Tent Talk

Our guests this week are Jonathan Przybyl and Amanda Abou-Eid, owners and bakers at Proof Bread in the Phoenix, Arizona metro area. Jon and Amanda took over an existing farmers market and wholesale bakery business in 2017 when their favorite bread vendor decided to retire. After four years of baking in their garage, Proof Bread has expanded into a commercial bakery space and is now sold at 5 weekl...

This week on Tent Talk our guest is Punita Patel, owner and chief buffalo milker at Backyard Buffalo. Punita raises water buffalo and sells gorgeous Indian specialty foods at farmers markets in Jacksonville Florida, while advocating for sensible regulation of small, local dairies. In this episode we chat about balancing farmers market dreams with reality, how to adjust your product line to fill th...

Happy Labor Day weekend! The Farmers Market Pro Team is taking the holiday weekend off and we're revisiting an episode from early 2020, when Catt and Katie Green of Wild Hare Organic Farm met up at the Washington State Farmers Market Association Conference in Tacoma. They chatted about what makes a great farmers market from a farmer's point of view and how Katie juggles markets, farming, a success...

Tune into Tent Talk this week for another round of questions and answer from our Farmers Market Pros online community! Catt, Brijet and Justine dive deep into updating farmers market sampling protocols, managing EBT/SNAP and market match programs, making sure your farmers market is ADA compliant, how to keep people from driving through your market during operating hours, and much more! This week's...

Our guest this week is Andrew Plotsky, Creative Director at Farmrun, a creative studio in Vermont that works with all types of clients (from food and agriculture to politics and culture) to develop brand strategy, logos, and web design. Farmrun is located at Stitchdown Farm, which Andrew co-owns and co-operates with his wife, where they grow specialty cut flowers and offer floral design for all oc...

If you build it they will come. But if you tell them where you built it, chances are more people will show up! This week on Tent Talk we're going back to the basics on farmers market marketing. A combination of social media, email newsletters, print advertising, and community engagement can drive excitement about and attendance at your weekly farmers market. This week's episode is made possible by...

This week on Tent Talk we're joined by sustainability expert, educator and social entrepreneur Dianna Rose. In addition to running her own zero-waste catering company, Jars of Delight, Dianna founded the only farmers market in Queens, New York! Sovereign Markets, brings food equity to New York City's Queens communities, while amplifying local businesses and culture. Tune in to hear how Dianna is g...

This week we discuss how to re-establish farmers market systems and protocols that were modified or may have fallen by the wayside as market managers were focused on enforcing COVID regulations. Now that many markets have moved away from density limits, social distancing, and mask enforcement, it's time to reinstate some standard farmers market systems and ways of doing things that we abandoned du...

Across the country we're seeing record-breaking heatwaves, summer downpours and an early start to fire season. As extreme weather becomes more and more common, farmers market operators have to get creative and develop contingency plans to keep their farmers market up and running while also keeping their farmers, vendors and shoppers safe. In this episode we discuss how to handle inclement weather...

It's almost that time again! National Farmers Market Week 2021 is coming up in just a couple weeks. Since last year most market managers were barred from doing anything fun at farmers markets, this year we are going to make National Farmers Market Week extra extra special! Tune in to hear Catt, Brijet and Justine share various ways you can get your whole community involved in the festivities. This...

There's a lot of talk among farmers market operators about how to bring diversity, equity and inclusion into the farmers market space, and a lot of confusion about how to do that. This week on Tent Talk we dive deep into this topic with our guest Shiny Flanary, a Black, queer farmer at Scrapberry Farm, the Director of Markets at Black Food Sovereignty Coalition and the founder and manager of Come...

Our guest this week is Kendall Ballantine, farmer and owner of Central Park Farms in British Columbia, Canada. Kendall is a first-generation farmer who has built a devoted customer base through a combination of farmers market hustling and effective digital marketing. In addition to raising livestock full-time, Kendall shares her digital marketing expertise via Instagram, group coaching and online...

