After two years without a farmer’s market, the fruits and veggies are coming back to Gloucester. Food equity nonprofit Backyard Growers has announced its new market, the Backyard Growcery, will operate every Wednesday from 2:30 to 6:30 p.m. at Burnham’s Field, beginning on June 19.
“A thriving farmer’s market is essential to building a healthy and resilient local food system that supports both residents and food producers,” says Backyard Growers executive director Alison DiFiore. “At its best, a farmer’s market is a highly visible tie to where our food comes from as well as a tangible resource for community members and food producers. It’s also a space for connection around shared experience and community-building.”
Though a vendor list is not yet available, Backyard Growcery will focus on selling locally grown and produced food from farms buyers may already know as well as newer, emerging growers. To further the Backyard Growers mission of expanding access to fresh food, the market will take SNAP benefits (formerly known as food stamps) and senior coupons, and will be rolling out additional incentives.
The market will be located in centrally located Burnham’s Field, a spot with a parking lot and street parking that is also easily walkable from downtown Gloucester. The park is already home to more than 50 community garden beds run by Backyard Growers.
The city’s previous market, the Cape Ann Farmers Market, was founded in 2006, and ran every season through 2021. During COVID shutdowns it adopted a system of online ordering and weekly, drive-through pickups, and 2021, it moved from its former location at Stage Fort Park to a smaller downtown location. In 2022, a variety of financial and logistical stresses required the market to cease operations.
During its run, the Cape Ann Farmers Market helped launched successful businesses and organizations: Backyard Growers was itself originally a program under the farmers market umbrella when it began in 2010.
“It feels full-circle to offer a farmer’s market as a way to expand and strengthen the circle of growing and
providing food within our community,” DiFiore says.
For more information and updates on the market, visit backyardgrowers.org.