Buy Local Food In Kitsap

Port Orchard Farmers Market To Open April 25th

Farmer Davis Taking A Break In The Shade

With spring right around the corner, it’s not too early for customers and vendors to start thinking about farmers markets.

Kitsap County’s oldest farmers market, with 31 years under its belt, is the Port Orchard Farmers Market and it’s announced a nice early April 25th opening.  This market will be held again at its popular downtown Port Orchard waterfront location on Saturdays from 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. through October 10.

There is room for 80 vendors and market publicist and farmer Sharon Howard says they anticipate another successful season again this year.

“Last year our farmers averaged $111,000 for our market season and our market is so well-known, people even come over from Seattle for it,” says Howard.  “We found out that 65 percent of our customers come at least twice a month.”

Interested vendors can get in touch with market manager Valerie Starrett by e-mail at jadeinkitsap@yahoo.com . The Kitsap Community and Agricultural Alliance Maintains Information for all of the farmers market. Just follow this link to  get more information about the Port Orchard Farmers Market

At a recent KCAA meeting, Howard talked about some of the reasons to vend at the Port Orchard Farmers market.  She says the market has a huge variety of flowers, plants, produce, and other food vendors such as Tom Farmer’s delectable fresh oysters.  It also has a good selection of excellent crafts. Customers have come to expect this from the Port Orchard Farmers market and are not disappointed.

“Where else can you find beautiful fresh-cut flowers for as little as $5 a bunch?” Howard asks.

Howard says one of the reasons she prefers vending weekly at the farmers market is the ability to experiment with new or unusual varieties of a product because you don’t have the pressure to produce an absolute, certain amount every week like you do for CSA customers.

“I like to experiment with small plantings of produce items that might be novel or risky or have weird sounding names to see what they turn out like,” says Howard with a big grin. ” If something fails or you don’t like it then you don’t  have a big investment in it but if you do like it, you’ve found something new to add to your crop list.”

Howard showed slides of some unusual varieties of squash, one of her favorite experimental crops. The Fetus Black and Mesa were among them.

She also talked about fees for vendors for the Market. An initial annual fee to join the Port Orchard Market is a mere $20.00 and full stalls run $14.00 per market session.  Half-spaces are also available for $7.50 per session. Washington State business licenses are required for some types of sales but she says it’s not required if it’s produce grown solely on your own premises. If in doubt, it’s best to check with the State.

An added bonus for vendors is the Port Orchard Farmers Market accepting food stamps and the popular WIC senior certificates for $2 for fresh fruit and vegetables. These categories serve to add to an already large client base.

Howard says getting equipment to set up your stall doesn’t have to cost you an arm and a leg either. She suggests haunting thrift stores such as Value Village, Good Will, and St. Vincent’s to find tables, produce baskets, and packing material.  She adds that a definitive must for a new vendor is investing in good accurate weighing scales – this is one thing a food inspector will always check out.

Finally she suggests getting to the market early and packing up as much as you can the night before.   Vendors are required to check in by 8:30 but she says she always tries to get there before 7:30 to set up. For new vendors, it’s a good chance to observe how some of the veteran vendors do it.

Howard says this market is always looking for good, new vendors and if you’re new to the game, it’s a good idea to start planning now – begin planning the crops you want to sell, talk to seasoned farmers and get in touch with the market manager.

“We’re currently in need of cheese and dairy product vendors and egg producers so if this is something you might be interested in vending, get in touch with Valerie,” Howard said. “And if you’re thinking about becoming a new farmers market vendor we’d love to hear from you.”