Saturday Lakewood Farmers’ Market Returns For It’s 3rd Season
Saturday, June 30th from 10:00 a.m. – 1 p.m. the Lakewood Farmers Market (LFM) will open for it’s 2012 season, providing Lakewood residents a weekend downtown destination to eat, shop, enjoy free entertainment, summertime and meet their neighbors.
Awareness of fresh, locally grown produce and products has been on the rise as a way to support your personal health and local economy. Come enjoy seasonal fruits and veggies, jelly, cheese, meat, plants, coffee, honey, eggs, baked goods, prepared foods, music, arts and crafts, chef demos and more from local vendors.
In addition to providing Lakewood’s downtown a weekend community event, Lakewood Farmers Market’s mission is to create an incubation space and outlet for local entrepreneurs, from backyard growers to budding and established small food businesses. A number of vendors from previous seasons are Lakewood residents, and LFM is adding more Lakewood-owned small businesses to its vendor list each year.
In conjunction with this mission, LFM is continuing its vendor assistance program during 2012 through an Ohio Department Agriculture grant with Growhio, an organization aimed at educating consumers and increasing the demand for local food. Under the program, furnished vendor "incubator" booth space and technical assistance is available for farmers who have not vended at a farmers market before and will sell produce, herbs, honey or maple syrup.
EBT is proudly accepted at the Lakewood Farmers Market and at LEAF Nights, which take place Thursday nights from 5:30 p.m. - 8:00 p.m. in front of the Lakewood Public Library. This season, customers utilizing the Ohio Direction Card will receive a dollar-for-dollar match (up to $10) in “Produce Perks,” tokens that can be used to purchase fresh produce from local farmers.
Seventeen area markets in Cuyahoga County are participating in this program, developed by The Cleveland-Cuyahoga County Food Policy Coalition (a coalition initiated by Ohio State University Extension-Cuyahoga County and Case Western Reserve University’s Prevention Research Center for Healthy Neighborhoods) in partnership with several local foundations and a new national partner, Wholesome Wave, a nonprofit focusing on access and affordability of healthy, local foods in communities.
Sidebar:
Join us Opening Day! June 30th, from 10:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. in City Center Plaza for seasonal fruits and veggies, jelly, cheese, meat, plants, coffee, honey, eggs, baked goods, prepared foods, music, arts and crafts, chef demos and more! If you are interested in getting involved with the market, contact us for details at lakewoodfarmersmarket@gmail.com