Bremerton will have a Sunday farmers market on the boardwalk
near the fairy
ferry terminal starting July 24.
The Bremerton Farmers Market association
announced the extra market Thursday.
Unlike the second market two years ago created after a market
leadership disagreement, this new market is born of an attempt
to liven up the city on Sundays and will be run by the same
organization that runs the Thursday market at Evergreen Park.
Bremerton farmers market organizers were approached by city
council members after Bremerton and Port Orchard
agreed to run foot ferries on Sundays, said market manager
Julia Zander.
Bremerton’s Thursday market has been growing with more vendors
making more than last year and greater attendance (particularly on
sunny days), Zander said.
Market leaders also have been working with the port and business
associations. Bremerton councilman Roy Runyon offered to pay half
the market’s insurance fee out of his own pocket, she said. The
market association is working on securing funding for the second
half.
“We think there’s a lot of momentum,” she said. “People are
really excited about this.”
The market plans to run from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., and will be the
only formal farmers market on Sundays in Kitsap County. The
market’s last day will be Sept. 25.
It seems all manner of pretty produce and other things have
begun to appear at farmers markets. I snapped a little cell phone
shot after seeing such a pretty cake from Bon
Bon Bakery at the Bremerton market on Thursday, and I realize
that I can’t be the only one so visually stimulated by market
scenes.
I’d love to see what others have seen at the markets or will see
this weekend (hint, hint). I’ll put some of the best photos in an
upcoming blog post to share with others and on the farmers
market map. E-mail them to me at angela@angeladice.com.
Poulsbo market goers will be able to buy local goods through
December.
The Poulsbo Farmers Market association announced last week that
they would remain open through Dec. 17, and likely will open
earlier next year, said market manager Brian Simmons.
The market this year already had opened earlier than in years
past on April 9.
“We’ve been talking about it for quite a while now,” Simmons
said.
The market also has been
in talks with the city and the Port of Poulsbo to gain support
for a covered, permanent location for a year-round farmers market
in Poulsbo.
Thus far, no decisions have been made on that front.
“We can’t pay retail rent … we need a special situation,”
Simmons said.
Which can be a tough sell in this economy. But Simmons said some
ideas being floated include a structure that could be used as
shopper-friendly covered parking when the market isn’t open.
For now, the market is focused on being open for 10 months out
of the year, Simmons said.
This autumn, the market will remain at the spot at Seventh
Avenue and Iverson Street.
Market organizers are discussing ways to modify the site to make
shopping easier on cold and rainy days, perhaps by clustering tents
or offering a heated tent to offer shoppers relief.
The late market is likely to be smaller, Simmons said, and it
may open later as daylight hours wane.
With an early heads-up, participating farmers may have time to
sow cool-weather crops such as spinach, kales and chard, onions
potatoes and winter squashes.
Since fall is slaughter season, the market also hopes to draw
meat vendors.
And crafters and people who make preserved goods also will have
a chance to sell wares as the holiday shopping season kicks into
gear.
The Taste of Tacoma runs Saturday and Sunday at Point Defiance
Park. Admission is free, but the food is not. The TNT Diner blog
has info on what restaurants are dishing up for the festival.
More information on other entertainment is at tasteoftacoma.com
The Kitsap Food Co-op, which has been gathering members and
searching for a home has a “big announcement” coming on
Sunday.
Poulsbo Farmers market announced that it would extend its season
through Dec. 17. I’ll try to get more on that soon.
Kitsap Sun’s food critic Bernard Jacobson this week
offered his review of Bay Street Bistro in Port Orchard. He
gave it a 9/10 for both food and service.
Random
The Accidental Hedonist blog this week chimed in with some
thoughts on locavorism, and why so much focus has been put on food.
Also this week, the Kitsap Cuisine blogger also has a
post on local food, imploring people to get more serious about
food in Kitsap.
Recipes
On the
Small Potatoes blog, Anne cooked up some savory veggie
fritters/pancakes for what looks to be a simple weeknight meal.
At the Fat of the Land blog, Langdon Cook offers up a suggestion
for preparing the influx of salmon at local markets as well as a
use for morels in a recipe titled
Salmon with Pinot Noir Sauce and Morels.
