Pawtucket Wintertime Farmers Market: Local, Sustainable, and Enjoyable

Upon taking a visit to the Pawtucket Wintertime Farmers Market I was pretty unsure what to expect. I certainly had never been to farmers markets in the wintertime and typically they were relatively small locations with perhaps a couple dozen vendors. With that being said, the Pawtucket Wintertime Farmers Market surpassed all my expectations. The Hope Artiste Village is a truly amazing location with the high brick walls of the old mill perfectly concealing the vast amount of home town merchants and browsing eyes of local consumers looking for fresh and friendly alternatives. The wide hallways in which the vendors lined give the consumer experience a rustic feel that a farmers market should convey which only adds to the experience. After having myself a great cup of coffee upon arriving on the chilly Saturday morning I was excited to browse all the tables and stands to see what these local entrepreneurs had to offer.

Now, I must admit that I am a pretty big pickle fan so naturally one of the first vendors I found myself being drawn to was Tracie from Harmony Hill Farm, primarily due to the abundance of pickles in which her table held. Harmony Hill Farm is located locally in Glocester, RI and they have been actively selling their produce for approximately six years to date. Initially, only selling eggs, the farm began to grow to a point in which they now sell everything from eggs to pickles, cucumbers, and peppers to jams and jelly's. The coolest thing about Harmony Hill Farm is their simplistic efforts to stay sustainable. They take efforts as easy as recycling their egg cartons, saving plastic bags from grocery stores and even building relationships with their customers to a point in which mason jars are returned after use. With their business expanding and a full-time effort needed to be successful, all efforts to remain sustainable, big or small, can make a significant impact.

Being from upstate New York, I can certainly appreciate the warmth that a nice winter hat can provide during the winter. Which is precisely why one of my next stops was at a table piled high with variously colored hats, mittens and scarves. Obviously having to try out a pair of mittens for myself I was taken back at just how soft and comfortable the material was. Moonlight Rose Alpacas is a farm from Swansea, MA that specializes in the breeding and selling of alpacas and the products produced from their fibers. From what I learned, alpacas (which resemble small llamas) are used for the tremendous qualities that their fibers bear in creating yarn used to make the incredibly soft material in which their products possess. Thus, Moonlight Rose Alpaca Farm is able to successfully bring a unique element to the market place by substituting the typically found food products with some fashionable and warm apparel.

Taking a trip to Pawtucket Farmers Market is something I strongly suggest to all types and ages, whether you're a college student looking for a fresh alternative to the dining hall, a produce connoisseur, or just looking to get the family out of the house on a weekend. It is certainly a beautiful place to visit where you can enjoy your morning and support your community.

Thanks for reading!

-Billy Carroll 

Follow our class on twitter (@bryantmkt421) as we embark on a trip to Costa Rica to get a hands on learning experience in the field of sustainability. 

Sustainability in Providence

I have been to many local farmers markets before but I have never seen one with such a variety of products as I saw at the . I spoke with many local vendors and had the opportunity to try samples of fresh and local Pawtucket Wintertime Farmers Market products, such as the garlic dill pickles from Fox Point Pickles which were delicious! We also spent time with 20-year-old CEO Ava Anderson who educated us toxic chemicals that can be found in products we use everyday and introduced us to her brand of Ava Anderson Nontoxic personal care products. I spent some time with vendors from Narragansett Creamery and North Bakery learning about their products and how they are sustainable. While Narragansett Creamery and North Bakery may seem very different to a farmers market patron who sees their products, the two companies have more in common than meets the eye. In addition to both being located in Providence, both companies are committed to sustainability and put a large emphasis on buying local ingredients whenever possible while using very few ingredients in order to create fresh products for the consumer. They both sell products that are relatively inexpensive (under $10) and offer a variety of different types of products within their specialty market.

Narragansett Creamery

This Providence-based creamery began in 2007 and has grown to sell a variety of fresh products including yogurt, hard cheeses, and mozzarella. The cheese is sold in 8 ounce blocks and prices range from $5 to $8. While they sell primarily at farmers markets in Rhode Island and Massachusetts, their products can also be found in stores like Dave's Marketplace, Shaw's, and Whole Foods in RI and MA as well as Connecticut and New York. The cheese is made with very minimal ingredients, all of which are local and fresh, and are committed to avoiding growth hormones in their products. The variety of cheeses they are able to produce with such few ingredients was very surprising to me. They even had a few types of cheese of which I had never heard! I was able to sample the Salty Sea Feta as well as the fresh mozzarella. Both of them were so fresh and delicious; they practically melted in my mouth! Check them out online to find your closest retail location or farmers market!

