Resetting the Table
New burrito size tortillas from Tortillas Los Angeles
Resetting the Table
For this week we're pressing pause on our normal narrative describing the great things to find at market. On a typical week we'd elaborate on all the amazing things market brings to the table. This week though, our reflections have altered.
We're asking ourselves: Is there a seat at the table for everyone? How about enough food? Equal portions? The expressions of pain and anger we've seen this last week over the deeply rooted racial injustices in this country answer those questions for us. The table is not serving the same meal for all eaters.
Acknowledging that can be uncomfortable for us as it means we must accept that reality isn't matching up to our ideals as Americans. It's crucial that we do experience that discomfort though. We can't fix the table without accepting the fact that it's been set wrong.
That's where we start with our efforts to be better. We acknowledge what's wrong and next we open our eyes, ears, minds and hearts to those speaking up. We listen to voices too often unheard, paying attention to what needs are not being met.
From there we can take the steps to reset the table by lending a hand through individual action to community effort to broader systemic change. It's work, plain and simple. Work that is necessary, work that is unavoidable in the pursuit of our American ideals.
The realities of racial injustice for Black, Indigenous & People of Color (BIPOC) in this country are felt in so many aspects of life, and the food and agriculture sectors are not immune from these inequities. Farmers' markets have historically served pre-dominantly white communities in the US. While progress has been made over the years to improve access to fresh local food for communities of color, there is still much work to be done.
For those of you looking to lend your support, we encourage you to check out this great resource from Civil Eats entitled "Want to See Food and Land Justice for Black Americans? Support These Groups." They've put together a really nice list of organizations that actively work to address racial inequalities in the food and agriculture sectors.
Locally, we hope to see support continue for the Community Action Coalition of South Central Wisconsin (CAC), who do great work on food security issues in our area, including facilitating the Double Dollars program. The Westside Community Market has been fortunate to be one of the many Madison area farmers' markets that participates in the Double Dollars program since 2014 and we look forward to again when the program returns this July. CAC is just one of many great organizations in the Dane County area to support, whether by volunteering your time or through a financial contribution.
Farmers' markets are places meant to bring people together, we should continue to strive for that purpose. To do so, we must put in the work to ensure that our community market, and our country, set a fair place at the table for everyone. See you at market! Ben Zimmerman Market Manager P.S. Check us out on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for more updates on the market as the season kicks off!
Our thank you to our host, UW Health, for their strong statement of support.
Shopping Safely This Season
Before you make your first trip to market, we'd like you to know what will be different for this season and we ask for your help in keeping things safe. We have an adjusted layout for this season, with single sided vendor aisles spread out with a gap between each vendor. Much like the grocery store, we're asking that foot traffic move in one direction through each market aisle, indicated by our yellow sandwich board signs. We ask you to please follow these directions and be patient as we all adapt to this different flow. As you shop the stalls, please mind the six foot spacing lines in front of vendors' tents. Give each other space to shop and don't crowd into vendor booths. While reusable shopping totes are not banned, if you're using your own bags, please do not ask vendors to pack them for you. Planning your market trip may be the easiest way to get what you need, while keeping the market safe. Many of our vendors will be offering pre-orders that you may place during the week for a quick pick up at their stall on Saturday morning. Below we'll detail what options for pre-order are available this weekend and we'll update that weekly as more vendors add that option. For what you can't pre-order, consider making a shopping list by vendor before you get to the market. Having a plan of action will speed things up and help you get what you need as quickly as possible. We know that these methods won't work for everyone, but those of you who can adapt will be helping everyone with your efficiency. We're also asking everyone to send just one person per household to the market, which will aid us in lowering the crowd count each week. You can also help out by altering your shopping time, consider coming early in the morning (we open at 7am) or later (open until 12:30pm) to lower the crowd pressure during the peak hours. These little adjustments can really help make things operate smoothly and ensure we don't become too crowded. We encourage you all to wear a mask too. Even a bandana is better than nothing and can help lower the risk of transmission. Wash your hands before you come to market, wash them when you get home and with our four handwashing stations set up around the market, you can wash them while you visit too.
