The story below is from our May/June 2024 issue. For more stories like it, Subscribe Today. Thank you!
Photos Courtesy of LEAP
Grandin Village Farmers Market is a flourishing hub of local food and community connection.
The vision for Local Environmental Agriculture Project (LEAP)’s Grandin Village Farmers Market was simple: create a space where sustainable growing practices were encouraged and farmers — established and emerging — could sell the produce they grew. Fifteen years later and the market is thriving more than ever, bustling with vendors and shoppers who see the value in supporting small businesses and making local food accessible to all.
As it turns out, many of the market’s biggest fans are our readers; they couldn’t sing its praises enough in this year’s Best of Roanoke poll! Christina Nifong, LEAP’s communications manager, says the organization is ecstatic that their original market was awarded in two brand-new categories: “Favorite Farmers Market” (platinum) and “Best Place to Buy Seasonal Produce” (gold).
Locales where people from all walks of life can get to know one another while directly supporting the local economy by purchasing affordable, homegrown and homemade products directly from their producers are far and few in between, but Grandin Village Farmers Market is one of them. “Our nonprofit works hard to create a welcoming place for all, one that is fun for families, Grandin Village neighbors and anyone else looking for good food grown and produced by local farmers and businesses,” says Nifong.
Another aspect that makes it unique is that the majority of the farmers in attendance are only in their 30s — much lower than the state’s average of 59. “Supporting these young farmers is a way of creating more resilient food systems where we live.”
LEAP also runs the Tuesday West End Farmers Market, their Mobile Market and is in the process of opening a retail store on Patterson Avenue. A celebration of the milestone will take place in the fall once the construction of the new West End Farmers Market pavilion is completed.
Nifong and the rest of the LEAP team are so appreciative of the enthusiasm farmers, producers, musicians, artists, business owners and partners continue to show for the Grandin market, even after all these years. “The farmers market wouldn’t be the welcoming, thriving place that it is without each and every person who is connected to it each and every week.”
Grandin Village Farmers Market’s 2024 Saturday markets kicked off on April 6 and will run from 8 a.m. to noon each week into December. Learn more about the market, its monthly special events, including Strawberry Jam slated for June 1, and more at leapforlocalfood.org/find-food.
The story above is from our May/June 2024 issue. For more stories like it, Subscribe Today. Thank you!