North Bakery

Located in West Providence at 70 Battery Street North Bakery is a bakery and coffee shop unlike most others in the area. The coffee is the brand Counter Culture, which is based out of North Carolina, whose core values of sustainability and transparency can be seen through their compostable retail bags and carbon neutrality. Kelly, the manager of North Bakery with whom I spoke, told me all about the different initiatives North Bakery takes to be sustainable. All products are made from scratch, produce is fresh, and ingredients are purchased from local vendors. At the farmers markets they sold a variety of baked goods, from cookies to miniature chocolate cakes, all for less than $6 each. In addition to their coffee shop storefront and selling at local farmers markets, they also have a restaurant. Through this restaurant they have formed relationships with local farms and fishermen to constantly provide their customers with fresh and local ingredients. 

Fun Facts

- North Bakery buys their eggs from Baffoni's Poultry Farm, another Pawtucket Winter Farmers Market vendor.

- North Bakery serves a local ginger beer!

Kasey Mazza (@KaseyMazza)

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Herbs & Ice Cream

Before traveling to Costa Rica to discover the sustainable practices that are implemented in another country, we explored our own area to get a sense of sustainability and to see what some of the members within our own community do in order to be environmentally friendly. 

We followed the painted tomato signs through the
maze of hallways to discover even more vendors!

The Pawtucket Wintertime Farmers Market located in the Hope Artiste Village provides local grounds for community members and merchants alike to exchange goods. 

The majority of the vendors supply organic or homegrown produce and other goods. While all the sellers expressed an interest in environmental health and lessening their carbon footprint, there were two in particular that exuded an incredible passion for their companies and the goods and services that they provide.

Situated on a five acre farm in West Greenwich, Rhode Island, Farmacy Herbs Community Health and Education Center offers herbs and consultation for natural remedies. They have a large selection of bulk dried herbs, local honey, books, herbal blends, and herbal products, including small simple items, such as lip balms, and infused oils containing plant extracts for wellness and relief. They also offer a wide variety of tea blends, including custom blends that can be made for specific tastes or uses based on the main ingredients. Additonally, Farmacy Herbs has a classroom space to host classes and training sessions to educate interested individuals on the use and practice of natural medicine. Not only does Farmacy Herbs use organic ingredients and products, but they encourage the sustainability of life through general health and wellness by offering goods that are wholesome for the mind and body.

Tricycle Ice Cream is another independent vendor that follows environmentally friendly business practices by offering ice cream on a tricycle! This extremely unique business uses the energy generated directly by man to power through Providence and the roads of Rhode Island, reducing emissions and pollution into the air unlike a typical delivery vehicle. To top it all off, Tricycle Ice Cream has delicious and creative flavors that are sure to satisfy even the most insatiable sweet-tooth. 

Author: Bridgette Kosek

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Meat & Pickles!

As many of my classmates have posted, the Pawtucket Wintertime Farmers Market is an unexpected community of wonderful people and even better goods. It is located at 1005 Main St, Pawtucket, RI, and the venue is massive, featuring local food trucks that use local ingredients from all of the vendors. Two large hallways are packed with a variety of vendors of sustainable goods. I had the pleasure of speaking with a handful of these vendors about their sustainability and how their supply chain is local.

Fox Point Pickling

I met a local pickler named Ziggy, who followed his dream of making pickles. He founded Fox Point Pickling Company, and he conducts his business by making pickles on the weekends, and giving out samples of different types of pickles during the week. He makes two different kinds of pickles, dill and spicy dill, but continues to revise the recipes all the time in order to make them perfect. When he isn’t making pickles, he works for the local food vendors dropping off food to local supermarkets, keeping him in touch with the agricultural community. He recently won two awards at the pickle convention in New York City, and Bryant students have taught him how to handle his company's finances. His wife, who is in this picture, helps him sell pickles at the market.

Daniele Inc

After talking with Ziggy I met the distributors from Daniele, Inc. The local family has been making charcuterie in America for over fifty years, but they continue to be family-owned and operated since moving here from Northern Italy. They are extremely friendly at their table, just like the rest of the community. They offer plenty of samples to try and professionally sealed packaging of all sorts of meats from prosciutto to chorizo. They kept all of their farmers local and are able to ship all through out the U.S. and around the world.

FUN FACT:
Daniele, Inc won the Good Food Award for a new line of artisan charcuterie.




If you have not had the pleasure of trying either Daniele specialty meats or Fox Point Pickles, I strongly urge you to head out to the Wintertime Farmers Market this weekend to explore and taste for yourself. I personally will be going back because there are more incredible people to interact with. It is important for communities to support sustainable and local businesses.

Before you head out this weekend to the Farmers Market, make you sure you continue to read this blog to learn more about our experiences and different vendors. Also, continue to follow our blog as we will be posting while we are in Costa Rica exploring more sustainable companies and supply chains.

I will also be posting more information on my Twitter account for my personal experience down south.

Cheers,
Jake Lamar (@jakelamar29)