The advance toward spring finds the Allen County Farmers’ Market blooming with two new market locations and a slew of children’s programs.
“It won’t be long before our customers are able to enjoy our market,” recently hired Market Director Robin Schallie said.
This season’s customers will have three locations to choose from. The Thursday outdoor market will continue on the southeast corner of Iola’s downtown square and includes produce vendors alongside cooking demonstrators, educators, local talent, crafters and musicians. It begins April 13 from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Other sites are the old Country Mart parking lot, 700 N. State St., Iola, and Moon’s Hometown Market, Humboldt.
The State Street location will be on Tuesdays beginning May 2 from 1:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. Humboldt’s market will be Saturday mornings beginning mid-May from 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.
Schallie said the State Street location will allow customers to shop during their lunch break and allow those who are employed nights to stop by on their way to work.
“I am really excited about that location because it has great visibility and tremendous accessibility,” she said.
The exact date of the Humboldt market is yet to be determined, Schallie said. She is taking vendors’ applications, and as soon as there are enough vendors signed up, the market’s board of directors will finalize the date. There is no charge to be a vendor in Humboldt and there are no fees for educational presenters or non-profit organizations at any of the locations, she said.
Children will have the opportunity this summer to experience the “Power of Produce” during a new eight-week “POP” program made possible by the Allen County Grow Food and Farm Council, according to the board of directors’ secretary, Debbie Bearden. The program is modeled after the Farmers’ Market Coalition program of the same name.
“They have given grants to the bigger towns and we are too small to get the grant so the idea is we are going to do our own,” Bearden said.
During the months of June and July children can sign up to get an eight-page passport-like booklet with tasks to accomplish at the market, much like a treasure hunt. Children who complete the tasks will receive tokens, redeemable at the farmers’ market.
Customers will continue to have the option of paying by debit card, cash, or EBT for purchases, and the market’s “Double Up Food Bucks” promotion will continue to allow Kansas benefit card users to purchase twice-as-much fruit and vegetables as the amount paid.
The market will continue to highlight children’s produce-awareness, reading and safety events, Bearden said. About 250 children participating in Unified District 257’s after-school program, SAFE BASE, will visit the State Street location, May 2 and May 9, according to Bearden. On May 2 the children will receive tokens to shop at the market and the opportunity to declare what their favorite vegetable is. May 9 the children will receive seeds to take home and plant. “Family Fun Safety Night,” June 8, will include inflatables and fire trucks on Iola’s downtown square.
“Basically the whole square is taken over,” by the event, Bearden said.
Schallie said she is working with area radio stations to promote the market and would like to increase the number and the diversity of vendors. Bearden said the market is ideal for vendors within a 50-mile radius of the Allen County line. Vendors are encouraged to try it even if they do not commit for the entire season.
Schallie said one of the challenges is a shortage of electrical outlets on the square, which limits the types and numbers of food vendors that can set up.
“Back where I am from (Wisconsin) Farmers’ Markets are huge. It’s a big event,” Schallie said. “For example, members of the Hmong community would come in and do their egg rolls and it’s a big fundraiser for them. But when we have only limited electrical space, to try and go out and recruit food vendors, is a challenge right now.”
