This Week at the Smart Markets Lorton Farmers' Market

This Week at Our Reston Market
Wednesday 3–7 p.m.
12001 Sunrise Valley Dr.
Map

We are nearly at full strength this week with almost all of our vendors in place. All we need now is some sunshine and warmer weather and the farmers will actually have some vegetables for you, and strawberries, too. After last spring, when it was so warm so early, this late spring seems even later, and I am dying for strawberries — how about you? There is a reason that “there is a season” even if only to teach us the concept of delayed gratification. I’m just not very good at it.

We may actually see those strawberries this week, but in the meantime we have lots of lovely — and in some cases large — bedding plants at the farm stalls so you can start a small garden of your own and be picking the veggies of your labor fairly soon. The plentiful herb plants at Fossil Rock are just waiting to be popped into a window box or herbal rock garden just outside the kitchen door. If you have committed to cooking more at home with the produce you buy at the market, then you should have your own herbs to play around with. Nothing lifts a dish more than fresh herbs sprinkled on at the last minute.

I also recommend Valley View Bakery. Even if you do not enjoy breakfast pastries on a regular basis, feel free to try one croissant, and you will realize how good these guys are at their craft. Their baguettes are as close to the French ideal as you will get in this area, and their cinnamon-raisin bread makes fabulous French toast. They will also soon be bringing fruit-based desserts using local fruit from our vendors, so watch for those to appear. The owners and bakers are from Ghana and were trained in France; they came to this country at the urging of a former American ambassador to Ghana who felt their talents were not fully appreciated there. We are truly lucky to have them here to bake for us.

More on the other vendors in future updates — we want you to know and love them all. And of course, to buy from them as often as possible.

See you at the market!

From the Market Master

As the new markets begin opening each year, I get questions about what “local” means in a farmers’ market that carries roasted coffee beans, Kettle Korn and other foods not necessarily sourced locally.

We do guarantee that our produce is grown locally, which in this area can include on farms located in Maryland, West Virginia and Pennsylvania in addition to Virginia. In fact, many of our farmers from outside of Virginia are actually closer to our markets than our Virginia farmers, especially those from the Northern Neck of Virginia who drive two hours each way to get to our markets.

But the U.S. and Virginia Departments of Agriculture recognize another product designation. “Value-added” applies to vendors, many of whom are cooks or bakers, who start with one or more raw ingredients and produce a product by adding skill, talent, or specialized expertise in order to render something palatable or edible. This is the category under which we accept Kettle Korn poppers and coffee roasters as well as bakers and short-order cooks. Many of these vendors are personally committed to using local ingredients when they can, and they buy from their fellow vendors as often as possible. Smart Markets encourages this but does not require it.

A significant element of our mission is to support the small food entrepreneur, which we believe is a good way to ensure that locally prepared foods will continue to be available in our communities. These foods are almost always healthier than fast foods. We therefore want to see these small businesses succeed, and if that means their buying of some ingredients wholesale for a while, then we accept that as part of their cost of doing business. We’d have no salsa in winter otherwise.

Most vendors are happy to tell you where their ingredients come from, and many actually make a big deal of it in their signage and printed materials. And if you want to support those vendors who are more committed to local sourcing, that is your choice. That too is what markets are about — giving you choices based on what is most important to you, your family, and its budget. While our mantra has always been that “food is cheaper than medicine,” we all know that our food budgets are a daily concern with immediate consequences.

Remember to ask what you want to know at the farmers’ market. Someone will have the answer!