Imagine waking up on a Saturday morning and instead of having to face the hustle and bustle of a grocery store, you can head downtown and take a leisurely stroll through an outdoor market, choosing from a variety of fresh produce, grown by your own friends and neighbors.
You can then take your purchases home and prepare food for your family that you know is fresh and healthy, because you know exactly where it came from.
This is the beauty of shopping at a local farmers market, and Greenwood could soon be among the thousands of cities across the country to host its own weekly farmers market.
A planning meeting for the proposed farmers market will be held at 5:30 p.m. Monday at Turnrow Book Co. The meeting will be open to the public and anyone interested in the program is invited to attend.
“Greenwood is becoming known as a culinary community. …We are a community that loves to cook and values good food. A farmers market is a natural fit for downtown Greenwood,” said Carol Puckett, president of the Viking Hospitality Group.
Puckett, along with Jamie and Kelly Kornegay, owners of Turnrow, are spearheading the project.
The Kornegays said the meeting will be a brainstorming session to generate ideas for the farmers market. They also hope to gauge how many people in the area are interested in participating and locate potential growers and volunteers.
Main Street Greenwood is helping to sponsor the project. Lise Foy, the director of the organization, said she believes the farmers market will be an asset to the local community, as well as an added attraction for visitors.
“The response from the community is overwhelming at this point. I expect it to be a really nice market,” Foy said.
The idea was first brought up about a year ago, but it was Alice Waters’ visit to the bookstore in October 2007, that set the plan in motion.
Waters, a chef, writer, food activist and owner of the famous Berkeley, Calif., restaurant Chez Panisse, is an advocate for sustainable agriculture. She spoke to the crowd about how home-grown foods, as opposed to mass-produced products, are better for our health, the environment and the local economy.
“After her talk there was a buzz in the room,” Jamie Kornegay said.
The Kornegays explained how they believe Greenwood to be an ideal location for such a venture.
“Mississippians can be very self-sufficient,” Jamie Kornegay said. “A farmers market is perfect for this area because the soil is among the best in the country — everybody should be growing.”
Most farmers markets grew out of the slow food movement, which supports the idea that people should pay attention to the food they eat, where it comes from and how their food choices affect the world around them. Locally grown seasonal foods also help to preserve regional food traditions and culture.
“The whole idea is to create this locally sustained food economy,” Jamie Kornegay said.
The farmers market will be held on Saturday mornings in downtown Greenwood. The exact location has yet to be determined, but Foy said they are considering a location on Johnson Street.
Organizers are hoping to open the market on April 12 during River to the Rails.
All vendors will need to be approved, but Kelly Kornegay said they will welcome anyone who is interested in selling fruits, vegetables or herbs. Foy said they have also discussed the sale of value-added products, such as canned produce, jams or cut flowers.
There also will be plenty of opportunities for non-growers to get involved. Volunteers will be needed to help out with various tasks, including setting up booths and possibly transporting produce from farm to market.
Through the creation of the farmers market, its organizers are hoping to solidify the downtown area as a community gathering place.
“It’s a great way to bond a community,” Kelly Kornegay said.
Puckett agreed. “It offers the community a chance to get to know our local farmers and growers and to buy directly from them. … It will bring people from outlying communities to downtown Greenwood on Saturdays which will help other businesses.”
Those who are interested in participating in the farmers market but are unable to attend the meeting on Monday should contact Lise Foy at 453-7625 or mainstreetgreenwood@gmail.com or Jamie and Kelly Kornegay at 453-5995 or jamie@turnrowbooks.com.
