Outdoor Farmers' Markets Open April 15 In Corvallis And Albany -03/31/17

Corvallis-Albany Farmers' Markets P.O. Box 2602 Corvallis, OR 97339 FMI: Rebecca Landis, landisr@peak.org or (541) 740-1542 March 31, 2017 www.locallygrown.org Like us on Facebook or follow us on Instagram or Twitter Opening Day for outdoor farmers' markets in Corvallis and Albany is April 15. Wednesday markets in Corvallis begin April 19. Hours for all Corvallis and Albany outdoor farmers' markets are 9 am to 1 pm. This is the 40th season for Albany Farmers' Markets, which means 2018 will be the market's 40th birthday. Albany has Oregon's longest continuously operating outdoor farmers' market. The relatively younger farmers' market events in Corvallis are in their 27th (Saturday) and 37th (Wednesday) seasons. In Albany, multi-instrumental bluesman Froggy will perform. OSU Pharmacy students will be offering free medical screenings and information. Music for opening day in Corvallis will be Americana guitarist and vocalist Sig Paulson. Event booths will include the Native Plant Society of Oregon and OSU students from the Coastal Processes Lab. Also in Corvallis will be Nerds Abroad, promoting donation of used technology, and OSU vet medicine students, promoting Pet Day. In prior years the Procession of the Species parade coincided with opening day in Corvallis. This year both Albany and Corvallis parades will fall on April 22. Market locations In Albany, the farmers' market is in the City Hall parking lot at 4th and Ellsworth and an adjacent piece of 4th Avenue. The street closing includes space for family attractions like displaying a fire truck or dancing in the street under shade of heritage trees on the park-like Courthouse lawn. Albany market customers can use restrooms and access water fountains in City Hall from 8:30 to 1:30 on market days. Most Albany customers find parking on 3rd and 4th avenues, Broadalbin and the west side of Ellsworth, but Linn County grants customer parking in the lot at 4th and Ferry beside the Health Department's office. Washington Federal Savings allows use of spaces behind its building for customer handicapped parking and a product pickup zone. Umpqua Bank allows use of their parking lots for excess vendor vehicles. The farmers' market in Corvallis occupies a street closing on a 1.5 block of 1st Street and rounds the corner onto Monroe Ave. At season's height, the market will extend on Monroe almost to 2nd Street. If you ride a bike, there are bike hoops and some covered parking. Walking along the riverbank on the multi-modal path is a relaxing way to arrive. The bus station, where all routes lead, is at 5th & Monroe, only a few blocks from the market. Parking near the Corvallis Farmers' Market is a mixture of free and paid. Free parking is found north of Van Buren Ave. on 1st Street. Meters are patrolled on Saturdays. Weathering the weather After two years of early spring that brought crops to market earlier than normal, this market season may be a throwback to more difficult years. OSU's Hyslop station has measured 23 inches of rain above normal for the crop year that began Sept. 1. Market farmers mostly signed up for their space and dates in February, before they knew how long the rain would continue. Prolonged spring rain could have an effect on crops long after the sun comes out for good. Farmers cannot plant in wet soils, and even those who raise animals have struggled to manage their pastures. Some local farmers grow inside large greenhouses called high tunnels, which helps keep the soil a little drier and warmer. Not all market vendors have access to this equipment, so there may be differences in what is available. Corvallis and Albany both have a 32-week long season with a lot of change along the way. Early market weeks feature spring raab and many other greens, potatoes and other storage vegetables, radishes, fresh turnips, carrots, rhubarb, preserved foods, honey, eggs, meat, poultry, and cheese plus nursery plants and cut flowers. On the other extreme, the last market on Wednesday Nov. 22 will feature much of what will be on Thanksgiving tables the next day. Shop like a pro Experienced market shoppers walk around the market before making purchases. They get to know individual farmers, try samples of unfamiliar foods and get recipes and other cooking advice. When it's time to preserve the harvest by drying, freezing or canning, these savvy shoppers know farmers they can ask for quantity discounts. Those interested in keeping their dollars circulating locally and knowing who grew their dinner can rely on farmers' market guidelines that prohibit any resale. Most vendors are selling agricultural products they grew in a six-county area: Benton, Linn, Lincoln, Lane, Marion and Polk counties. A