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To market, to market…

A Sunday afternoon stroll through the Upper Village in the summer reveals a touch of the rustic in Whistler’s typically polished image.

A Sunday afternoon stroll through the Upper Village in the summer reveals a touch of the rustic in Whistler’s typically polished image.

Nestled between the Fairmont Chateau and Glacier Lodge, starting this Sunday and continuing every Sunday through to Thanksgiving, from 11 a.m. until 4 p.m., you can browse through tables laden with tasty, fresh-from-the-farm goodies, and booths lined with handmade clothing, jewelry, and trinkets, all with the smell of fresh popcorn wafting through the air.

Rick Clare helped found Whistler Farmers’ Market, with the help of David Roberts and Bernie Casavant, almost 13 years ago, using it as a tool to draw foot traffic to the area during the quieter summer months.

“Whistler not being a farming community, we had to take some liberties at first,” Clare explained, adding that they recruited farmers from as far away as 100 Mile House and Lillooet. “But it’s grown into a much better product than we had originally envisioned, actually.”

When they first started the market, there were only about 30 vendors. This year, they had over 120 vendors apply for permits.

And while the content of the market has stayed generally the same over the years, Clare said this year they are focusing on bringing in more entertainment to help create a livelier atmosphere.

They’ve also increased their marketing and entertainment budget by 30 to 40 per cent this year.

“People enjoy the entertainment, and we want to make it more of an experience, so when you come up for the weekend, if you don’t want to buy vegetables or fruit or whatever, you’ll come back because it’s a nice place to be,” he added.

So far, they’ve had a lot of interest from local entertainers, and not just musicians — this year’s market may feature entertainment by a juggler and a crystal artisan.

Among a few new additions to the market this year will be more food vendors from Pemberton and D’Arcy, a candy floss stand, and new local merchants, including some unique new jewelers and clothing manufacturers.

Since its been a cold, damp spring, you can expect the produce side of the market to be a bit scarce at first, though Clare said they still plan to offer lots of fresh goodies, including berries and fruit that will be brought up from the Lower Mainland.

  “Our mandate really is to support local endeavours and to support people who have been coming there for a while,” Clare said.

And there are a lot of vendors, both locally and throughout the province, who are eager to sell their wares in Whistler. Clare attributes the market’s popularity and longevity to a combination of affordable stall rentals and a great community atmosphere.

The farmers’ market at the Upper Village certainly isn’t the only one of its kind in the Sea to Sky area. There is also a market held at Franz’s Trail every Saturday, and this year will be the second year for the Pemberton Farmers’ Market.

Anna Helmer, of Helmer’s Organic Farm, is just one of the local farmers who will be participating in the Pemberton market, which will be held every Friday from 5 p.m. until 7 p.m. in the AG Foods parking lot to allow residents first crack at the fresh picked produce before the farmers take their wares down to other markets throughout the Lower Mainland.

Helmer explained that the owner of Solstice Organics re-started the event last year after a long hiatus. But this year, the farmers will be rotating the management responsibility from week to week.

“Pemberton is a farming hotbed and can grow almost anything, apart from bananas, so technically, we should be able to feed Pemberton, through the summer at least,” Helmer explained.

She added that that not many local farmers, aside from her own farm and North Arm Farm, have traditionally grown anything more than potatoes. But that’s changed in recent years, with the growing popularity of ideas like the 100-mile diet, and local growers have started to diversify their crops.

“I think the public are way more interested in local food,” she explained, “Once you’ve tasted a Pemberton carrot, it’s pretty hard to go back!”

Helmer explained that farmers often pick fruits and vegetables before they are fully ripe for shipping, which means the produce is not at its nutritional — or flavourful — peak.

“The bottom line is taste, and there’s more and more people that know that and want good-tasting food. Especially now, with research showing that food that has traveled a long distance is actually traditionally less valuable.”

Pemberton Farmers’ Market isn’t just about fruits and veggies — there will be lots of locally produced baked goods and arts and crafts up for grabs, too.

 

Feast of Fields

If the produce from a farmers market isn’t fresh enough for you (wow, you’re fussy), why not go straight to the source?

FarmFolk/CityFolk, a non-profit society dedicated to developing sustainable food systems between urban and rural areas, is hosting the third Sea to Sky Feast of Fields event on Sunday, Aug. 31.

The Feast of Fields, which is described as a “gourmet wandering picnic harvest festival,” is FFCF’s annual fundraising event, featuring the best chefs, vintners, brewers, and farmers from throughout the province. The experience allows people to see how the producers and consumers connect. In previous years, the event was held in Pemberton, but this year, it’s coming down to Whistler’s Rebagliatti Park. Tickets are $80 for adults, with discounted prices for children. For more information, visit www.ffcf.bc.ca/whistlerfeast .