With the inevitable threat of the fall frost hovering, it would be easy to forget that the Mill City Farmers Market is in full swing through October 17th. Summer crops like tomatoes and corn are replaced by truck loads of gorgeous orange pumpkins, squash, and gourds. It is also a great time to take a closer look at some of the market features that you may have missed over the summer.
At the entrance of the market you can find the market info booth and roughly every other weekend the Mini Farm. The info booth is a great place to find out everything from a specific vendors location, the nearest ATM, to the schedule of market events for that day. While there, you can pick up one of the last of this year’s design Mill City Farmers Market super soft tees or reusable totes.
The crowd drawing, Mini Farm is best explained by market manager, Aaron Reser, “The Mill City Mini Farm visits the market roughly every other week and is one of the biggest hits at the market! Especially, among younger customers. I've seen kids pass by the info booth looking for the animals on their week off almost in tears. The mini farm usually features Vera, our unofficial mascot goat and her baby Pearl as well as a variety of heritage breed fowl (ducks, geese, chickens) and rabbits. Featuring the animals at the market is a great educational opportunity where Mill City can introduce city dwellers to these animals, the importance of maintaining heritage breeds, and let folks know how they can start their own backyard flock.”
In their endeavor to be as environmentally friendly as possible, the Mill City Farmers Market has partnered with Eureka Recycling and, with the help of volunteers, has instituted onsite composting and are MN first Zero Waste Market. They also work in partnership with the University of MN School of Public Health to have a monthly nutrition tasting booth. Students from the MPH school cook up and pass out samples of an “underappreciated” fruit or vegetable. Reser explains, “The students cook up a simple recipe on site and show customers just how easy it can be to use the veggie. They also offer recipe cards with nutrition facts, and tips on selecting and storing each particular vegetable. This year we've featured rhubarb, kohlrabi, edamame, and last year beets and winter squash were in the mix as well.”
Mill City Farmers market focuses on sustainable, local, and organic products. They do, however, make a few notable exceptions to the local part, olive oil, salmon, and coffee. When asked for the reasons for these exceptions Aaron Reser gave this explanation, “These are products that are not produced in Minnesota, but that our customers are interested in purchasing and sourcing well. Though these products are not grown or caught locally, we’ve developed a direct connection with each product’s roots and carefully researched the integrity of their sourcing. All three of these vendors are MN residents with direct ties to the source of the product. Carlos Palacios and Katie Anfinson own Cafe Palmira. Carlos was born in Guatemala and the coffee beans are grown at his family farm. Katie and Carlos import the coffee to MN and roast it in MN.
Valli d'Etna Olio is high quality olive oil directly from Italy. Josephine Mangano lives in the Twin Cities but grew up in Italy and imports olive oil directly from her family's olive groves in Italy.
The salmon sold at the market is sustainably caught wild salmon direct from Alaska by Wild Run Salmon. Matt Oxford and his family live in St. Paul but spend part of the year in Alaska on Matt’s boat The Blue Ox. Matt catches the fish himself and ships the salmon back from Alaska for sale at the Mill City Farmers Market.”
Fall is a great time to check out the ever changing face of the Mill City Farmers Market, see some of the market attractions that you may have missed during the hustle and bustle of summer, and pick up a pumpkin for the road.
