Every week over 12,000 people shop at one of the four Vancouver Farmers Markets. Many communities without a local market want one and are ready to support it. However, current by-laws and zoning restrictions make it nearly impossible to open up and operate more farmers markets in Vancouver – even after 16 years of operation.

But you can help us change that!

A report will be debated by City Council on July 20, 2010 that would make it easier to operate farmers markets and thereby allow more local farmers and producers to sell in Vancouver.

We need your help to make sure this report is approved. If you support the following recommendations please send us an email before July 20 and we will present it to City Council.

It will only take 2 minutes and it could secure the future of the farmers markets in Vancouver. Your voice does count!

These are the main recommendations in the report:

·       Reducing permit fees for farmers markets.
·       Expanding the zoning in which farmers markets can operate – except in Commercial District Zoning.
·       Establishing a streamlined application process for setting up a market.
·       Creating a formal definition of what can be sold at a farmers market.
·       Increasing the permitted maximum market size.
·       Allowing permanent seasonal farmers market signage.

To view the report in full click here
http://vancouver.ca/ctyclerk/cclerk/20100706/documents/p1.pdf and take our poll if you have a minute.

To send an email to Tara McDonald, Executive Director expressing your support, click here.

Here’s an example of what you might like to write: Download the .doc

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Blueberry Festival

It’s Blueberry season and we’re celebrating with our first-ever Blueberry Festival at our Main Street Station Market this Wednesday, July 14 from 3 – 7 pm. Learn how to preserve blueberries, find out about the health benefits of blueberries and take home some new blueberry recipes to try. We’ll also have games for kids, face painting and we’ll have a blueberry muffin bake-off. If you haven’t been to our new market at Main Street Station bring a blanket and your friends and come join us in the sun at Thornton Park in front of the VIA Rail Station.

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Parking at Main St Station
If you’re stopping by the Main St Station Farmers Market on your way home from work or school – and you happen to be travelling by car – you’ll be happy to hear that we have new FREE shopper parking in the parking lot located at Terminal and Station (next to Cloverdale Paint). There are more than 25 spaces and they are all marked “RESERVED”. This parking is open from 3pm – 8pm each week. This parking is very conveniently located to the market and again…its free! One thing though…please don’t parking in Cloverdale Paint spaces – we want to be good neighbours!

If you’re arriving by bike, you’ll also be happy with other new developments. We’ll have free bike valet parking every week provided by BEST. We hope you’ll stop by and use this new service!

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The Main St Station Market Donates to the Downtown Eastside Women’s Centre

Promoting locally grown and sustainable food is a key mandate of the Vancouver Farmers Markets. Being a positive contributor to the communities in which we hold our markets is another.

Many of our vendors at the Main Street Station Market donate produce at the end of the market day to the Downtown Eastside Women’s Centre. This centre is one of the few safe spaces within the Downtown Eastside exclusively for women and their children. A free lunch service provides food for between 200-300 women and children every day.

If you would like to learn more about how to donate bulk food items, women’s clothing and toiletries you can visit the Downtown Eastside Women’s Centre website at http://dewc.ca/

Ask your favourite vendor how they contribute and feel free to purchase a little extra at the market to donate yourself. The donation bin is located at the Market Info booth each week.

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Cookbook Swap – East Vancouver Farmers Market at Trout Lake – July 31

Out of fresh recipe ideas? Bored with your tired old cookbooks? Liven up your bookshelf with a new-to-you cookbook and pass your old books on to someone who will love them at our Cookbook Swap! This monthly event will kick off for the summer on June 26th at the Trout Lake Market.

Bring in your gently-used cookbooks and cooking magazines to be assigned a trade-in value, and find new-to-you treasures! Don’t have anything to trade, or see something that’s a bit more pricey that your trade-ins? Don’t worry, we take cash too!

With the Cookbook Swap, we hope to inspire people to try out new recipes with the fresh, local foods they purchase from our vendors, as well as encourage everyone to reduce waste and recycle by passing on previously loved books.
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Up We Grow! Book Launch

Up We Grow! is an inspiring children’s book highlighting the importance of small, local farms. Heartwarming photos invite children readers into the workings of a small, co-operative farm over four seasons. Images of shoppers at the East Vancouver Market interacting with farmers are also a feature of this unique book. The Vancouver Farmers Market and FarmFolkCityFolk are launching Up We Grow! on August 7 at the East Vancouver Market. Readings and presentations by author Debbie Hodge and the book’s photographer Brian Harris are planned.

Member Zone

Want to know how and when to find organic baguettes for $1? Become a Friend of the Market Member for only $10 a year (link to member page) and we’ll make sure you’re in the know when specials are being offered to members only!

And who needs to win the lottery when you could win our Cornucopia Raffle? When you are a member you get two free tickets for our Raffle and just look what you can win:

Winner John Foulkes with his raffle prize. John said, “It made my month!”

Next Member Appreciation Day is July 21 at our Main St Station Market – don’t forget to bring your membership card!

Click here to find out more about our Friend of the Market program.

