A New Chapter For The Farmers Marketplace

I want you all to know how much I appreciate all of the ways you have supported this business and the passion-driven work of The Farmers Marketplace. It is with a little sadness and a lot of excitement that I am announcing the closure of our online farmers market

As a small-scale food hub, privately funded by me personally, for just over five years, I have had to take a close look at what areas of this business are viable and which ones are not. Although our initial business model of an online farmers market quickly expanded in March 2020 as we provided an essential service for food access through the pandemic, things have shifted and our community has so much amazing access to locally produced food through farmers markets, onsite farm stands, CSAs, food co-ops and small grocery stores sourcing local that there is no longer a demand for an online farmers market.

As the tides shift, I continue to trust that there is nothing other than something amazing to come as we continue to operate as a locally sourced, community grocery store and food hub, supporting our local food producers, supplying clean, healthy food to our community and developing capacity and resiliency in our local food system.

WHAT'S NEXT

• We will continue to operate The Farmers Marketplace Community Grocery Store & Gathering Space located at 195 Elm Ave in downtown Auburn. We hope to see you all in the store!

• Focus on expanding our Wholesale Markets including Farm To School and Farms Together

• Continue supplying locally sourced, organically grown produce and other organic grocery items to the Gold Country Food Hub 501(c)(3) for the Healthy Groceries Program funded by Sutter Auburn Faith Hospital, private donations and other fundraisers

• Expand our Farm To Schools wholesale market to include local school districts, charter and private schools in Placer, Nevada, Yuba and El Dorado counties

• We have been accepted as an aggregating vendor in the Farms Together program, bringing local fresh produce and farmed goods to Feeding The Foothills (formerly Placer Food Bank) and other community benefit organizations

• Obtain food hub organic certification as required under the USDA Strengthening Organic Enforcement (SOE)

• Continue nurturing the relationships we have developed with all of our existing local producers to supply the retail grocery store and wholesale markets

• Establish partnerships with more local producers as we expand our wholesale markets

• Provide equal access to clean, healthy food to our community!

Onward and upward

Tammi Riedl

Founder, The Farmers Marketplace