On Sunday, the City of Antioch welcomed the launch of its downtown farmers market in the Rivertown district after years in the making.
The market is weekly, each Sunday, and will feature approximately 25 farmers and vendors from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm at I St and 3rd St. Opening day featured 25 truckloads of fresh produce from local family farms who gathered featuring the famous super sweet white corn from Brentwood, tree- ripened apricots from Patterson, peaches and nectarines from Hughson, vine-ripe strawberries and organic vegetables from Hollister. Farm fresh eggs, Asian vegetables, freshly baked breads and pastries from Little Sky Bakery. With high demand, many vendors sold out before noon.
Gail Hayden, director at the California Farmers Markets Association, said they normally organize markets in 7 months, but Antioch did it in less than 7 weeks. She credited collaboration and everyone doing their part to make this market happen quickly.
“I want to thank all of you for supporting the farmers and supporting local farming. Its very important,” said Hayden who shared later in the year they will incorporate cooking demonstrations, zucchini races, and many more wonderful things.
She also thanked Mayor Ron Bernal who helped make this happen.
“He could have put a lot of obstacles up, but he greased it so we could get this through,” said Hayden. “We have started 40 markets in the Bay Area, and this has been the community that has been the best. I am not just saying that.”
Bernal said this was a great event for Antioch and they had been dreaming about this for a long time that he hopes will help build community. He called the turnout amazing and better than they thought it would be.
“This means a lot to Antioch. It is part of a renaissance of Antioch and being able to bring people together. This happens to be downtown where we want people to come and enjoy themselves. This is incredible and super exciting,” said Bernal.
Antioch City Councilwoman Monica Wilson called it a positive thing for Antioch and encouraged the community to come out each week.
“You know what I am most excited about, it brings healthy food here to Antioch, we need so much more healthy food,” said Wilson. “People can come here and get fresh picked, healthy produce. They even have people here making break, pies, so this is great. The community has been asking for this for years.”
Shahad Wright, Acting Parks & Recreation Director/Recreation Manager, called it an ‘opportunity” for Antioch.
“It’s an opportunity to eat fresh in downtown Antioch for the whole city so they can stay locally and get fresh produce,” said Wright. “It’s a win-win for the businesses, the community, the farmers and everybody in Antioch.
Overview:
- Market size: 25+ farmers and vendors
- Time: Sundays, 9:00am – 1:00pm
- Location Parking Lot, I St. @3rd St in Antioch, CA 94509
- Parking: Free parking is available at City Hall located across the street from the market.
- INFO: EBT Accepted. Please go to Info Booth
- Pets are not permitted. Service animals only.
THIS LOCATION IS CERTIFIED BY THE COUNTY AGRICULTURAL COMMISSIONER, WHERE FARMERS OFFER FOR SALE ONLY THOSE FRUITS AND VEGETABLES THEY GROW THEMSELVES. IT IS OPERATED BY CALIFORNIA FARMERS’ MARKETS ASSOCIATION, SPONSORED BY CELEBRATE ANTIOCH FOUNDATION, AND HOSTED BY THE CITY OF ANTIOCH. FOR MORE INFO: @ANTIOCHFARMERSMKT, 800-806-FARM, CAFARMERSMKTS.COM.
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