Great news!! The Englewood Farmers Market will remain OPEN through the MONTH of MAY!! The last day will be May 29th… Until we return in October!! more details to come…
Eat Near: Double-your-SNAP program coming to two local farmers’ markets
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| Kim Dart points out a fresh fruit tray to her daughter, Amanda Dart, at the Sarasota Farmer’s Market, circa 2007 / E. SKYLAR LITHERLAND |
The Fresh Access Bucks program sure sounds like a win-win. It allows recipients of federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program dollars to double the value of their benefits by purchasing Florida-grown organic produce at local farmers’ markets. Win one: for the low-income individuals who rely on SNAP to feed their families. Win two: for farmers who suddenly gain access to a whole new customer base. And it’s coming soon to Sarasota County, with at least two local farmers’ markets working to set up the infrastructure needed to participate.
Florida Organic Growers first launched the program in January 2013 after the nonprofit won a grant from the state Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, and it’s already spread from Miami-Dade to Duval to Alachua and Pinellas and more. It works like this: If you’re a SNAP recipient, just swipe your EBT card at a farmers’ market machine. In return, you’ll receive tokens that can be redeemed just like cash at participating market vendors. And if you’re buying Florida-grown organic produce, you can double your money and get, say, $40 worth of fruits and vegetables with just $20 from your card.
Fresh Access Bucks have proven enormously popular, says Florida Organic Growers Community Food Project Coordinator Carmen Franz. In 2013, the program brought 1,247 new shoppers to participating markets, generating almost $69,000 in revenue for Florida farmers. Nationally, the number of SNAP recipients participating in similar programs jumped from 20,000 in 2010 to 40,000 in 2012.
While the original goal of the Florida grant was to have 20 participating markets online by the end of 2014, Franz says that goal is well within sight, and will likely be surpassed, with at least two Sarasota County markets joining the fold. Managers with the dormant North Sarasota market, which will be rebooted (tentatively) on Sat., May 3, are being trained on the program soon, and the Englewood Farmer’s Market will be ready to accept EBT cards in about a month.
“It’s a terrific incentive program,” says Lee Perron, who manages the Englewood market. They’re working on getting their EBT terminal up and running after beginning the application process with the USDA six months ago. Perron expects the reaction from vendors at the market will be “ecstatic” — ditto for SNAP recipients. “You’re not going to have better access to nutritious products,” he says.
One misconception about SNAP recipients is that they’re all unemployed, Franz says. In fact, the large majority are “people who are working that are making ends meet that need a little bit of assistance.”
“If you work full-time at minimum wage, you’re below the poverty line,” she points out. In 2011, almost 44,000 Sarasota County residents received more than $66 million in SNAP benefits.
Not all markets are crazy about the program. The extra manpower involved can sometimes be too much for maxed-out market managers, and some simply don’t want a SNAP-reliant clientele, Franz says. “There’s a lot of discrimination against people who get SNAP.”
But according to Franz, both the Venice Farmer’s Market and the Old Miakka Farmers Market have also expressed interest in Fresh Access Bucks. Franz says she’d love to involve the downtown Sarasota Farmer’s Market, which is directly adjacent to a central bus terminal, perfect for those who rely on public transportation. Phil Pagano, the executive director of the Sarasota market, says his organization has toyed with the idea of setting up an EBT system for years, but would need additional staff to handle the work. He says he’s open to considering signing up with Fresh Access Bucks if his board supports it.
While market managers can sometimes be reluctant to join in, Franz says, the vendors themselves generally want to participate. “They’re excited about having new customers,” she says. “It makes them more balanced and includes the entire community.”
These little kiddies went to market (Englewood Farmers Market)
ENGLEWOOD — The Englewood Farmers Market was alive and buzzing with the rhythm of swelling crowds moving through stands of colorful produce and fresh-baked goods. Kim Douglas’ class of 18 second- graders from Englewood Elementary School added to the mix when they met up with market manager Lee Perron for a guided tour of the market. Over the past weeks, each of the five EES second-grade classes has had the chance to take a walking field trip to the market on Dearborn Street. Douglas’ class took its turn on Feb. 20 and other groups have followed in its footsteps. “They get to see all the produce and farm products outside of a grocery story,” Perron said. “It was eye-opening. A lot of them had not seen that before.” Leading the class through the market, Perron stopped at several vendors’ booths for a quick lesson and to sample an array of goodies. Eager to try the tiny green leaves, they first munched on broccoli sprouts from Simply Organics. John Weil, from Weil Farms, held the children’s attention with an animated lesson about raw honey. He accepted a wide range of guesses before revealing that a honey bee makes about a quarter teaspoon of honey in its lifetime. Moving through the market with a new appreciation for hardworking honey bees, the group visited the Dufour Family Farms stand known as The Herb Guys. Students clapped for Vaughn Dufour who previously donated flats of herbs and vegetables to plant in the schoolyard gardens. During the school year, students tend to the gardens weekly and have harvested and eaten food grown from Dufour’s seedlings. Every hand in the class went out as Jacob Rhoads from Rhoads Produce handed out apples. The employees at Jonesez BBQ generously served free barbecue sandwiches to the entire class. After a short break in the shade, the second- grade class listened to a science lesson about erupting corn kernels as they patiently waited for a salty sweet sample of kettle corn. Students even got to bring home a sample treat for their dog or cat courtesy of Wood ‘n Purr gourmet pet treats. With their tummies full, the class made its way out of the market and back down the sidewalk toward school. “My favorite part was the orange juice,” second-grader Nicole Thomas said reflecting on a variety of tasty morsels she sampled that morning.
