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Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Holyoke Farmers' Market kicks off 2025 season
HOLYOKE, Mass. (WWLP) – The Holyoke Farmers' Market is set to launch its 2025 summer season in June, bringing fresh produce, local goods, and community spirit to two outdoor locations each week. Beginning Tuesday, June 10, the Tuesday Outdoor Market will return to the Holyoke Senior Center/Council on Aging at 291 Pine St., operating from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. The following day, the market will continue at the Holyoke Medical Center, 575 Beech St., from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Western Mass. school districts receive federal grant funding for healthy meal programs 'We're excited to offer such a diverse array of products and to provide a space where the community can connect with local producers,' said Lisa Totz, Interim Director of the Greater Holyoke Chamber and Market Manager. 'The market reflects our mission to build a thriving local economy and foster meaningful relationships between vendors and customers.' Each week, the market will feature a wide selection of items, including fresh produce, locally raised meat and eggs, mushroom products, and a variety of prepared foods. Baked goods ranging from muffins and cookies to focaccia and rolls will be offered, along with handmade crafts and unique gifts. Adding to the market's appeal, food trucks will rotate throughout the season, offering an array of dining options. The market will also continue to support food accessibility through on-site assistance for SNAP, HIP, and WIC transactions, ensuring that all residents have access to fresh and local food. Vendor applications remain open, and the market encourages participation from businesses offering SNAP-eligible products. Details on vendor fees, payment assistance, and SNAP sales guidance are available through the Greater Holyoke Chamber. Community members are invited to visit the markets weekly and support the region's local producers. More information and vendor applications can be found at WWLP-22News, an NBC affiliate, began broadcasting in March 1953 to provide local news, network, syndicated, and local programming to western Massachusetts. Watch the 22News Digital Edition weekdays at 4 p.m. on Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Fairmont Farmer's Market perseveres through rain and rising prices during first week
FAIRMONT — Typically, April showers bring May flowers but in Fairmont, May just brought more rain. But despite the miserable weather, the Fairmont Farmer's Market held true to its promise on its Facebook page, and opened for the 2025 season, rain or shine. 'Generally we have more vendors than you're seeing today because of the weather,' Joni Costante, who oversees the Fairmont Farmer's Market, said. 'But this is just getting started. We have fresh locally grown produce and as the season progresses, we'll have fresh fruit brought in from Romney.' On Tuesday, Costante, Little Brickhouse Bakery, Richardson Farms and Herron's Farmers Market and Crafts set up tents and tables on which they did their best to proudly display their wares while keeping their products safe from the rain. Produce was not the only things for sale. There were baked goods and at least 44 different jellies for sale, as well as dried tea. Costante said the Fairmont Farmer's Market has been going on for at least 50 years, with the market taking root in one place or another, including under the Million Dollar Bridge. They've been based out of Palatine Park for the last four or five years, which Costante called a wonderful location. Despite its home-crafted nature, the farmer's market has also been susceptible to the same rising prices affecting consumer goods nationwide. Costante makes homemade jellies and said the price of sugar, jars and anything else required to produce her product has gone up significantly. She also pointed out that the price of seeds has gone up. 'A packet used to cost four bucks was now almost six this year,' she said. 'The dirt that some of us buy, like fertilizer, that sort of thing all of that's gone up.' The Herron's jam making business has also incurred higher costs. But despite that, they've done their best to not change prices. 'We've kept the prices of our jelly the same as last year, because if you raise it, then nobody can buy it,' Kathy Herron said. 'So we try not to cause a hardship on people.' Herron said the higher cost of business cuts into their profits, but where they are lucky is in that they raise their own blackberries, raspberries and other fruits, which helps keep costs down. Herron said she expects vendors to have less in the way of variety at farmers markets in general this year due to the higher prices. This is Little Brickhouse Bakery's first year at market. CJ Scott, owner, and her partner Jacob Kolodziej, own the business. They specialize in goods such as gluten-free brown butter cookies, snack mixes and peanut butter spreads they make at home. Cookies were also safely tucked into plastic containers to keep them safe from the rain on their display stand. Fairmont Farmer's Market was their second stop so far, after having started at the White Hall Farmer's and Artisans Market earlier in the month. Scott started her side business in January, when a lot of changes started happening at her job. She worked for the Department of Energy in Morgantown, where she functioned as a program and management analyst. However, she had experience working in a bakery, and after learning about West Virginia's cottage industries laws, decided to launch her own microbusiness. For Little Brickhouse, price came second to ingredients. 'Gluten-free shouldn't be gross,' Scott said. 'But also, we're a part of the community. This is an affordable price point.' The Fairmont Farmer's Market returns to Palatine Park every Tuesday throughout the summer. Costante said they even work with the senior nutrition program to help low-income seniors procure fresh produce. They also work with the Women, Infants and Children program to make sure they can get a fresh allotment of produce as well. She said one of the benefits of the farmers market is that residents are closer to their food and can get to know the farmers who grow it. Sudawan Richardson, from Richardson Farms, was Tuesday's rock. Camped underneath the trunk lid of her SUV, she held onto her produce and made the best of things. 'I love to garden, I love to see people happy,' she said. 'I see their smile, I'm happy. That's my toy. Money, that's good but I think I make good enough. I like everybody to have good food.'
