New West Farmers Market

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In season now (and soon!)

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Eating seasonally and locally is a way to live more lightly on the earth – with a side benefit of enjoying more tasty produce! If you’ve ever compared a woody, out-of-season California strawberry with one fresh-picked from the garden, you’ve experienced this first-hand. But if you’ve always just bought what’s available at the grocery store (and you don’t garden yourself), you may not know just what is in season. Act Now B.C. has compiled a list of benefits of eating seasonally, along with a handy chart that shows when your favourite produce is available.

Photo: Sharon Mollerus
Photo: Sharon Mollerus

The two benefits identified by Act Now B.C. are affordability (out-of-season produce usually costs more) and sustainability (environmental, community and economic) but, as I alluded to at the beginning, the most immediate and satisfying is the sheer pleasure of eating a strawberry that tastes like a strawberry should.

So, what’s in season now?

  • Strawberries
  • Beans
  • Broccoli
  • Carrots
  • Cauliflower
  • Celery
  • Corn
  • Lettuce
  • Green onions
  • Radishes
  • Rhubarb
  • Spinach
  • Turnips
  • Zucchini

We can look forward to all of the above, plus the following treats at the Royal City Farmers Market in July & August:

  • Blackberries
  • Blueberries
  • Cherries
  • Currants
  • Raspberries
  • Parsnips
  • Field peppers

Remember, the market is held every Thursday from 3-7pm, starting June 25 and continuing until October 8, in Tipperary Park near City Hall.

Market Kicking Off With a Bang!

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The second incarnation of the Royal City Farmers’ Market will kick off June 25th with a special “Welcome to Summer Vacation” market, featuring kids’ activities including toys and crafts, a magician, face painting, and a special appearance by Mayor Wayne Wright who will start the market season off with a bang!

Photo: Dennis Sylvester Hurd
The 2008 market. Photo: Dennis Sylvester Hurd

We’ve asked the Seymour Artillery Society to come on board and do it up right! The Artillery Society will be providing us with authentic uniform-wearing military men from the original militia here in New Westminster, and a small 25 pound cannon, which the mayor will fire.

The market had its first year last year after a 25 year hiatus in New Westminster and it was so successful that registered vendors for this year have almost doubled. Farmers’ markets are an essential part of your local economy and by shopping at the market, you are supporting the “little guys” and you know you are getting fresh goods. You’ll also reduce your carbon footprint by buying goods produced / grown / made here in BC (most are from the Lower Mainland). We have over 35 vendors offering locally grown fresh produce, home-baked goods and handmade crafts.

Aside from the shopping, the Royal City Farmers’ Market encourages you to bring a blanket and hang out in the park. The market isn’t just about shopping, it’s also a great place to meet up and socialize with your friends and family. What better way to spend a summer night?

The market runs June 25 to October 8 and is on Thursdays from 3-7pm in Tipperary Park, which has got to be one of the nicest urban parks around.

Seymour Artillery Society

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The Seymour Battery of Garrison Artillery at "The Battery" southeast of Albert Crescent in New Westminster. This photo was taken between 1878, when the men acquired spiked helmets, and 1886 when the helmets were replaced by busbies.
The Seymour Battery of Garrison Artillery at "The Battery" southeast of Albert Crescent in New Westminster. This photo was taken between 1878, when the men acquired spiked helmets, and 1886 when the helmets were replaced by busbies.

The Seymour Artillery Society will be helping us get our market started right, by escorting Mayor Wayne Wright through the market in his official Chain of Office. At the north end of the market, a waiting cannon will be blown off to signal the start of another amazing season.

You don’t want to miss this!

Time Magazine – Buying Local: How It Boosts the Economy

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It doesn’t just feel good to buy local – new research shows that there are demonstrable economic boosts for communities as a result. Time Magazine explains:

The New Economics Foundation, an independent economic think tank based in London, compared what happens when people buy produce at a supermarket vs. a local farmer’s market or community supported agriculture (CSA) program and found that twice the money stayed in the community when folks bought locally. “That means those purchases are twice as efficient in terms of keeping the local economy alive.”

– Time Magazine | Buying Local: How It Boosts the Economy

Other benefits of buying local mentioned in the Time article:

  • Increased local employment
  • Better products, as small shops are more capable to innovate in market niches
  • More tight-knit community – buyers develop personal relationships with sellers
  • Less distance to transport goods = less cost to environment
  • Better odds that you know what you’re getting (vs. products made overseas that may not have the same level of quality control/scrutiny)
  • Local/regional resilience (diversity of small businesses = more resilient economy than when majority of local jobs are in the same company or industry)
  • Money circulates more quickly, benefiting more people (vs. big companies, which keep more profits locked away)

RCFM In The Newsleader: Royal City Farmers Market opens June 25—with a bang

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Published in The New Westminster Newsleader, June 17, 2009:

The Newsleader: Royal City Farmers Market opens June 25—with a bang

By Mike McQuillan

The Royal City Market is set to open June 25 with a bang.

The opening of the market will be marked in a ceremony involving Mayor Wayne Wright and the Seymour Artillery Association.

There will also be a “welcome to summer vacation” theme for the opening, appropriate because it’s the last day of school for most kids. To keep the newly out-for-summer kids entertained at the market, there are crafts and a learning booth organized by the Fraser River Discovery Centre, a wandering magician, face painter and violinist, New Westminster’s St. John Ambulance Brigade with free goodies and New Westminster Family Place will have toys and crafts for kids zero to six.

The Royal City Farmers Market runs Thursdays until Oct. 8 from 3 to 7 p.m. rain or shine, and is located in Tipperary Park, next to city hall.


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