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Olivia Roberts tries some broccoli sprouts at the Englewood Farmers Market as her second-grade class from Englewood Elementary School tours the market last week. Market manager Lee Perron has been providing tours for the last two weeks, and will continue into March. |
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Englewood Elementary School second-grade teacher Kim Douglas, left, smiles as her class answers questions on a tour of the Englewood Farmers Market last week. EES students will continue touring the market through March. |
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Emily Troup explains to Karen Dowd’s second-graders about her organic farm and the foods they produce. |
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John Weil, a bee keeper for more than 30 years, takes a question from second-grader Gabe Todaro, regarding how long it takes for bees to create a honeycomb. |
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Karen Dowd’s second-grade class at Englewood Elementary School gets prepared to walk to the Englewood Farmers Market Thursday. The special field trip to the market gave kids the opportunity to learn about various foods and meet several of the people who work at the market. |
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Emily Troup explains to Karen Dowd’s second-graders about her organic farm and the foods they produce. |
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Lilly Delfino admires a couple of sunflowers at the Englewood Farmers Market›on Thursday. Delfino and her classmates had a special field trip from Englewood Elementary to the farmers market to learn about the market and the various foods and products that can be purchased. |
Press Release: Florida Strawberry Tasting Event at the Englewood Farmers Market on January 30th 2014!
It’s strawberry time in Florida so make plans to participate in the first annual Strawberry Tasting Event at the Englewood Farmers Market! The tasting event is free of charge. Renowned agricultural expert Dr. Robert A. Kluson, Ph.D. from the University of Florida Extension in Sarasota County will be conducting locally grown strawberry tastings at the Englewood Farmers Market on January 30th, 2014 beginning at 9:30 AM. The market is located in the 300 block of historic W. Dearborn Street in Englewood.
These activities will include surveys of customer preferences of different varieties from the UF/IFAS Strawberry Breeding Program, Honeyside Farms in Sarasota County and the O’Brian Family Farm in Manatee County. The tasting and customer surveys will provide valuable input to these UF/IFAS fruit breeding programs. Dr. Kluson stated “I really look forward to bringing these activities to the Englewood Farmers Market as the Extension’s way of increasing the public’s awareness of Florida’s fruit industry and supporting our local farmers.”
For more information please contact: Lee A. Perron, Market Manager, Englewood Farmers Market @ 941 548-7843 or via e-mail @ info@englewoodfarmersmarket.org“>info@englewoodfarmersmarket.org
Recipe of the month: “STRAWBERRY TIRAMISU”
Prep Time: 20 Minutes
Serves: 8
Ingredients:
1 cup strawberry jam
1/2 cup warm water
1/3 cup orange juice
1/4 cup Grand Marnier, plus one tablespoon extra
1-1/4 pounds mascarpone, at room temperature
1-1/3 cups whipping cream (35%)
3 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
ladyfingers (you’ll need about 50)
1-1/2 to 2 pounds strawberries, washed, dried and sliced
2 tablespoons lemon zest
Preparation:
1 – In a bowl, combine the jam, water, orange juice and half of the Grand Marnier. Mix well. Set aside
2 – In another bowl, combine the mascarpone and the remaining Grand Marnier. Mix well. Set aside.
3 – In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the whipping cream with the sugar, vanilla extract and remaining 1 tablespoon of Grand Marnier. Beat until stiff peaks form.
4 – Take a quarter of the whipped cream mixture and stir into the mascarpone to lighten the mascarpone. Then add the remaining whipped cream mixture and fold gently into the mascarpone mixture. Set aside.
5 – Spread 1/2 of the jam mixture in the bottom of a 13 x 9-inch baking dish. The mixture will be very liquidy but don’t worry about it. The ladyfingers will absorb the liquid.
6 – Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of the lemon zest over the jam mixture.
7 – Line the bottom of the dish with ladyfingers, making sure to fill in every spot. If you have to snap the ladyfingers into smaller pieces in order to make them fit.
8 – Spread half of the mascarpone mixture evenly over the ladyfingers.
9 – Layer half of the sliced strawberries over the mascarpone.
10 – Spread the remaining jam mixture over the strawberries.
11 – Sprinkle the remaining 1 tablespoon of lemon zest over the strawberries and jam.
12 – Create a second layer of ladyfingers over the strawberries and jam. Again be sure to completely fill in the layer.
13 – Spread the remaining mascarpone mixture over the ladyfingers.
14 – Layer the remaining strawberries on top. Chill for at least 12 hours before serving.
This is the perfect time to make strawberry desserts in Florida…Strawberry season is here!!!