CTV News
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- CTV News
Sunday edition of 124 Grand Market makes season debut this weekend
The Sunday edition of the 124 Grand Market opens this weekend in Wîhkwêntôwin. (Supplied) For the 13th year in a row, the 124 Grand Market will be bringing some extra bustle to the heart of Wîhkwêntôwin this Sunday. The market includes over 80 rotating vendors offering a variety of goods including fresh local produce, handmade artisan wares and street food. 102 Avenue off of 124 Street will be closed for the market which will be open from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Live entertainment can be enjoyed in front of the Robertson Wesley United Church, courtesy of the 124 Grand Market Busker Series. Families can also take part in the Little Beans program which introduces kids ages 4-12 to fresh, local foods and educates them about where food comes from. The program has been part of the market since 2015 and aims to encourage healthy nutrition and conscientious consumer habits. The market's counterpart on 108 Avenue has been open since May 15. Both markets will be open until Thanksgiving weekend. The 124 Grand Market will also hold night markets in different neighbourhoods across the city. You can visit their website to see when and where the next one is.
CNA
2 days ago
- Business
- CNA
Singapore farms innovate and collaborate amid profitability struggles
SINGAPORE: GroGrace, an urban farm that cultivates 14 varieties of vegetables, has yet to break even after three years in operation. The farm has boosted its business by some 40 per cent from direct sales to customers as compared to last year, and it is looking to increase its sales even further. Its CEO Grace Lim told CNA that the farm aims to collaborate with other farms and market a wider variety of vegetables to hotel groups. This arrangement will allow the farms to achieve a minimum order quantity from their customers, she said. '(If) local farms can also sell to these hotel groups collectively, I believe it will be able to help us increase our sales by up to 30 per cent to 40 per cent.' Singapore has been actively working to increase its agricultural production and create a safety net for the nation in the event of a food supply chain disruption. However, as local produce often costs more for the consumer than imported products, farmers are looking at new ways to appeal to buyers, including diversifying their products to get a bigger slice of the market. INNOVATIONS IN FARMING Over at fish farm Blue Ocean Aquaculture Technology, sales have dipped by 20 per cent this year. 'This year, at the beginning, it was pretty good … until about one month ago, since after the trade war (started),' said its managing director and founder Ng Yiak Say. '(We) are seeing that the market sentiment doesn't seem to be good and (people are) spending less and worry (about) job security.' His factory-based indoor fish farm features multiple tanks that can hold up to 3,000 small fishes each. The farm has received support from the Singapore Food Agency's (SFA) Agriculture Productivity Fund to implement culture tanks for raising fish, with an indoor recirculating aquaculture system that has self-cleaning capabilities. This allows them to farm fishes at higher densities. As the company seeks to increase its profitability, Mr Ng is also looking beyond farming as a business activity, turning to food manufacturing as well as designing and building aquaculture systems. He said that instead of cutting prices below market rate due to excess fish production, creating ready-to-eat products means the firm could extend the shelf life of its fish offerings and helping it to plan fish production. He added that the farm is creating fish products like fillets, soup and will hit the shelves later this year. He said that the farm's production has a lower carbon footprint as the entire process from harvesting to cooking is all done at the same location. On expansion plans, Mr Ng noted the challenges faced by the aquaculture sector such as rent, labour, and cost of constructing farming facilities. Mr Ng added that improving staff productivity is one way to address labour costs, and expressed hopes for more land sites with lower rent and longer tenure so that businesses can recoup their investments. DEFRAYING COSTS During a Committee of Supply speech in parliament two months ago, then-Senior Minister of State for Sustainability and the Environment Koh Poh Koon said the government is looking to help farms improve productivity and lower costs. Farms that require help to expand can seek government funding for farming equipment and trials to raise productivity while staying sustainable. In his speech, Dr Koh introduced enhancements to the existing S$60 million (US$47 million) Agri-Food Cluster Transformation (ACT) Fund that was unveiled by the SFA in 2021. The fund is aimed at helping local food producers increase their production capacities and capabilities. Dr Koh also said that the enhanced ACT Fund will provide comprehensive coverage including marketing and branding expenses. It will also expand funding to cover standalone pre- and post-harvest production facilities. Such facilities improve the resilience of the local supply chain against supply disruptions, streamline operations, improve productivity and ensure more consistent product quality. The agency will also extend the maximum project funding duration from 27 to 36 months, giving farms more time to harness technology and innovations.
CTV News
3 days ago
- Business
- CTV News
Regina Farmers' Market celebrates 50th anniversary, sees large turnout on opening day
WATCH: The Regina Farmers' Market, which started in 1975, has been in operation for 50 years. Damian Smith has more on the milestone. Forty-seven vendors made their way to Victoria Park Wednesday, not only for the opening day of the Regina Farmers' Market, but to celebrate half a century of history. 'We're a bit of an exception,' said executive director Holly Laird. Laird has been director since November of 2019. 'There's not a lot of farmers' markets, nationally or around us that make it to 50 years,' she added. As the warm weather continues throughout the week, it was a more vibrant day downtown. Many workers stopped by the market on their lunch break. The oldest vendor open was The Cookie Lady, which has been in business since 1994. As for what can be sold, the farmers' market has strict rules in both locations. Products must be grown, baked or designed in Saskatchewan. 'Much of it [the products] comes from less than 50km away,' said Laird. 'The produce, baking, it's all fresh and made within 24 hours. So, it's exciting, and we can bring a quality product to the community that way.' Much like it has for the last half century, these downtown markets will happen every Wednesday until Oct. 11. The Saturday market will take place in Confederation Park, as the Regina Farmers' Market looks ahead to the next 50 years.