Volunteer Opportunities

Vancouver Farmers Markets
Do you love spending time at the Farmers Market and would like to get more involved? We are always looking for volunteers to help out at our four Farmers Markets around the city. For more information please email Chelsea our volunteer co-ordinator at: volunteer@eatlocal.org

Vendor News

Welcome SOLEfood!

Even though SOLEfood Farm is the ‘new farmer on the market block’, they are already generating a huge buzz. It can be attributed to the fact that the produce is excellent quality, AND also that everything is grown on a small parking lot in the Downtown Eastside. The half-acre urban farm is located beside the Astoria Hotel and provides training and employment for Vancouver’s inner-city residents.

Seann Dory at the Main St Station Farmers Market

Seann Dory of United We Can, is the organiser behind the program, which got underway in late 2009. The food is grown to meet the needs of inner city agencies and community kitchens, and it is also sold to restaurants and at the Vancouver Farmers Markets. All proceeds are put back into the project.

Check out our Interactive Market Maps to find out when and where SOLEfood Farm will be next. You can also check out their blog (http://1sole.wordpress.com/) to find out more.

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Classes and Events

Home Grown Photo Contest

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Granville Island Turkey Trot, Thanksgiving Monday, October 11th
Stay local for Thanksgiving Monday and join us October 11th for the Granville Island Turkey Trot 10k walk, run or stroll around the False Creek seawall. First 1,000 registered receive a pair of New Balance technical socks from The Right Shoe. New options this year include lower price with no-garment option, New Balance technical shirt or thermal jersey, and toques for adults and tots. Same great food featuring west coast cuisine of Steven Wong, same scenic flat seawall route, and benefiting the Greater Vancouver Food Bank.

More information at turkeytrot.ca

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VanDusen Gardens – Sunday, July 18 – HSBC VanDusen Family Program, The Buzz About Flowers! for families with children ages 5 to 11 years Examine flowers and pollinators in the Garden and why pollination is so important for all of us. Visit VanDusen’s beehives, and partake in the Honey Taste Test. Two sessions: 10:30 a.m. – noon or 1:30 – 3 p.m. Price: Member Family $15, Non-Member Family $25 (includes admission to the Garden). One-time bursaries are available for families with limited resources. Children must be accompanied by an adult. Pre-registration required by calling 604-718-5898 or familyprograms@vandusen.org

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Building Neighbourhood Food Networks, Tuesday, July 20
Langara College

Join with other groups and individuals who are involved in neighbourhood and city-wide food security/ food system activities in looking at networking opportunities in and between different Vancouver neighbourhoods. We invite individuals and groups who are engaged around food, food security, food justice, and building sustainable and resilient food systems to learn what local Neighbourhood Food Networks are doing, and to meet colleagues, share ideas, and explore ways to work together toward common food security goals.

FREE. To register: Please RSVP by calling Langara College Continuing Studies at 604.323.5322. (CRN 60916, and please be sure to give your email address when registering.) For more information: Ross at rmoster@flash.net.

Blueberries ~ Mmm

Anyone who has ever hand-picked blueberries will tell you it’s labour intensive work. But this ‘labour of love’, as some call it, is one of the only ways to harvest most varieties sold at farmers markets in British Columbia.

These small, dark-blue berries not only taste great, they have proven health benefits as well. They are high in Vitamins A, C, and contain antioxidants and fibre.

They are also big business in this province. In fact, BC is one of the top three highbush-blueberry-producing regions worldwide, growing about 95-97 percent of Canada’s total production. And 99 percent of BC’s blueberry farms are located in the Fraser Valley.

Belwant Rangi of Paul’s Produce in Abbotsford is one of the 650 blueberry growers in BC producing 80 million pounds of blueberries a year. I stopped by their stand at the West End Farmers Market to admire their early blueberries. ealwant told me the season starts in late June/early July with the early-ripening Duke variety. These plants grow about waist-high and the berries are all hand-picked for the market. Bluejay is another early season variety.

Mid-season, from the third week of July until late August, the taller Bluecrop variety comes into its own. And when it gets going, Belwant and her husband Paul need to hire an additional six or seven people to help them keep up with the heavy crop. Bluecrop blueberry bushes are actually trees and at seven-feet tall, they lend themselves to machine picking; that produce goes to the processed market.

There is also a late season variety called Elliot’s Blueberry, which carries on until late September. Its fruit are more tart and tangy.

Even though the blueberry season is only about three months long, it’s easy to eat fresh blueberries all year long by freezing them. Belwant says that the mid-season Bluecrop variety is the best for freezing. A good tip to prevent them from freezing into one big clump is to spread them out on a cookie sheet and store them in zip-lock bags once they are frozen. Or you can just pop a 10 lb box straight into the freezer, inside a protective plastic bag. This way they maintain most of their nutrients and are ready for you to eat or throw into whatever creative recipe tickles your fancy.

Article by Nina Shoroplova, Registered Holistic Nutritionist™ who believes in the healing powers of whole foods. She’s a freelance writer, a blogger (wholenina.com/blog/ and 555wholefoodology.wholenina.com/), and an online natural health and natural body retailer (healthstore.wholenina.com/).

