The Ham Lake Farmers’ Market is a summer tradition for more than 30 vendors. “All of our producers and vendors are very local within an hour or maybe less,” said Kari Lund, Executive Director of the Ham Lake Chamber of Commerce. “You know exactly where your food is coming from.” she says. For farmers, it’s an essential way to sell their produce. They grow crops based on a plan of where they can be sold. The Executive Director of the Minnesota Farmers’ Market Association urges them to plan several options. “We always recommend that they have a balance of sales outlets,” says Kathy Zeman. “A good half might go to a farmers’ market, and then a quarter might go to a store and another quarter might go to a restaurant.” Zeman says the association is working on better data collection so they can show how local markets plow money back into the local economy. She says growers have overcome three years of challenges to keep markets growing. In 2019, conditions were cold and wet. In 2020 markets dealt with COVID restrictions and this year there’s drought in many areas of Minnesota. Still, the number of markets is growing with 346 operating around the state. Zeman says that builds food resilience in case of a problem. “If COVID 19 did nothing else but to teach us that our big supply chains were very vulnerable to collapsing, but under all of that are these local farmers’ markets and people that have figured out how to grow food and make food and sell them at their markets,” said Zeman. Like the Ham Lake Farmers’ Market, many are now offering more than food. “We have things that are shelf stable like the maple syrup, like the jams, mustard, the bar of soap. It’s stuff that you can use every day,” said Lund. Zeman says the drought is affecting growers unevenly across the state. Some areas are worse than others. “Some of the produce is coming in late and some of the produce farmers don’t have as much. So in that case you really want to get to your market.” The Ham Lake market is open Wednesdays from 3 to 7 pm. It runs through the end of September.
DESPITE CHALLENGES OF DROUGHT, FARMERS MARKETS REMAIN VITAL TO NORTH METRO
HAM LAKE – (Aug. 5, 2021) – Farmers Markets play a key role in building food supply and giving farmers a vital marketing outlet. There are at least ten farmers’ markets in Anoka County. As they observe Farmers’ Market Week, those involved say the idea of eating local is growing.
