Grants Farmers’ Market holds its opening market

GRANTS, N.M. - On Saturday, May 22, 2021, Grants Farmers’ Market held its opening market at the Fire and Ice Park, offering locally grown, fresh produce for the community. According to Grants Farmers’ Market Director Siobhan Archibald, the market is going on about nine years of operation. It started out as the Main Street Market and then evolved into the Grants Farmers’ Market.

The market falls under the oversight of the City of Grants Recreation Department, but the one who runs the market and puts it all together is Director Archibald. Archibald has been involved with the market for a while and knows all of the ins-and-outs of how a local market is supposed to run. The setup for the market is pretty simple, and once the setup is all mapped out, Archibald begins the advertising process to let the community know that the market is up and running. Advertising mainly occurs over social media and the information is spread by “word of mouth” from that point on, explained Archibald.

The market typically has quite a few of the same vendors returning every year, but the number of vendors is also constantly growing, said Archibald. The event has been “the biggest its ever been” in more recent years, the market director also added. Most of the vendors for the market are local, but occasionally the market receives vendors from places like Thoreau, Gallup, and other out-of-town locations. Last year, the largest number of vendors that the market had for both that year and for the entirety of the markets’ existence was over 20 vendors. During the opening market on Saturday, May 22, the market had seven vendors. The market also has a community table that is set aside for produce that community members can come to the market to drop off for Archibald to sell for them.

A license is not required to become a vendor at the market. Anyone can simply submit an application, pay the $5 fee, bring their own tables and chairs, and the market will help to advertise for people to stop on by to check them out.

Just some of the products that the market offers are plants, spring produce, eggs, and even homemade crafts. The Grant Farmers’ Market will run from its opening day of May 22 to October 9, every Saturday at the Fire and Ice Park from 8:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. A unique thing about Grants Farmers’ Market is that it also accepts SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) cards, food stamps, and Double Up Food Bucks. “SNAP provides nutrition benefits to supplement the food budget of needy families so they can purchase healthy food and move towards self-sufficiency,” explained www.fns.usda.gov. Basically, whenever a customer uses their SNAP card at the market, their purchase will be doubled with Double Up Food Bucks. Therefore, if a customer uses their SNAP card to purchase $10 worth of produce, they will be given another $10 to buy more and essentially free fresh and healthy food. This is a program facilitated by the New Mexico Farmers’ Marketing Association.

“It’s a great program. We had a lot more increased usage last year, so trying to get the word out about that. A lot of people don’t realize you can use it at the market for a better source of natural food,” said Director Archibald.

When asked how a farmers’ market is beneficial to a community, Archibald also said, “I guess connecting the community to more locally sourced, fresh goods that are, you know, better for them. It’s a good family event to go to. It’s a good outlet for people who want to sell their homemade stuff, their homemade crafts…. It kind of keeps the money in the community and supports the community in that way.”

Archibald said that moving towards the future, she hopes that more and more people continue to hear about the market, stop by, support the market, and even talk to some of the vendors and farmers, who Archibald said would be very happy to speak with any visitors.