modest amount of baked goods and restaurant food is added so customers can overcome the hunger pangs that beautiful food displays can cause. At all three markets, there is a market booth, marked with brightly colored pennants, where customers with Oregon Trail cards and debit cards buy wooden tokens. The market also sells cloth market bags, which help to fund Double Up Food Bucks. Some information is available at the market booth, but more information is available online. Market shoppers can use features on www.locallygrown.org to search for products or for particular vendors and they can view interactive maps showing the location of vendors on each market day. Music and other events are listed as well. Markets are like accordions Since all the farm products must be local and farm direct, the size of the farmers' markets expand and contract over the outdoor market season. The Saturday incarnation of the Corvallis Farmers' market has a changing lineup of 50-70 vendors per week. The Albany season begins with fewer than 20 vendors. As hot weather crops develop, the Albany vendor count builds to 30 or more. Corvallis' Wednesday farmers' market is similar in size to the Albany Farmers' market and includes vendors from both Saturday events. Two new restaurant vendors are expected in Albany this season. Boss Waffle will be selling Belgian liege waffles with local toppings. The farmers of Fry Road Produce are hoping to branch out into soup, salad and sandwiches later in the year. This year The Naked Crepe returns to the Corvallis scene after a few years of operating on the coast. Power of Produce kids' club in Albany The Albany Farmers' Market is seeking business sponsorships to fund a 13-week Power of Produce program running June 24-Sept. 16. Kids 5-12 get $4 in tokens to spend at each market they attend during the program, plus activities with support from community partners like the YMCA and Linn County Master Gardeners. AFM's Power of Produce is modeled after the Oregon City Farmers Market PoP Club. This program began in 2011 and has spread to farmers' markets across the country. Information about sponsoring Power of Produce is found at locallygrown.org/home/albany-pop-club/. Or contact event coordinator Vonda Peters at volunteercafm@gmail.com or 541-990-5474. Double Up Food Bucks Corvallis-Albany Farmers' Markets and most of the smaller area farmers' markets have received a second year of funding to offer Double Up Food Bucks to customers using SNAP benefits (commonly called food stamps) on their Oregon Trail cards. The program helps families stretch their food dollars further and improve the nutritional quality of meals. Double Up Food Bucks is 50 percent federally funded via a grant obtained by the Farmers Market Fund in Portland. FMF gathered additional regional funding, and individual markets sought funds. CAFM's local match includes funds from the City of Corvallis' Basic Needs allocation, plus a portion of market bag sales and cash donations in both Corvallis and Albany. Oregon Trail cardholders can receive up to $10 per market day in DUFB as a match to $10 or more redeemed from their cards -- meaning a family can spend twice as much on fresh, local foods. The currency is a $2 playing card-sized voucher. Even dollar amounts are matched. The eligible product list expanded in 2017 to include nuts, plus seeds and plants that produce food. Other nutrition programs Samaritan's Cancer Resource Center operates That's My Farmer nutrition program in cooperation with the markets. Current and recent cancer patients get help from Samaritan dietitians and other staff plus vouchers to purchase fruits and vegetables, grains and dried beans. Another program that increases access to high quality foods among low-income households is the Farm Direct Nutrition program, which includes both young families (WIC or Women, Infants and Children) and seniors. Gleaning groups also collect perishable produce from vendors and distribute to others in need. Community Table and community involvement Most market vendors are members of the nonprofit association and sell using their own tents and other equipment. The market also has a Community Table consignment option that is often the best option for backyard growers. The Community Table also will operate on Wednesdays in Corvallis. CAFM is still seeking additional help to reopen the Community Table on Saturdays in Corvallis this season. Community groups that would like to do outreach at the market can sign up at locallygrown.org/home/community-involvement/ or contact Vonda Peters at volunteercafm@gmail.com or 541-990-5474. Community groups provide cooking demonstrations and other education, plus family fun, such as children's art projects. Individual volunteers are also welcome.