August is NH Eat Local Month!
August 1-7 is NH Farmers’ Market Week
For the second year in a row, the month of August is NH Eat Local Month! Eat Local Month celebrates New Hampshire farms and farmers and the bounty they produce. Activities are being planned throughout the month all around the state. A fun, new component for this year is “Passport to Local Farms” weekend. This will be an “open house” weekend at farms throughout the state. Visitors will be able to obtain a “passport” to take to participating farms to get stamped. Prizes will be awarded in a drawing for those that collect a certain number of stamps.
New Hampshire consumers are showing unprecedented interest in local food, and this month long celebration offers a great opportunity to feature New Hampshire grown foods. Another planned event is a New Hampshire Growers’ dinner to benefit the NH Food Bank. A NH Growers’ Dinner is an event where everything on the menu is from New Hampshire, from the appetizer to dessert. The dinner will be held at the NH Food Bank’s new warehouse facilities and will feature the culinary talents of a number of New Hampshire’s talented chefs. The evening will be a unique “tasting” format with chefs stationed around the facility. Visit www.nheatlocal.org for complete event and activity information (listings will be added regularly).
As part of the NH Eat Local Month festivities, the week of August 1-7 is New Hampshire Farmers’ Market Week. This coincides with the 11th annual National Farmers’ Market Week, saluting farmers’ markets all across America.
Direct marketing of farm products through farmers markets is an important sales outlet for agricultural producers nationwide. New Hampshire has also seen tremendous growth in farmers markets, with nearly 80 markets operating throughout New Hampshire this year. The NH Dept. of Agriculture, Markets & Food and the NH Farmers’ Market Association support the development and operation of farmers’ markets and other direct marketing activities for agricultural producers. Farmers’ markets offer products such as farm-fresh fruits, vegetables, herbs, meat and dairy products, baked goods, flowers and much more. Learn more about New Hampshire farmers’ markets at the NH Farmers’ Market Association website: http://www.nhfma.org/. Find a list of New Hampshire farmers’ markets at: http://agriculture.nh.gov/publications/documents/farmersmarket.pdf.
