The Citycenter Danbury Farmer’s Market opens this Friday and I cannot wait! It’ll be every Friday in Kennedy Park from 11am to 4pm until Oct. 24.
This year’s vendors are:
- El’s Kitchen (Weston, CT) – spice rubs
- Clatter Valley Farm (New Milford, CT) – local produce
- Geremia Gardens (Southington, CT) – local produce
- Madera Farms (Middletown, CT) – mushrooms, micro-greens, herbs, etc.
- New Milford Youth Agency (New Milford, CT) – maple syrup products, honey, produce
- Olive Oil of the World (Pawling, NY) – rubs and olive oils
- Pepe’s Cream of the Crop (Stratford, CT) – hard shell clams
- Smith’s Acres (Niantic, CT) – plants, vegetables, fruit, flowers
This year artists from the Housatonic Valley Cultural Alliance will be participating in ‘plein air’ painting while displaying their artwork for purchase during market hours. Additionally, there are plans to have food education, healthy cooking demos, health screenings and other wellness activities to promote a healthy and active lifestyle. Dancers from A Common Ground will be on hand to demonstrate the benefits of exercise. Sounds pretty great to me!
The Greater Danbury Farmers’ Market Community Collaborative (DFMCC) is the group behind the new market programs. The collaborative is made up of more than 20 local private, public and non-profit organizations dedicated to expanding the market, encouraging access to fresh foods by all members of the community and enhancing health promotion efforts to prevent chronic diseases such as obesity and diabetes.
Fresh food for all! Yes! There is much discussion about access to healthy food especially for those on some kind of financial assistance. People in Danbury are trying to do something about it and, to me, it’s exciting!
Because I couldn’t say it any better, here’s an excerpt from a press release about the health promotion and fresh food access initiative:
“Born out of the desire to provide equitable access to fresh fruits and vegetables for all in Danbury, promote health and nutrition, help sustain Connecticut farmers, and increase economic development downtown, the program will combine funding to enhance the purchase of healthy foods by recipients Federal food assistance programs. By accepting EBT cards for those on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and providing dollar to dollar matches for those of SNAP and the Farmers’ Market Nutrition programs for WIC and Seniors, the DFMCC will enhance the purchasing power of the community’s most needy and encourage the buying of fresh fruit and vegetables.”
I love seeing people buying fresh, healthy food. I love seeing a bustling Danbury Farmer’s Market. I love that the DFMCC is working hard to give more people access to it.
Ready. Get Set. Go! See you at the market!