Pioneer Farmers Market opens June 5

Published 6:41 pm Friday, May 21, 2010

The 2010 Pioneer Farmers Market in Troy will officially open on Saturday, June 5.

The market stands will open at 7 a.m. and close when all of the produce is sold or the parking lot is empty, said Pam Sanders, market director.

“The Pioneer Farmers Market will be in the same location as in recent years,” Sanders said. “We have found that the parking lot behind First United Methodist Church is a convenient location. The Pioneer Farmers Market will also be open at 5 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays and at 7 a.m. on Saturdays throughout the summer.”

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Sanders said there will be no set closing time.

“We’ll stay open as long as we have stuff to sale,” she said.

The producers will have green beans, squash, potatoes, blackberries and sweet corn on opening day. However, peas and tomatoes will be a little later this season because of the early heavy rains.

Producers at the Pioneer Farmers Market will accept Farmers Market vouchers issued by the Alabama Farmers Market Authority.

The vouchers will be available to seniors 60 years and older who meet the income eligibility requirements, said Hassie Green, director of the Lillian D. Green Nutrition Center in Troy.

“The vouchers will be a $30 value this year, which is up two dollars from last year,” she said.

Signup day for the vouchers in Troy will be from 9 a.m. until noon on June 7, 8, 9 and 10. In Goshen, seniors may sign up from 9 until 11 a.m. on June 8 and, in Brundidge, from 9 until 11 a.m. and from 1 until 3 p.m. on June 9.

Issuance is on a first come – first serve basis until a county’s allotted books are issued.

“We encourage all eligible seniors to signup for the vouchers and then use them to buy fresh, locally grown produce. Not only will they be getting farm fresh produce, they will also be supporting our local farmers,” Green said.

The Grand Opening for the Pioneer Farmers Market will be on Saturday, June 12 and will be a family event.

“We’ll have activities for the children, door prizes and an extended market that day,” Sanders said. “It will be fun day at the Pioneer Farmers Market.