The Benson Gristmill will be the first local venue to kick off its annual farmers market, and this year, the farmer’s market will do more than ever before to make fresh, local produce available to residents.
This summer, the Tooele County Live Fit coalition will join the gristmill, and local master gardeners who help organize the market, to bring an EBT machine to the weekly market, enabling local low-income families to purchase Tooele-grown produce with food stamps.
According to 2012 estimates, there are nearly 10,000 local residents who rely on food stamps, said Malaena Toohey, chairwoman for the Live Fit coalition. She added bringing in technologies that allow low-income individuals to buy produce at farmers markets is, according to nation-wide research, a proven way of increasing the amount of fruits and vegetables a community consumes.
“It improves their overall health and will, we hope, decrease obesity over time,” she said.
Live Fit purchased the EBT machine through a grant from Utahns Against Hunger, and will use part of a $15,000 grant from the Utah Department of Health to pay for the machine’s ongoing operational costs and to reimburse a volunteer who will run the machine at the upcoming markets.
The gristmill will launch its weekly market this Saturday morning, which makes it the first market to open for the summer season in Tooele County. Though it may be off to an early start, organizer Walt Barlow said he expects to see local farmers bring their early-season crops to the market, with possible offerings including chard, broccoli, peas, spinach, lettuce, kale, and other “green stuff.”
The gristmill market welcomes all Tooele County gardeners and farmers to sell their extra produce free of charge; growers need only to check in at the market between 8–9 a.m. Non-farm food products may also be sold, but vendors are required by the state of Utah to obtain a business permit in order to participate.
For residents who would like to attend the farmers market as customers, the market will open Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. The market will open on a weekly basis from July 12 through the season’s first frost.
In addition to the farmers market at the gristmill, the Clark Historic Farm in Grantsville and Tooele Valley Nursery also plan to host farmers markets this summer. However, both locations are expected to open their markets later in the season.
Information about local farmers markets is available at livefittc.org. Live Fit is also looking for information about any additional farmers market opportunities in the valley.