News
Nelsonville Farmers Market Expands Now Open Once A Week
By: Sara Brumfield | Athens Messenger
Posted on:
Nelsonville residents and visitors now have weekly access to fresh, local produce as the Nelsonville Farmers Market is held every Friday from 5-8 p.m. The market was only held on the last Friday of the month in prior years.
According to Nelsonville Farmers Market manager Margaret Ferguson, the market is in its third year. She said prior to the current season, the market had only been held in conjunction with Nelsonville’s Final Friday event. Final Friday is a monthly event that focuses on the many art galleries and shops surrounding the city’s historic public square on the last Friday of each month.
Ferguson said that in May the farmers market began selling local produce every Friday in front of the Hocking Valley Scenic Railway on Canal Street. The market moves to the Public Square on Final Fridays only.
Because farmers harvest their produce weekly, Ferguson said the decision was made to make the farmers market a weekly affair in order to give farmers a chance to sell more local food.
Currently the Nelsonville Farmers Market has four produce vendors and the Burrito Buggy also sells food. Ferguson said the market is looking to add more vendors, including community gardeners who may have just a handful of produce items to sell.
According to Ferguson, current items available at the market include herbs, collard greens, lettuces, kale, Swiss chard, radishes, plants, goat milk soaps and more. She said she’d like to see meat and egg produces, more plants and flowers and baked goods offered at the market.
The cost to sell at the Nelsonville Farmers Market is $10 per week or $60 for the entire season, which runs through the end of October.
For information about the Nelsonville Farmers Market or to become a vendor, call Ferguson at 591-5579, or visit www.facebook.com/NelsonvilleFarmersMarket.