The Weblog
Remember to Place Your Order
Good evening.
The Wednesday Market is open for orders. Please place your order by 10 p.m. Monday. Orders are ready for pick up between 3 and 6 p.m. Wednesday. Check the website for this week’s product offerings. Here is the link: https://wednesdaymarket.locallygrown.net/market
Please remember that you do not have to wait to receive the weblog to order. The Market is ALWAYS turned on for orders on Saturday. I try very hard to post the weblog at lunchtime on Sunday, but it’s not always possible. Like, today, for instance. As soon as church was over, we zipped off to a soccer game that started at 1 p.m. Anyway, you are encouraged to place your order as soon as you realize that the system is turned on.
I noticed that there a lot of herbs listed for sale this week. I look forward to summer’s homegrown tomatoes so that I can make caprese salad: sliced tomatoes, shredded basil, and fresh mozzarella cheese. This is my favorite dish!
I hope everyone had a chance to enjoy today’s fine weather. We sure did, even though the boys lost both of their games today. The blue sky, bright sun, and breeze were refreshing.
We’ll see you at the Market on Wednesday.
Thanks,
Beverly
Happy Easter! The Market is Open!
Happy Easter from The Wednesday Market!
The Market is open for orders. Please place your order by 10 p.m. Monday. Orders are ready for pick up between 3 and 6 p.m. Wednesday.
See the website for this week’s product offerings. Here is the link: https://wednesdaymarket.locallygrown.net/market
Have a pleasant Sunday, and we’ll see you at the Market.
Thanks,
Beverly
Don't Let the Weather Stop You from Placing Your Order!
Good morning!
Don’t let our threatening weather stop you from placing your order. The Wednesday Market is open. Please place your orders by 10 p.m. Monday. Orders are ready for pick up between 3 and 6 p.m. Wednesday. See the website for this week’s product offerings. Here is the link:
https://wednesdaymarket.locallygrown.net/market
We’ll see you Wednesday.
Thanks,
Beverly
Happy Sunday! Place Your Orders
Good afternoon, and Happy Sunday on this warm Spring day!
The Wednesday Market is open for orders. Please place your order by 10 p.m. Monday. Orders are ready for pick up between 3 and 6 p.m. Wednesday. See the website for this week’s product offerings. Here is the link: https://wednesdaymarket.locallygrown.net/market
Have a great day, and we’ll see you Wednesday.
Thanks,
Beverly
The Market is Open for Orders
Good afternoon.
The Wednesday Market is open for orders. Please place your orders by 10 p.m. Monday. Orders are ready for pick up between 3 and 6 p.m. Wednesday. See the website for this week’s product offerings. Here is the link: https://wednesdaymarket.locallygrown.net/market
Have a pleasant Sunday, and we’ll see you at the Market.
Thanks,
Beverly
Food for Thought, Part 2; the Market is Open
A couple of weeks ago, I wrote a blog titled “Food for Thought” that shared 10 reasons for supporting locally grown agriculture. Just in case you need more reasons to support our local producers, here is “Food for Thought, Part 2.”
I read an interesting opinion piece this week regarding the recent recall of avocados due to the discovery of listeria monocytogenes at a California packing facility during a routine governmental inspection. The editorial was written by Dr. Ford Vox, a brain injury specialist at The Shepherd Center in Atlanta. Dr. Vox is the medical analyst for Atlanta NPR’s station WABE 90.1. He writes about the practice of medicine, the health care industry, health care policy and medical science.
Here is the link, if you want to read the full article: https://www.cnn.com/2019/03/26/opinions/avocado-recall-vox/index.html
Please note that the points that I am trying to emphasize for our Wednesday Market customers are in bold type.
In part, Dr. Vox writes, “Mass recalls of our wholesome fruits and vegetables like the avocado on Saturday [March 23] and romaine lettuce just months ago are a reminder, but also something of a wake-up call.”
Furthermore, he says, “The reminder is that we are all fundamentally reliant on good regulatory oversight (our well-used tax dollars at work) and good corporate management in the food sector. The wake-up call? Depending on a complex web of food production, delivery and mass retail sale — rather than well-stocked local sources — for what is on our plate every day is distinctly unnatural and makes us vulnerable.”
