Push on for year-round farmers market

CHILLICOTHE - Finding a location and the means to create a year-round farmers market locally were among the county policy issues members of the Ross County Farm Bureau voted to support during their annual meeting Sunday evening.

"I brought an initiative a year ago to have a year-round farmers market," said Greg Garman, president of the organization representing the local farm community. "I involved Dr. Chris Brunis, with the (Ohio State University) Extension; we went to the current farmers market board and met with them; and we have another meeting actually Wednesday night.

"We know that our local growers grow a good, quality product and they can supply that product at a (good) price, fresh, home-grown, you're buying from your neighbor basically. So we'd like to see a farmers market a couple of days a week year-round, and we're working with Mayor (Luke) Feeney, and he's on board. That's a real initiative, and local growers want to do this."

The existing Chillicothe Farmers Market is offered for four hours every Saturday morning from May through the end of October in the parking lot of the Ross County Service Center. The trick, Garman noted, is finding a way to extend the market from November through April.

"Finding a place, it's tough," he said.

The ideal structure, he said, would have some covered outdoor vendor areas for the spring, summer and early fall months and a long hallway with vendor-friendly spaces indoors that can be heated during the cold-weather months. Those indoor spaces also could have a series of garage doors that could be opened into outdoor spaces that could be used in warmer weather.

One of the advantages of a year-round market situation, Garman said, is that people involved in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program can get more value for each $1 in food stamps if buying at the farmers market. Being able to use that buying power to access healthy eating options through the winter months would be beneficial, he said.

"That's big," he said. "The folks we're trying to reach are maybe those folks who aren't eating as healthy, those folks who are getting things pre-cooked and pre-prepared. Let's get them locally grown berries and fruits and vegetables."

He said he thinks Chillicothe has become large enough to support a year-round market.

"People keep saying: 'Is Chillicothe big enough?' and 'Is Ross County big enough?' Yes, we're a destination," Garman said. "We're drawing workers from Pike, Vinton, Highland, Fayette and Pickaway counties. People are coming to Chillicothe to participate as vendors."

As work continues toward trying to make that desire a reality, several other policy initiatives also were supported Sunday. Organization Secretary Greg Corcoran applauded the work to address farm machinery access restrictions that went into effect last year on U.S. 35 and 50. Working with the Ohio Farm Bureau, the Ross County Sheriff's Office, State Sen. Bob Peterson, State Rep. Gary Scherer and the Ohio Department of Transportation, agreement was reached on a permit system that would help those farmers most affected by the restrictions.

Other local initiatives that won support to be part of the organization's platform included efforts to increase agriculture education in the public schools and community, sheriff's road patrols in rural areas of the county, a reward program to deter rural crime, efforts for grain bin rescue and farm safety training, and several others.

The organization awarded $500 scholarships to Unioto graduate and University of Findlay student Isabella Timmons as well as Adena graduate and OSU student Grant Cory during the meeting, and it hosted its first field day at the Gene Carter farm on Rittenour Road in Kingston before the annual meeting on the property.