Online Resources
http://www.welcometobc.ca/vanmarkets/index1.html lists blueberry U-pick farms.
http://www.npsbc.org/ is the home of the organization, Native Plant Society of British Columbia, which lists retailers and wholesalers of native plants such as blueberries.
http://www.bcblueberry.com/site/find_bc_blueberries/farm_gate_sales.html lists farm-gate blueberry sales.
http://www.bcblueberry.com/site/find_bc_blueberries/organic_blueberries.html lists organic blueberry farmers.
http://www.eatlocal.org/farm.html lists the blueberry farmers who sell their produce through Vancouver farmers markets.

Food For Thought

Good news travels fast! The current report before City Council regarding expanding farmers markets generated a lot of buzz in the media:

Randy Shore, who writes The Green Man Blog for the Vancouver Sun was the first to break the story: BLOG

Lena Sin with The Province newspaper was pleasantly surprised to learn that goods sold at farmers markets are NOT always more expensive than what’s sold at the corner store.
ARTICLE

This article points to the necessity of supporting but also moving beyond farmers markets toward city-based and supported food system infrastructure like local food hubs. It also highlights why policy needs to change to create “farmer-friendly cities”… of which farmers markets are only one piece of the pie. ARTICLE

Market Photo of the Month from Twitter

At the Market this Month

Produce: Apricots, Arugula, Asian Greens, Beets, Blueberries, Broccoli, Celery, Chard, Collard Greens, Cucumbers, Fresh Herbs, Garlic (scapes & fresh), Kale, Lettuce, Mustard Greens, Green Onions, Snap Peas, Peppers, New Potatoes, Raspberries, Rhubarb, Spinach, Strawberries, Tomatoes (GH), Turnips, Zucchini

Protein and Dairy: Eggs, Goat & Cow’s Milk Cheese, Beef, Chicken, Lamb, Halibut, Pork, Sablefish, Salmon, Cod, Tuna,

Prepared Foods: Bread, Dried Fruit, Fruit Juice, Baked Goods, Honey, Humous, Chutney, Preserves, Chocolates, Olives, Flour & Grains, Granola, Pesto, Roasted Coffee, Candy, Salsa, Seasonings, Maple Syrup

Crafts: cards, prints, jewellery, soap, bodycare, wood working, textiles, knitting, hats, clothing

PLUS Plants & Potted Herbs, Hot food on-site, Coffee, Tea and Smoothies,

You’ll find a great guide to the seasonal availability of BC products provided by Get Local . Print your copy own copy and post it on your fridge for quick reference.

Thank you Volunteers!

We are incredibly grateful to the many volunteers who offered their time to help out at the Farmers Markets in July. Thank you!!

Michelle Crowley
Sandi Hutti
Marcia Smith
Kim Peterson
Dom Stephenson
Emi Do
Nicole Staskiel
Kate Lollar
Gretchen Grabow
Katherine Shipley
Tatsuro Kondo
Elaine Wong
Josh May
Fritz Lapastora
Sarah Harris
Amanda Whitehead
Jenny Crossin
Penny Perry
Jen Lynett
Jaime Brideau
Chelsea Boida
Maiko Soda
Denise Jagic
Stephanie Mercer
Joel Brideau
Bella Ting
Kristi Germano

My Markets News Email Update

Find out who’ll be at the market so you can plan your shopping trip – visit www.mymarketsnews.com and choose the markets you’d like to receive updates for.

All of our Vancouver Farmers Markets are listed including our new location for the Holiday Market and the Winter Farmers Market.

Follow us Online!

Get up to the minute updates and behind the scenes info from Market staffers.
Our Twitter Handle: VanMarkets

Vancouver Farmers Markets Group

Seasonal Recipe

Moroccan Blueberry Salad

An easy to make blueberry salad that uses all local ingredients. Perfect for breakfast, an afternoon snack or a healthy dessert!

1 cup plain yogurt
1 cup blueberries
3/4 cup cucumber
3/4 cup apricots or figs (or 1/2 cup dried)
2 tbs honey
2 tbs mint (finely chopped)

Chop cucumber into small pieces and add to a large bowl. Add the blueberries and the chopped apricots or figs. Next, add the finely chopped mint, the honey and the yogurt. Mix and serve!

Help us Spread the Word!

We love our new posters and hope you do too! Our thanks to Jane Koo, who really captured the fun and excitement of the markets!

If you can post a poster in your laundry room, lobby, elevator or favourite cafe, we would be most appreciative! Posters can go wherever people will gather and are available to pick up at the Market Information Tent at any market. Thanks for the help!

Interactive Market Maps

Have you discovered our Interactive Market Maps? They are a great way to follow your favourite vendor and to plan your shopping trip. Check out maps for all markets on our INTERACTIVE MARKET MAPS page. Bookmark this page!

Market Search Engine
Looking for a specific product? Check out our new Produce Search Feature You’ll receive a list of vendors who have the product you’re looking for and the next dates that they’ll be at the market. Need to get in touch with the vendor directly – you’ll receive their contact information too. Try it out!