This week, the big food news locally seems to be that some grocery
store opened in Silverdale Friday. Trader something. It gave
even Seattle-focused Bainbridge Islanders something
to talk about regarding the main peninsula besides Costco.
To Market, To Market
Elsewhere in the local food world, Bainbridge farmers market
heralded the arrival of the season’s first, fresh island
strawberries! The market starts at 9 a.m. Saturday, and in years
past, those berries cleared out fast.
At the Poulsbo market Saturday, “Bug Chef” (yep, it’s what you
think it is) David George
Gordon will be signing his new book “The Secret World of Slugs
and Snails: Life in the Very Slow Lane” at 10 a.m. and 11:30
a.m.
Brews
For those looking to venture outside Kitsap for Excitement this
weekend (or looking for somewhere to take dad), Kenmore is hosting
the Washington Brewers
Festival, which features 60 brewers purring 200 beers Saturday
and Sunday.
Kitsap farmers are in nascent discussions about a year-round
farmers market in the county.
At a Monday night meeting of the Kitsap Community and
Agriculture Alliance, Nikki Johanson of Pheasant Field Farms
kicked off a discussion among the roughly 30 attendees.
As farmers market seasons close up for the witness, she said,
she’s increasingly heard vendors and customers wonder aloud where
to go next for their local foods.
“People want local food … and they want it more than x-amount of
months,” she said.
KCAA President Marilyn Holt said that additionally, for a
commercial farmer to make it, the farm needs to be selling for 48
weeks out of the year. The farmers who don’t likely have to find
additional sources of income.
Currently, most markets close in October. Poulsbo has a
one-weekend Thanksgiving market and Bainbridge Island reopens its
market in a new location in mid- to late-November and stays open
for another month.
Year-round farmers markets exist elsewhere in the Puget Sound
region. There is, of course, Pike Place, but also Ballard,
University District, West Seattle, Port Angeles and San Juan
Island.
In
downtown Everett, a developer plans to build a 60,000
square-foot agriculture center to house a year-round farmers
market, and will include a commercial kitchen and processing
facility The facility will anchor a 180-unit housing project. A
nonprofit group of farmers will operate the market, which
developers hope to have open for the 2012 season.
Some markets like Port Townend’s and Olympia’s are open until
Christmas, which some at the meeting suggested may be a better
option for Kitsap.
And what’s sold at these markets isn’t just soaps and jams,
though the producing of the latter has recently been made a little
easier with the passage of a
cottage food bill in Washington .
The winter offerings are, of course, not nearly as abundant as
what’s offered in the summer, but farmers are able to bring in
squashes and root crops and dried fruits and vegetables.
And let’s not forget that animals are raised on farms, too. One
farmer said she saw plenty of poultry at West Seattle’s market. For
the same to happen in Kitsap, though, farmers would likely have to
find or create a facility (possibly a mobile one) to process
poultry.
Johanson said that additionally, she’s had success with hoop
houses, which could allow her to have marketable produce in
February and March.
But many questions remain.
Questions such as: Where would the market go? Would there be a
single space or would it be better to extend the seasons of several
markets? Would the market(s) be truly year-round or is it better to
lengthen the season to, say, Christmas? Would there be enough time
after planning to plant crops to harvest this winter? Can you draw
enough customers? Would there be a high enough proportion of
farmers to meet Washington State Farmers Market Association
guidelines (and thus gain the benefits that goes with being a part
of the association, such as insurance)?
And, importantly, would enough farmers be willing to extend what
can be an exhausting work year?
That last question is one group members hope to address
first.
They’ve asked farmers market managers — Bremerton and Poulsbo
markets were represented at the meeting — to poll their vendors and
will go from there.
And until I hear those results, I’m going to do a little polling
of my own and, as always, please comment away.
Just a short note for all of you local food lovers out there: If
you haven’t caught it already, Diane Fish over at the Kitsap Farm to Fork
blog last week started a series taking a historical look at
farming in Kitsap.
