New in 2016 for Bancroft Farmers Market

We wanted to remind you that Bancroft Town Council decided in 2015 to move the Bancroft Farmers Market to Millennium Park!

The Market will be open on Fridays from 11am to 4pm starting June 17, 2016. 

The vendors are amazing and you can find out more about what's happening in local growing over at Harvest Hastings or visit the Market's Facebook page. 

There are lots of great local people setting up a stall at the Bancroft Farmers Market each year.  These folks might be your neighbours, your friends, your family members, your co-workers.  They are people who live in our community, or nearby in other North Hastings communities.  They’d love to get to know you in person down at the market, but until you can visit them face to face, you can get to know them a little bit here.

We love supporting our local community, so we didn’t want to cut this short!  In this week’s post, we introduce you to Living Water Meadows, Maple Leaf Chocolate Co, and Hillsview Farm and Studios.  Remember that vendors vary week by week so we can't guarantee these goods are always available. 

What you’ll find at the Bancroft Farmers Market:

First up is Living Water Meadows.  They are located on Hybla Road in Bancroft.  They grow a variety of crops such as strawberries, garlic, tomatoes, and blueberries, and also sell their own eggs and some baked goods.  For farm updates including news on what they’re bringing to the market throughout the season, check the Living Water Meadows Facebook page.

Guess what Maple Leaf Chocolate Co. makes?  It’s more than just chocolate.  It’s handmade, fair trade, organic chocolate!  They use ingredients from small farms and local businesses, like organic cream from Limestone Creamery in Sydenham and organic fair trade coffee beans from Madawaska Coffee Co. in Barry’s Bay.  Their truffles are almost too pretty to eat, but you’ll definitely want to eat them!

Hillsview Farm and Studios is located on Hillsview Rd in Maynooth.  They specialize in infused vinegars flavoured with organically grown herbs and berries, artisan jams and jellies, again made with organic herbs and berries, and in hand crafted items.  They have their own root cellar on the property, which is where the vinegar lives while it is soaking up all the yummy flavours.  Find out more about Hillsview Farm and Studios on HarvestHastings.ca or on their Facebook page.

Have you ever been berry picking?  It’s a rite of passage for summer, so if you have never done it, do it now!  You can pick your own raspberries, strawberries, currents, and gooseberries at Switzers Farm.  You’ll find them at 655 Clear Lake Road in Bancroft.  They sell vegetables such as potatoes, carrots, cucumbers, corn, cabbage, pumpkins, squash, onions and more at their farm gate as well as at the market, and raise beef cattle on their farm.  You can also pick up fresh eggs from the farm year round.  There’s a lot going on around here!  If you’re interested in visiting the u-pick crops or their farm gate, you can find their contact information at HarvestHastings.ca.

The last local vendor we’ll be virtually visiting is Granite Forest Farm in L’Amable.  They seem to produce a little of everything here.  They grow organic vegetables, and lots of different organic fruits and berries.  Their organic gardens also produce a growing list of herbs which are used for culinary, medicinal, and aromatherapy purposes.  They are expanding into the production of essential oils made from not only their herbs but also from plants and trees found in the wild around the farm.  They raise their own poultry including several varieties of chickens and sell free range eggs.  They even mix their own certified organic feed for their own use and for sale!  We’ve run out of room to list everything in detail here, but you can find more information about their products on HarvestHastings.ca and get farm updates from the Granite Forest Farm Facebook page.

Although we spent two posts focussing on local vendors, this isn’t even close to being a complete listing of everyone you’ll find at the Bancroft Farmers Market.  If you drop by, you’re sure to discover plenty more that we haven’t talked about here.  We’d love to hear about any of your favourites whether we talked about them already or not.  Share with us in the comments; we’re always looking for fresh new local produce and products to support!

Video: “Farmers Markets” from NourishLife

This video is from an American organization called Nourish but the message applies no matter where you live.

See you at the market in 2016!