How many times have we heard news of a food recall in the last year? The food supply chain is susceptible to contamination by listeria, e. Coli, salmonella, and many other pathogens and contaminants. If you really want to dig deep, take a look at these links:
https://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/topics/recalls-and-public-health-alerts/current-recalls-and-alertshttps://www.fda.gov/Safety/Recalls/default.htm
“We should all hate that we’re vulnerable to mass infections spread by our food system rapidly delivering contaminated product across the country. But where to manifest our disgust is a thornier problem,” says Dr. Vox.
Furthermore, he writes, “A strong takeaway from bacterial outbreaks is this: We need a strong FDA, USDA and CDC out there working in our best interests, and those agencies all operate on tax dollars. With tax day around the corner, think about that fringe benefit the next time you miraculously avoid a bloody diarrhea attributable to your salad, trucked in from parts unknown.”
And, “Foodborne illness outbreaks remind us just how much we depend on commerce running well — and how little control we personally have over it all. At best they might spur us to shop locally a little more often, and that’s good for your health in many ways. Go to your local farmers market, meet your neighbors, learn about what’s going on in the city you live in. Re-connect, re-humanize, de-stress.”
Finally, Dr. Vox concludes, “Local produce isn’t risk-free either, but the lack of warehousing and cross-country distribution helps, and it might lower our modern existential anxieties a little to know something about where our food came from, as our ancestors did.”
Food for thought, indeed!
Let’s support our local farmers and producers. The Market is open. Please place your orders by 10 p.m. Monday. Orders are ready for pick up between 3 and 6 p.m. See the website for this week’s product offerings. Here is the link:
https://wednesdaymarket.locallygrown.net/market
We’ll see you on Wednesday!
Thanks,
Beverly
A Reminder - The Market is Open
This is a reminder that The Wednesday Market is open. Please place your orders by 10 p.m. Monday. Orders are ready for pick up between 3 and 6 p.m. Wednesday. See the website for this week’s product offerings. Here is the link: https://wednesdaymarket.locallygrown.net/market
Thanks,
Beverly
Spring has Sprung; Place Your Orders Now
Good evening.
The Wednesday Market is open for orders. Please place your order by 10 p.m. Monday. Orders are ready for pick up between 3 and 6 p.m. Wednesday. See the website for this week’s product offerings. Here is the link: https://wednesdaymarket.locallygrown.net/market
I spent some time outside this afternoon walking in the sunshine. How long has it been since we were graced with several consecutive days of warm sunny weather? The weather man said the last time we had such a fair stretch of days was in September!
Spring arrived this week, so I thought I’d share a poem about this blessed season.
A Prayer in Spring
by Robert Frost
Oh, give us pleasure in the flowers to-day;
And give us not to think so far away
As the uncertain harvest; keep us here
All simply in the springing of the year.
Oh, give us pleasure in the orchard white,
Like nothing else by day, like ghosts by night;
And make us happy in the happy bees,
The swarm dilating round the perfect trees.
And make us happy in the darting bird
That suddenly above the bees is heard,
The meteor that thrusts in with needle bill,
And off a blossom in mid air stands still.
For this is love and nothing else is love,
The which it is reserved for God above
To sanctify to what far ends He will,
But which it only needs that we fulfil.
We hope you all have a relaxing Sunday, and we’ll see you at the Market.
Thanks,
Beverly
Don't Forget to Order!
Good afternoon.
The Wednesday Market is open. Please place your order by 10 p.m. Monday. Orders are ready for pick up between 3 and 6 p.m. Wednesday. Check the website for this week’s product listings. Here is the link: https://wednesdaymarket.locallygrown.net/market
Enjoy your evening, and we’ll see you at the Market!
Thanks,
Beverly
Food for Thought - Place Your Orders Now
Good evening, and welcome to another edition of The Wednesday Market’s weekly blog.
The Market is open for orders. Please place your order by 10 p.m. Monday. Orders are ready for pick up between 3 and 6 p.m. Wednesday. See the website for this week’s product offerings. Here is the link: https://wednesdaymarket.locallygrown.net/market
How much do you know about our Market? Here are some fast facts:
First day: January 26, 2011
Number of local producers who list products each week to sell through our market: 15 or more
Our founders: Anna Evans and Brenda Fayard
Types of products sold: everything from fruits, vegetables, meats, poultry, dairy, eggs, baked goods, prepared foods, honey, and olive oil to seeds, live plants, health and beauty aids, yarns, emu egg shells, laundry detergent, and bee traps!
