Farm Fresh Rhode Island blog

It’s 4 pm on a Thursday evening in October at the Armory Park in the West End of Providence. Over $450 worth of local produce is stacked in bins, bags, and boxes behind the Farm Fresh RI table. Customers at the market stop as they pass by, asking us in a variety of languages what we’re selling and how much it costs. But this produce isn’t for sale. Rather, it’s going to be sorted into 24 bountiful bags for 24 Market Basket shareholders through a program we piloted this summer at the Armory and Downtown Markets.

Our Market Basket model was based on the traditional Consumer-Supported Agriculture (CSA) model in which customers pay farmers at the beginning of a season and then receive a share of the farm’s harvest every week. Shareholders chose one or both 10-week seasons at $200 each, and then came weekly to pick up a balanced mix of fresh produce, eggs and bread from all of the farmers at the market. Farm Fresh staff talked with farmers at markets, by e-mail, and on the phone, learning the latest on current crop harvests, in order to make the final arrangements for the contents of the shares.  Each market arrived with a newsletter, filled with information on farmers, produce storage, preservation and recipe suggestions, and we sorted the produce into canvas bags at the market for easy pick up.

Our goals for the Market Basket program were:

• to strengthen neighborhood markets
• to guarantee farmers’ income
• to give more customers a reason to come by the market every week
• to create an easy way for consumers to get local foods
• to provide customers curious about CSAs with a stepping stone to try it out
• to offer customers hands-on education in seasonal eating

And what a success it was!

• The Market Basket program attracted a lot of attention and more regulars to the markets, and it coincided with a record year for farmers at the Armory and Downtown.
• In this first year, the Market Basket program provided nearly $20,000 worth of produce, eggs and bread to 80 RI households, with 100% of the money going directly to the producers.
• 11 farms were involved in the program: Barden Orchard, Big Train, Cedar Edge, City Farm, Hill Orchard, Maplewood, Moosup River, Red Planet Vegetables, Simmons, Whispering Elms and Young, as well as Olga’s Cup & Saucer and Seven Stars Bakery.
• Thanks to shareholders’ donations, we were also able to offer a few half-price shares, expanding access to fresh food lovers of all income levels.
• Shareholders surveyed at the end of the season were interested in getting a Market Basket next year, or were thinking about joining a traditional CSA.
• Favorite items included apple butter, tomatoes, basil, apple cider, eggs, greens, and hot peppers. Shareholders enjoyed the convenience of the program, being exposed to new foods they’d never tried, and the challenge of eating more fruits and vegetables each week.

We’ve learned so much this season, and are indeed planning to continue and expand the Market Basket program. For next year we are looking to offer more low-income shares, add more recipes and food preparation tips, and offer more choices and variety in our weekly baskets, and maybe even add new market sites like Pawtucket. A big thanks goes out to our wonderful volunteers, and all of participating shareholders and farmers. You made it possible! As one participant noted, “the best part of this program is that it brings neighbors together,” and we couldn’t agree more.  Our weekly engagement with farmers and customers has turned familiar faces into friends, strengthening our community and our vision of a vibrant local food system.

– Christie and Hannah

But a month away, the Providence Wintertime Farmers’ Market promises an incredible selection of locally grown and produced foods every Saturday 11-2pm inside where it’s warm.

The ‘where’ this year is Hope Artiste Village, on Main St., just over the Pawtucket border. We had an awesome run last year at AS220, but we outgrew the space. Plus, parking downtown is always a little tight. Hope Artiste has plenty of parking and is right off Rt. 95, or just 1.5 miles north on N. Main St. from the big Whole Foods in Providence. It’s also a quick ride on the 99 bus line.

The space is beautiful and plenty big. That means we’re back this year with 12 more farms, 5 more food artisans and 3 more specialty food producers so far. (Here’s a vendor application.) Hope Artiste is also where Seven Stars Bakery bakes its bread and pastries, and where New Harvest roasts its coffee. We’re excited to deepen this connection between producers and eaters; both will be at the Wintertime Farmers’ Market. The market will also be amidst a community of small businesses: a bookstore, toy store, game store, art galleries, and many studio spaces. If all goes well, the Blackstone will be serving brunch during market hours and so will Rosinha’s, a new Portuguese / Cape Verdean restaurant at Hope Artiste. All in all, we’re pretty psyched about the spot.

November Farmers’ Markets
More on the Wintertime Farmers’ Market in the coming weeks, but in the meantime, support the outdoor markets brave enough to be open this November:

• Providence: Every Saturday 9:30-12:30pm at Hope High School ’til Thanksgiving
• Pawtuxet Village: Every Saturday 9-12pm at Rhodes on the Pawtuxet ’til Thanksgiving
• Fall River: Every Wednesday 9-1pm at Ruggles Park ’til Nov. 19
• Fall River: Every Saturday 7:30-12:30pm at Kennedy Park ’til Thanksgiving
• Middletown: Saturday, Nov. 22, 9-12pm at Newport Vineyards
• Saunderstown: Sunday, Nov. 23, 10-2pm at Casey Farm

When we vote on Tuesday, what kind of landscape do we want to leave to the next generation of RI eaters?

POST-ELECTION UPDATE 11/5: The Open Space Bond passed with 2/3 of the vote.

With all the excitement over the Presidential Election, it’s easy to gloss over all of the important local issues on the RI ballot. But there are some very important ballot questions in play. And Question 2, the Open Space and Recreation Development Bond, is good news for everyone who wants to support local agriculture, food and farms.

Question 2 will provide funding to protect RI’s open spaces, farmland, watersheds, shorelines, natural parks, and natural resources. Every $1 of state funds invested will be matched by $3-$4 in federal funding, foundation grants, and charitable contributions. In total, a statewide investment of $2.5 million will generate $10 million for:

• Preserving RI’s vanishing farmland – and with it, locally grown foods
• Protecting our communities’ special open spaces and natural areas
• Creating and expanding parks when opportunities arise such as Rocky Point
• Protecting our drinking water and watersheds from pollution

This bond is a critical investment in RI agriculture.  RI has lost 80% of our farmland since 1945.  RI has the highest farmland prices in the nation and there is strong pressure to develop this land into new subdivisions. But we all know the value of a thriving agricultural community - for our health, for our quality of life, for our environment, and for our economy. Farmland cultivates $100 million in RI’s economy each year.

Today, less than 25% of our remaining farmland is protected.  In 1985, the state began a visionary Farmland Protection Program to reign in the loss of farmland, save our agricultural heritage, and keep our agricultural economy viable.  Since 1985, the state’s farmland protection program has protected 81 farms and 6,232 acres of productive farmland.  Over 25 more farmers (nearly 2,000 acres) have applied to protect their farms, been approved by the state program, and are still awaiting funding.  The 2008 US Farm Bill is providing $3-5 million each year to RI for farmland protection, but requires each state to fund a match.  Question 2 will provide some of the necessary matching funds.

If the bond does not pass, RI will not receive any of the matching funds from the federal government, foundation grants, and charitable contributions. Over $7 million in funding from outside the state will be lost. The land conservation programs will end, and the fresh foods and fields we enjoy as Rhode Islanders today may slowly become a thing of the history books for the generations to come.