Vendor Updates & Pre-Order Options
Our amazing vendors are providing options for your shopping these season. Find all the latest pre-order options and weekly market offering here. Check back each week for notices about pre-ordering, vendor absences and other special vendor notices. Blue Moon Community Farm's preorder program for seedlings has wrapped up for the season, however the remaining selection of their organic vegetable and herb seedlings will be available at their market stand. Chris & Lori's Bakehouse is offering the following for this weekend: Cookie Bundles (12 flower cut-out cookies, 2 cows) $18 Espresso Dark Chocolate Scones White Chocolate Raspberry Scones Cinnamon Oat Scones Banana Chocolate Chunk Scones Rhubarb Oat Scones Whole Grain Raspberry Oat Scones Whole Grain Blueberry Oat Scones Gluten Free Vegan Rhubarb Scones Gluten Free Vegan Raspberry Scones
All scones are $30/Doz (one flavor) Or $18/ Half Doz (one flavor) Or $3 each at the stand for a mix & match bag of any amount of scones.
Email your order at CLBakehouse@gmail.com Orders due by noon on Thursday. Don's Produce will be offering bundles of their Arena grown, pesticide free, heirloom cherry tomatoes and cucumbers. They'll also be offering 5lb bags of their sweet potatoes. Dreamfarm is offering pre-orders for market pick-up by calling (608) 767-3442 or emailing diana@dreamfarm.biz Driftless Chocolates is offering pre-orders for market pick-up on their website. Flyte Family Farm is offering pre-orders by calling (715) 228-2304 Fungi Farmers (formerly know as Herb n Oyster) are offering pre-orders through their website. Highland Spring Farm is offering pre-orders for market pick-up on their website. Honey Bee Bakery will be offering pre-orders for market pick-up on their website. JenEhr Family Farm will be offering a great array of their farm fresh organic produce, from fresh greens to tasty crisp radishes. They'll also be offering their pasture raised chicken. Madison Sourdough will be doing pre-orders only this weekend. Get your order in by Wednesday evening on their website. McCluskey Brothers Shillelagh Glen Farms is offering pre-ordering on their website. Open Kettle Farms is offering pre-orders of their maple syrup. Contact them on their Facebook page to order. ParKelm Farm is offering pre-orders for market pick-up on their website.
Hot n Spicy Cheese Bread from Stella's Bakery (Photo from pre-COVID era)
Classic cow cookies from Chris & Lori's Bakehouse!
Connect with our Vendors!
This list of alternative means to get our vendors' products will grow as new offerings roll in. Please check back regularly and feel free to email Market Manager Ben if you're looking to connect with any vendor not listed. Alsum Sweet Corn: Frozen sweet corn available at Metcalfe's Hilldale and West. Check their website for more information: www.alsumsweetcorn.com Participant in Dane County Farmers' Market's Local Food Pick Up Black Earth Valley: Participant in Dane County Farmers' Market's Local Food Pick Up Bryant Family Farms: Webstore: www.bryantfamilyfarms.org Eggs also offered through Landmark Creamery's Special Local Delivery service: https://landmarkcreamery.com/collections/special-delivery Chris & Lori's Bakehouse: Weekly pick up orders available in Madison on Saturdays. Check their Facebook page for updates and email CLBakehouse@gmail.com to inquire about available selections. Check their website for more information: http://chrisandlorisbakehouse.com Participant in Dane County Farmers' Market's Local Food Pick Up Don's Produce: Offering deliveries of their produce to the downtown Madison area. To inquire, call or text: 608-574-0294 Participant in Dane County Farmers' Market's Local Food Pick Up Dreamfarm: Some products available at Willy Street Co-op and Metcalfe's locations. Contact via phone or email for more ordering options: (608) 767-3442 or diana@dreamfarm.biz Driftless Chocolates (New 2020 vendor): Online ordering available via: https://driftlesschocolates.com/ Emerald Meadows Family Farm: Check their Facebook page for details. Farmer Johns' Cheese: Participant in Dane County Farmers' Market's Local Food Pick Up Flyte Family Farm: Participant in Dane County Farmers' Market's Local Food Pick Up (Wednesday only) Forgotten Valley Cheese (New 2020 vendor): Online ordering available, check their website: http://www.forgottenvalleycheese.com/ Fungi Farmers (Formerly known as Herb N Oyster): Offering Saturday delivery to the Madison area. Details and limited online ordering: https://www.fungifarmers.com/ Participant in the Madison Farmers Unite pickup program. Green's Pleasant Springs Orchard: Varieties of head lettuce available for on-farm pickup north of Stoughton. Call 608-852-4165 to pre-order for Wednesday or Saturday afternoon pickup. Highland Spring Farm: Wednesday afternoon farm stand sales at their farm just south of Madison. Check their webstore to order: https://highlandspringfarm.grazecart.com/store Products also offered through Landmark Creamery's Special Local Delivery service: https://landmarkcreamery.com/collections/special-delivery Honey Bee Bakery: Delivery & pickup options available, check website for details: https://honeybeebakery.org/index.html Participant in the Madison Farmers Unite pickup program. Products also offered through Landmark Creamery's Special Local Delivery service: https://landmarkcreamery.com/collections/special-delivery
JenEhr Family Farm: Participant in Dane County Farmers' Market's Local Food Pick Up (Wednesdays only)
Kopke's Greenhouse: Greenhouse is open, with 8:00am-9:30am reserved for senior shoppers. Pre-orders via email, 608-835-7569 or SALES@kopkesgreenhouse.com, for pick up or delivery with small fee. Check their website for more details: https://kopkesgreenhouse.com/shopping-options/ Mad Maiden Shrub: Online ordering available: https://www.madmaidenshrub.com/shop Products also available at the following retail locations: Fromagination, Willy Street Coop, Jenifer Street Market, Hyvee (Whitney Way and Fitchburg), Orange Tree Imports, Metcalfe’s Market (West and Hilldale), and Regent Street Market Madison Sourdough: Online pre-order for Friday or Sunday pick on Williamson Street. Check their website for more: https://www.madisonsourdough.com/ McCluskey Brothers Shillelagh Glen Farms: Online ordering available on their website: http://www.mccluskeybros.com/store/index.php Beef available at Willy Street East, cheese available at Willy East and West, maple syrup available at Metcalfe's Hilldale. Natalie's Garden & Greenhouse: Online ordering now available for curbside greenhouse pick up, open daily 8am - 6pm and 9am - 5pm Sundays; delivery also available in the Madison area with a small fee. Website: www.nataliesgardenandgreenhouse.com Open Kettle Farms: No-contact pickup being offered for their maple syrup. Check their Facebook page for details. ParKelm Farm: Shop online via: https://parkelm.farm/buy-pasture-raised-products/ Saturday delivery to the Madison area also being offered: https://parkelm.farm/new-delivery-route-for-the-fox-cities/?fbclid=IwAR3tFELLKpptijfsc9gBjAtEblBHFzSZ_ROOgg39BpY9S6nyTPXZGt0vMQ8 Savory Accents: Online ordering available on their website: https://savoryaccents.com/ Phone/email orders accepted for on-farm pickup, 608-848-4938 or chilies@tds.net Products also offered through Landmark Creamery's Special Local Delivery service: https://landmarkcreamery.com/collections/special-delivery Participant in Dane County Farmers' Market's Local Food Pick Up Stella's Bakery: The bakery on Syene Road is open Tuesday through Saturday, 7am - 2pm, for curbside pre-ordered pickup. Preorder on their website: https://www.stellasbakery.store/ Check their Facebook page for updates. Participant in Dane County Farmers' Market's Local Food Pick Up Steppin' Out Foods (New 2020 vendor): Check their Facebook page for updates. Tortillas Los Angeles: Delivery available via partnership with Christine's Kitchen. Check out the website to order: https://www.christines-kitchens.com/ Underground Meats: Online store and limited local delivery: http://www.undergroundmeats.com/ Urban Gourmet: Check their website: https://www.madurbangourmet.com/ or Facebook page for future updates. West Star Organics: Online ordering available for pick up at their greenhouse south of Cottage Grove. Check their website for details and to place your order: http://www.weststarorganics.com/ Wetherby Cranberry Co.: Check out their web store here: https://freshcranberries.com/buy-cranberries/
Didn't see who you're looking for? Not all of our vendors have product yet available or are offering purchasing alternatives at this time. We'll keep updating this list as new venues for connecting customers to vendors arise.