Number of staff to run the Market each week: 5, all of whom are VOLUNTEERS!
Why do 5 people willingly and freely share their time and energy each week to open The Wednesday Market? It’s simple – because we believe in locally grown agriculture. Our motto is “know your farmer, know your food.” And “no farmer, no food”! We encourage you to try as many of the items that our farmers and producers offer to you each week. You just might find something you never knew you liked! And, if you need more food for thought, read this article:
10 Reasons to Support Farmers Markets from https://cuesa.org/learn/10-reasons-support-farmers-markets
From savoring produce at the peak of freshness to meeting the people who grow your food, there are countless reasons to support farmers markets. Here are just a few!
1. Taste Real Flavors
The fruits and vegetables you buy at the farmers market are the freshest and tastiest available. Fruits are allowed to ripen fully in the field and are brought directly to you—no long-distance shipping, no gassing to simulate the ripening process, no sitting for weeks in storage. This food is as real as it gets—fresh from the farm.
2. Enjoy the Season
The food you buy at the farmers market is seasonal. It is fresh and delicious and reflects the truest flavors. Shopping and cooking from the farmers market helps you to reconnect with the cycles of nature in our region. As you look forward to asparagus in spring, savor sweet corn in summer, or bake pumpkins in autumn, you reconnect with the earth, the weather, and the turning of the year.
3. Support Family Farmers
Family farmers need your support, now that large agribusiness dominates food production in the U.S. Small family farms have a hard time competing in the food marketplace. Buying directly from farmers gives them a better return for their produce and gives them a fighting chance in today’s globalized economy.
4. Protect the Environment
Food in the U.S. travels an average of 1,500 miles to get to your plate. All this shipping uses large amounts of natural resources (especially fossil fuels), contributes to pollution, and creates trash with extra packaging. Conventional agriculture also uses many more resources than sustainable agriculture and pollutes water, land, and air with toxic agricultural by-products. Food at the farmers market is transported shorter distances and is generally grown using methods that minimize the impact on the earth.
5. Nourish Yourself
Much food found in grocery stores is highly processed and grown using pesticides, hormones, antibiotics, and genetic modification. Some of it has been irradiated, waxed, or gassed in transit. These practices may have negative effects on human health. In contrast, most food found at the farmers market is minimally processed, and many of our farmers go to great lengths to grow the most nutritious produce possible by using sustainable techniques, picking produce right before the market, and growing heirloom varieties.
6. Discover the Spice of Life: Variety
At the farmers market you find an amazing array of produce that you don’t see in your average supermarket: red carrots, a rainbow of heirloom tomatoes, purple cauliflower, stinging nettles, green garlic, watermelon radishes, quail eggs, maitake mushrooms, and much, much more. It is a wonderful opportunity to savor the biodiversity of our planet.
7. Promote Humane Treatment of Animals
At the farmers market, you can find meats, cheeses, and eggs from animals that have been raised without hormones or antibiotics, who have grazed on green grass and eaten natural diets, and who have been spared the cramped and unnatural living conditions of feedlots and cages that are typical of animal agriculture.
8. Know Where Your Food Comes From
A regular trip to a farmers market is one of the best ways to connect with where your food comes from. Meeting and talking to farmers and food artisans is a great opportunity to learn more about how and where food is produced.
9. Learn Cooking Tips, Recipes, and Meal Ideas
Few grocery store cashiers or produce stockers will give you tips on how to cook the ingredients you buy, but farmers, ranchers, and artisans at the farmers market are often passionate cooks with plenty of free advice about how to cook the foods they are selling. You can also attend free seasonal cooking demonstrations by leading Bay Area chefs and evening classes on food preservation and other kitchen skills.
10. Connect with Your Community
Wouldn’t you rather stroll amidst outdoor stalls of fresh produce on a sunny day than roll your cart around a grocery store with artificial lights and piped in music? Coming to the farmers market makes shopping a pleasure rather than a chore. The farmers market is a community hub—a place to meet up with your friends, bring your children, or just get a taste of small-town life in the midst of our wonderful big city.
Are you inspired? We certainly hope so! Place your order now, and we’ll see you on Wednesday.
Thanks,
Beverly