Legislators Friday passed a
cottage food bill originally co-sponsored by Sen. Phil
Rockefeller, D-Bainbridge Island. The law is similar to those in 17
other states that ease restrictions on small-scale food makers.
It applies to people who make less than $15,000 (more in later
years, based on inflation) selling “cottage foods” such as baked
goods, jams, jellies and other preserves, and certain
types of fruit butters. The food can’t contain meat and
cannot require refrigeration.
Those who stand to benefit are farmers and other aspiring food
makers who want to test goodies for sale at farmers markets, for
example, without having to spend the resources to rent time in a
commercial kitchen (or find a certified community kitchen). The
sales must be directly to a consumer, and other rules require a
label that lists ingredients, lists the address where the food is
made and carries the disclaimer, “Made in a home kitchen that has
not been subject to standard inspection criteria.”
Producers must pay a $75 inspection fee (their kitchen gets an
initial then at least annual inspection), get food handlers’ and
other permits.
When the bill was first introduced, Bill Marler of Bainbridge
Island, an attorney who specializes in foodborne illnesses listed
short pros and cons in
a blog post, the con, of course, being that people could get
sick from food made in a home kitchen.
The final bill passed with only one vote of dissent in the
Senate and has been sent to the Governor’s Office.
This weekend, foodies can choose from wine tastings and tours to
the expanding openings of farmers markets.
Beer: Tonight (OK, technically not the
weekend), Poulsbo
will welcome it’s newest brewery, Sound Brewery. There
will be a ribbon cutting at 5 p.m. and the taps will pour until 9
p.m. I, unfortunately, will miss the grand opening, so I expect
reports, people! After the grand opening, it will be open from 2
p.m. until 9 p.m. on Friday and Saturday (when I hope to check it
out, making it a weekend event for me). They’ll have six
beers on tap at $4 a glass.
Farmers Markets: On Friday (again, not the
weekend, but close enough) Olalla Valley Farmers
Market makes its debut at 1 p.m. It joins Poulsbo and
Bainbridge markets, both on Saturday, on the “open” list.
Wine and Cheese: From 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on
Saturday and Sunday, Olympic Peninsula
wineries will host their third annual Northwest wine and cheese
tour.
Area wines and ciders are paired with cheeses from Northwest
creameries, which include Port Townsend’s Mt. Townsend Creamery.
The tour is self-guided among the associations eight
wineries. Tickets are $25 if purchased in advance online
or you can pay a $5 tasting fee at each winery.
Bainbridge wine weekend: Bainbridge Island’s
seven wineries will open their doors again from noon to 5 p.m.
Saturday and Sunday for their monthly tasting event. Tasting
fees run from free to several dollars. Information on the wineries
is available at bainbridgewineries.com. You
can expect to see representatives from both The Food Life and
Cheers to You
blogs there.
Weather predictions through the week seemed to bode ill for the
opening of Kitsap markets (Poulsbo and Bainbridge) on Saturday. But
on the actual opening day itself, gray steeled the sky, but luck
held the rain at bay.
Caleb Heinig of Colinwood Farm
of Port Townsend sells greens to a customer during openign day at
Poulsbo Farmers Market.
And out in Poulsbo, 39 vendors were had tents out and ready for
the dozens who still were coming through the market when I arrived
around noon. I hadn’t expected to see much so early, especially
considering our soggy start to spring, but some spring greens and
many vegetable starts and grow-your-own salad bowls were out. At
least one farm offered some of the last of its potato stores.
Perennial
Vintners had offerings of their newly bottled Frambelle dessert
wine, made from Suyematsu Farms raspberries as well as its regular
selection of wines. They also had something new to me called
verjus, which is non-alcoholic and made from pressing unripe
grapes. Cooks use it as a sour component in cooking, particularly
when they don’t want the flavor to compete with he wine being
served with the meal, as a lemon or vinegar can. Ah the things you
learn by talking to people at the market!
I look forward to hearing the stories of the new farmers and
vendors at local markets. I’ve also been talked into soon trying
the morning offerings of Swedish pancakes, made with an authentic —
and secret — family recipe.
The season, it seems, is off to a good start.
Now lets all hope for sunny days ahead and good harvests.
