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Farmers Markets Return Across Northern CT By Linda Tishler Levinson
It’s 6 p.m. Do you know where your dinner has been? You do if you shopped for the ingredients at a local farmers market. “I think people really want to buy local,” said Janice Warren, from the East Windsor Farmers Market. “People can know exactly where their food comes from,” said Dianne Trueb, from the Ellington Farmers Market. Buyers have a chance to talk to the vendors and learn about how their food was grown. “People like to support local agriculture,” said Ellie Binn, who organizes the Suffield Farmers Market. But today’s farmers markets are more than just a place to buy food. “For Ellington, it is a social event,” Trueb said. The market, located at Arbor Park on Main Street in Ellington, is in a beautiful setting where those attending can hang out, she added. There is a weekly theme and various types of entertainment. The third annual Community and Farmers Market in Enfield also offers live music.
Binn said the Suffield Farmers Market is a chance for people to socialize on the Town Green. Farmers markets also have become socially conscious. The Ellington Farmers Market accepts SNAP benefits, and matches them up to $20 a week. The market also offers the Kids Power of Produce Program starting June 11. Run by nutrition students from the University of Connecticut, the program holds activities for kids. Children who attend receive a token worth $2 of produce. The funding for these programs, Trueb said, comes from gifts from more than 40 local businesses. The Suffield Farmers Market is among those that accept WIC vouchers. Area farmers markets East Windsor: The East Windsor Farmers Market is open from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. from June 26 through October at the Connecticut Trolley Museum, 58 North Rd. Ellington: The Ellington Farmers Market is open Saturdays from 9 a.m. to noon beginning May 7 at Arbor Park. Each Saturday guest vendors and special events focus on a theme, such as
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“Happiness Is a Warm Puppy” with a K9 demonstration by the state police and a Rabies and Microchip Clinic, The Zucchini 500 Drag Race, and “Youth Market Day” when local youngsters under 18 can sell their homegrown produce. Enfield: The third annual Community and Farmers Market in Enfield is open Wednesdays from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. from July 13 to Oct. 12 in downtown Thompsonville next to Freshwater Pond. It includes live music, crafters, bakers, farmers, and Faith the Goat. Somers: The Somers Farmers Market has in the past been held Saturdays from May to October from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the corner of Main and Battle streets. Details about this year’s market were unavailable at press time. Stafford: The Stafford Community Farmer's Market will be opening June 11 in the John E. Julian Heritage Park, 3 Stafford Street, every Saturday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and running through October 29. Suffield: The Suffield Farmers Market, which starts June 18, is open Saturdays from 9 a.m. to noon on the South Green. The market is still seeking
vendors, according to Binn. Interested vendors may call 860-668-3848. Windsor Locks: The Windsor Locks Farmers Market opens at 6 p.m. the first Wednesday of the month at the library. Seasonal hours beginning Tuesdays after 2 p.m. have not yet been formalized, according to organizer Mary Jane Perrier. Interested vendors may call 860805-7622.
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