Fresh & Local - New Farmer's Market in Chagrin Falls

When I was growing up, we didn't go to a farmer's market, but there were many local farms that had roadside stands for produce. We'd pick some, too: strawberries, cucumbers, tomatoes, apples, cherries, peaches, pears. (And we'd pick grapes in the fall to make wine!) My mom canned whole tomatoes and sauce along with peaches and pears and still makes fresh strawberry jam. Canned fresh peaches taste unbelievably good in the dead of winter and there's nothing better than that strawberry jam! I have strong taste memories of these rich, fresh flavors. That's why I love being able to buy fresh, just picked items at a farmer's market.

In support of my increasing desire to patronize local, sustainable agriculture, and my Michael Pollan-inspired motivations to improve my family's health by eating real food, I'm creating a new topical category on this blog: Fresh & Local. Here, I'll cover food, agriculture, and nutritional topics in an effort to promote the consumption of fresh, local foods that will help you wrestle control of your diet away from the food industry and improve your health. 

First up, the grand opening of the new Chagrin Falls Farmers Market, which will take place on Sunday, July 20 from 10:00 am to 1:00 pm along North Franklin Street in downtown Chagrin Falls. The market will feature produce, plants, meats, cheese and baked goods from local Ohio farms and producers. Two of the anchor farms are Red Wagon Farm of Columbia Station and Walnut Driven Gardens of Mogadore. Local favorite Jean Mackenzie will be in attendance with Mackenzie Creamery goat cheese and goat meat and there will also be beef from a grassfed beef farm. The products and produce will vary with the season as farmers harvest their crops. Not sure what's in season when? Check out the Ohio fresh fruits and vegetables harvest calendar.

We're always excited to find more places to buy fresh, local food, and this one, being so close to home, will hopefully be a great addition to our list. This market will be managed by North Union Farmers Market, a non-profit organization, currently administering seven other markets in Northeast Ohio. Chef Parker Bosley, former owner of Parker's American Bistro, works as a consultant to NUFM by recruiting farmers with top-quality farms that complement other vendors at the markets. He works with them to select customer-driven crops and to build their farm's long-term business potential. I once interviewed Bosley when he was a guest on Cleveland Business Radio. He's passionate, intelligent, and draws from personal experience as a consumer and a chef in promoting sustainable agriculture. You couldn't ask for a better advocate. NUFM's other market locations are: Shaker Square, Crocker Park, Parma, Lakewood, Eton, Bath and the Cleveland Clinic.

As with other North Union Farmers Markets, plans are in the works for a guest chef to kick-off the Chagrin Markets’ opening day, preparing food with the ingredients from the farmers.  There will also be a community booth staffed by Chagrin Valley non-profit organizations as an out-reach program to promote their various projects and events. 

The first market shoppers will be entertained by Panic Steel Ensemble, a steel drum band that is the product of a project developed by the Department of Community Arts at the Cleveland Museum of Art as a training program for new pannists in preparation for the annual Parade the Circle.

Hopefully, the new Chagrin Falls market will be a nice complement to the six-year-old Geauga Fresh Farmers' Market, which has become a community asset by providing an opportunity to buy the freshest seasonal produce. The Geauga Fresh Farmer's Market is open each Saturday from 9am to 1pm from late June to late October. The market, located at the corner of Bell Street and Chillicothe Road in South Russell, sells everything from produce to beeswax candles to annual bedding plants. Most of the 25 or so vendors come from Geauga County. Events include the popular Tomato Tasting Contest on August 23 and the Salsa Tasting Contest on September 6. Market members and customers are encouraged to enter. Renée and I frequent this market often, along with the North Union Shaker Square market.

For further information on the Chagrin Falls market, call the Chagrin Falls Visitors Center at 440-247-1895 or visit the community calendar at www.chagrinfalls.net.