Farmers markets are like big families and occasionally you have to say goodbye to a loved one. It's not only a difficult situation for your market staff and vendors, but it can be confusing and sad for shoppers as well. This week on Tent Talk we discuss what happens when a farmers market vendor moves on or passes away and how to support your farmers market community through sad goodbyes. This week...

It isn't often that we get to chat with reality television stars, so we were very excited when we found out that Top Chef Season 18 contestant Sasha Grumman had launched her new business at farmers markets in Houston! This week on Tent Talk, we learn all about Sasha's Focaccia (what a perfect name!) and what it's like to transition from back of house to front of tent. She also shares her 2 year, 5...

This week on Tent Talk we check in with Christine Farren, Executive Director of CUESA (operators of the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market since 1999). We spoke with Christine back in April of 2020 as farmers markets around the country were scrambling to stay open under the threat of a public health emergency. After a year of running a curated market box and pick-up service, CUESA is evolving and adapting...

Farmers markets come in all different shapes and sizes, depending on the communities they serve. Some are big, some are small, some urban, some rural, some seasonal and some year round! This week our guest is Megan Harris, market manager for the Downtown South Boston Farmers Market in Virginia. Megan started her farmers market journey as a farmer and vendor, but now she is a full-time market manag...

Our guest this week is Darlene Wolnik, Farmers Market Support Program Director at the national Farmers Market Coalition and official farmers market Data Wizard! Darlene has worked with FMC since its inception and currently oversees market support projects including network facilitation, development of the farm-direct portion of the GusNIP Hub, Farmers Market Metrics data collection and evaluation...

This week our show is all about hard-learned market manager lessons and what we would tell ourselves if we could travel back in time! With new markets opening and new market managers on-boarding all over the country, we're sharing advice for new market managers, and managers navigating new market conditions with tips from our Farmers Market Pros Facebook community. We also have exciting news about...

This week we welcome farmer and educator Michael Kilpatrick as our Tent Talk guest! After blowing us away with his jam-packed presentation at InTents: the Farmers Market Conference 2021, we had to have him on the show to hear more about his farm education projects Growing Farmers, Small Farm University and the Thriving Farmers podcast and online forum! With years of experience under his belt as an...

The last year has really turned farmers market marketing on it's head. Though we still want to draw shoppers to our markets, attracting large numbers of visitors is not currently ideal. This week on Tent Talk we speak with Heidi Anderson, Co-Founder and CEO of theFarmBoard, about developing a value-based marketing strategy for your farmers market business. Heidi shares ways to develop loyal custom...

It's time to put the FUN in fundraising! This week on Tent Talk we chat with Kathy Newsom, Market Coordinator for The Corner Farmers Market in Greensboro, North Carolina about the innovative fundraising programs she uses to balance her market's budget. Thanks in part to their robust market sustainers program, The Corner Market has been able to implement pre-order and pick up services for the last...

Our guest this week is Christopher Hudson, owner and operator of Benny Blanco Tortillas, which has become a main attraction at the Gilbert Farmers Market in the Phoenix, Arizona area. Prior to working as a vendor, Christopher was an avid farmers market shopper. When his favorite tortilla seller put his business up for sale, Christopher leapt at the opportunity and purchased it! 3 years later, Benn...

Spring has sprung and markets across the country are opening for the season! In a normal year there's a lot that goes into prepping for a new market season, so with COVID-19 restrictions still in place in most areas, there's even more work to be done. We received lots of comments and messages from market managers in on our Farmers Market Pros community about some of the challenges they are facing...

This week we're joined by fisherman, farmers market vendor and consultant, Cynthia Wallesz. When she's not in Alaska harvesting and processing wild salmon, Cynthia is in Idaho, selling her fish at the Boise Farmers Market and providing consulting services to farmers market managers and foodmakers. In this episode we hear all about the impact COVID-19 had on this year's fishing season, how Cynthia...

Last time we heard from Nathan Macaulay, Director of Sales at Apricot Lane Farms, was at the 2020 InTents Conference (right before COVID-19 turned the world and farmers market operations upside down). Over the last year, Nathan and his team have adjusted and adapted, and this week on Tent Talk, he updates us on the goings on at Apricot Lane Farms. To learn more about this incredible biodynamic far...