By Nathan Ham
The 44th year of the Watauga County Farmers’ Market is all set for High Country visitors and residents to make their way to Horn in the West for the first open day of the season.
The farmers’ market has been a staple of the community since it first started in 1974 and has continued to thrive in Boone over the years.
Michelle Slaton, the market manager this year, is excited about what the market will have to offer its customers this year.
“One of the most important things for us is that the market has a good balance of a lot of different products. We have a good amount of produce, crafts and value-added goods,” she said. “We have a lot of new vendors coming in that have some really great value-added products such as baked goods, preserves, jams and jellies.”
There will also be cooking demonstrations, things for kids to do, live music and typically there will be area non-profit organizations on hand to share the things that they do to benefit the community.
The farmers’ market will also add a second food truck this year, Tina’s Biscuits, that will be serving breakfast food. Tina Houston, who owns and operates Reid’s Café near Banner Elk, will prepare the food.
“Everybody seems to be coming in the morning, so breakfast and biscuits might be a good thing to have,” Slaton said.
Slaton estimates that there are 60 to 65 vendors that have signed up to be at the farmers’ market.
Farmers’ markets, especially in this area, have really grown in popularity almost each and every year. Slaton believes that comes in large part from people being more aware of what they are eating.
“I think it’s becoming increasingly important as we all have become more aware of where our food comes from, the relationship between our local farmers and our local economy, and how important it is to support local people,” she said. “If you go to any of the farmers’ markets, you can see people that really have a passion and a love for producing quality food and giving it to their community.”
The Watauga County Farmer’s Market is open each Saturday, May through October, from 8 a.m. until noon at Horn in the West. There will also be a special Saturday market in November before the holiday season.
For more information on the farmers’ market and for a list of vendors, visit their website, www.wataugacountyfarmersmarket.org.
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