Eggs, beef, pork whole-hog sausage, farmstead cheeses, ice cream
Bauer Farm: Cut flowers
Kist Greenhouse: Bedding plants, both flowers and vegetables, hanging baskets
Margaret's Garden: Herb plants, forget-me-nots, perennials, rosebushes & cut flowers
Neltner's: Hanging baskets and bedding plants, butterhead lettuce, early tomatoes
Northgate Greenhouse: Spring bedding plants, hanging baskets, planters, perennials and landscape plants
Shady Grove: Green garlic, arugula,lambsquarters, baby kale & mizuna, limited asparagus & rhubarb, & 8 or 10 cooking herbs. Field-ready tomato plants, basil (Sweet, Thai, Opal, Lemon, Lime, Cinnamon & Lettuce), edible/ornamental hot pepper seedlings, fragrance roses
Batesville Village Green
Saturday 8am - 11am
George & Main Sts
Batesville IN
West Chester
Saturday 9am - 1pm
The Square at Union Centre
Simon Kenton
Saturday 8:30am - 2:00pm
Simon Kenton High School
11132 Madison Pike
Independence KY
Hyde Park Opening Day!
Sunday 10am - 2pm
US Bank parking lot
3424 Edwards Rd
BD Goats: Goat's milk ricotta, spreadable goat's milk cheese, goat's milk fudge, rosemary raisin sourdough bread, goat's milk lotion
Bergefurd Family Farm: Strawberries
Home Grown Bazaar: plant starts, potted herbs & vegetables, container gardens
Organic Farm at Bear Creek: Spring mix lettuce, cut oregano and thyme, pepper and heirloom tomato plants, salsas, sauces, soups, dressings, jams, blueberry sauce
RJ Veggies: lettuce,radishes,green garlic,tomato plants sweet bell plants, hanging cherry tomato plants, hanging flowers, herbs, green onions, ruhbarb.
Eaton Farm: strawberries, radishes, green onions, salad greens
Walnutridge Acres: gourmet salad mix, arugula, baby spring bok choy, tatsoi, komatsuna
(asian green), red chard, fresh garlic chives, romaine, green garlic, garlic scapes, green onions,
radishes, potted herbs, vegetable plants and heirloom tomato plants.
Mohr's Animal Acres: fresh beef and chicken, pork, lamb, goat, goat's milk feta, cheddar, pepper jack, and mozzarella
Farm Beach Bethel: radishes,rhubarb, Italian dandelions, lettuce, and a delicious wild-crafted edible greens mix.
Sheltowee Farm: organic mushrooms, local raw honey, asparagus
Linwood Sausage Company: handcrafted homemade sausages and sausage sandwiches.
Plus: Embrace Sweets, Taste of Belgium, and Madisono's ready-to-eat items
Wyoming
Tuesday 3 - 7pm
Wyoming Ave and Van Roberts Place
Back Acres Farm: Eggs, grass-fed beef, whole hog sausage, farmstead cheeses, ice cream
Branstrator Farms: strawberries, jams, maybe asparagus
R.J. Veggies: Lettuce, green onions, herbs, hanging flower baskets, hanging cherry tomato baskets, and tomato and bell pepper plants. (This vendor accepts WIC.)
That Guy's Family Farm: organic lettuce mix, mesclun mix, green onions, fresh-baked boule bread, daisy bouquets.
Walnut Ridge Acres: Micro mix, radishes, green onions, herb and vegetable plants.
Also: La Terza coffees, Sweet Miss confections
Sayler Park
Tuesday 4 - 7pm
Town Square Park
Parkland and Monitor Aves
Lettuces, herbs, carrots, perennial and native plants, homemade granola
Northside Opening Day!
Wednesday 4 - 7:30pm
Hamilton & Lingo
The Dixie
Thursday 2:30 - 6:30pm
Erlanger Baptist Church parking lot
116 Commonwealth Ave
Flowers, vegetable plants, baked goods, jams
College Hill
Thursday 3 - 7pm
5742 Hamilton Ave
Brookville
Friday 3:30 - 8:00
110 Main St
Brookville IN
Boone County
Daily 9am - 6pm
Burlington Pike
Burlington
Today's Enquirer has a terrific rundown of where to buy local foods in season.
