With rising temperatures and the first official day of summer just around the corner, locals have been flocking to bustling farmers’ markets on Saturday mornings.
The Orillia Farmers’ Market downtown moved outside May 21. Market manager Alex Klett says it has been running smoothly.
“We have about 40 vendors joining us this summer,” she said. “It’s going a lot better now that people are definitely more comfortable coming out again.”
Klett says the community has learned the importance of shopping locally during the COVID-19 pandemic, which has helped the market see an uptake in customers.
“When we first opened in 2020, we were rather small,” she said. “We’ve really grown again since and the support from the community has been great.”
Paul Gillett, owner of Orillia Honey, has been a vendor at the market for 10 years and says it has been vibrant this season. He believes more than 300 people attend each weekend.
“I think people like meeting the people who are selling their vegetables,” he said. “People like to ask questions and learn the health benefits.”
Every weekend, Gillett is able to pick out folks who are cottagers and tourists. He says it makes him proud when people buy Orillia Honey and take it to other communities.
The downtown market could benefit from an improved parking situation, he added.
“I tried to encourage the market manager to move parking a little closer and move booths down along the side of the library,” he said. “People don’t want to carry their vegetables and everything across the street where there is parking.”
The Orillia Fairgrounds Farmers’ Market, he noted, has easily accessible parking, but he would still rather be positioned in downtown.
“I don’t think I’d leave the Orillia one,” he said. “It’s been faithful and pretty consistent.”
The owner of Carlo Foods, Carlo Barraca, has been a vendor at the downtown market for close to 38 years. He says the market’s hours make it tough when it comes to selling fresh produce this year.
“I like the people here, I like the market, and the manager here is a nice lady,” he said. “I just wish we could stay open later. A lot of people are coming to me and asking why we close when other farmers’ markets stay open late.”
Barraca says the stormy weather and rising costs associated with travel have put a damper on the start of the season. With the strawberry season kicking off soon, he’s confident the situation will improve.
The Orillia Farmers’ Market will be running outdoors until Oct. 8 before moving back inside the Orillia Public Library.
At ODAS Park, the Orillia Fairgrounds Farmers’ Market welcomes up to 50 vendors, says market manager Sophia Siachos, who noted the market has been a busy spot since moving outside May 7.
“We could not have asked for a better start to the outdoor season,” she said. “I’ve been going around chatting with our vendors and, so far, everyone is having a great start.”
Jillian Jiggs Baking owner Jillian Lassaline is thrilled with the success she has had at the market during her three years as a vendor. She says she sells out of products on most weekends.
“I love this market so much,” she said. “All the different farmers and bakers are so friendly.”
While Lassaline is happy with the market, she says it could use more farmers and vegetable growers.
“That’s just the best way to increase the number of people coming to the market,” she said.
CampHouse Farm owner Greg Kamphuis is also all for more farmers joining the market, even though it would mean more competition.
“I really think we could grow in that area,” he said. “As the market grows, we grow. More competition would be good for me because it would bring more people to the market, which would be awesome.”
He says the market is having its best start to the summer season in the three years he’s been there.
“Our (vendor offerings have) grown and diversified,” he said. “You can do your grocery shopping at the market now, which is a big plus for a lot of people.”
Kamphuis expects more than 1,000 market goers will attend the weekly event by the end of the month.
“Once tomatoes, sweet corn, and a bunch of other farmers start coming, it gets super busy,” he said.
The Orillia Fairgrounds Farmers’ Market moves back inside after Nov. 5.
