Our Programs

Seacoast Eat Local cultivates a thriving food economy by building bridges between regional food producers and consumers. Our vision is that the Seacoast Region will have a vibrant, diverse community of successful farms and food producers and ever-expanding access for consumers. In dedication to this mission, we operate the following programs:

Summer Farmers’ Markets 

We operate summer farmers’ markets in four locations in the Seacoast region of New Hampshire: Portsmouth, Exeter, Dover, and Durham. These markets are open to the public and we accept SNAP/EBT as a payment method at all four markets. The markets are made up of a variety of different vendors who sell fruit, vegetables, meat, seafood, eggs, honey, maple syrup, baked goods, value-added foods, hot prepared food, crafts, and body care products. All of our vendors make, grow, harvest, catch, or craft 100% of the products they sell at the market. We also have musicians, nonprofits, and other guests to help make the markets community-oriented and engaging.

To learn details about each market location, please visit our Summer Farmers’ Market page.


Winter Farmers’ Markets

wfmSeacoast Eat Local is the organizer of the winter farmers’ market program at Wentworth Greenhouses (Rollinsford) and Cooperative Middle School (Stratham). Our efforts extend the revenue season for local farmers, helping to ensure their economic health through the off-season. These events create a complete circle of local food availability for consumers, proving local food can be a year round commitment! We pride ourselves on providing a space for farmers and consumers to gather and enjoy one another’s company.

To learn more or to download a winter farmers’ market schedule, visit our Winter Farmers’ Market page.


Seacoast Harvest Local Food Guide

SHcover500px2015In our hallmark annual publication, Seacoast Harvest, our mission is to provide the information and resources necessary for consumers to access sources of local foods all year long in a variety of ways. Readers of this publication can find a listing of CSA programs, farm stands, farmers market programs and food businesses that source locally produced food items.

To learn more, visit our Seacoast Harvest page. 

 


Low Income Assistance Program

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as Food Stamps, provides funds toward the grocery budget of low income individuals and households. It also provides recipients incentives to use their EBT-card to purchase healthy, fresh, and locally produced food at farmers’ markets and farm stands.

At participating farmers’ markets, SNAP customers can get a $1 for $1 match on all EBT purchases with fruit and vegetable vouchers, and at participating farm stands they can get 50% off fruits and vegetables.

To learn more about how you can participate in or support this vital program, please visit our SNAP Benefit Program page.


Community and Youth Events and Education

We offer a series of programs to create more awareness and demand for local food.  The Seacoast Area Mobile Market (SAMM) is a primary mechanism for helping us accomplish this. SAMM provides pop-up farmers’ market style events to a variety of different sites including libraries, banks, and other community locations.  We also partner with local farms and food producers to provide educational workshops to create more awareness of local food and the story behind getting it to consumers. These hands-on workshops provide an opportunity to learn how local foods are made by participating in the process. Our third major education program is the crEATe program, which provides fresh local food ingredients, recipes, and encouragement for families to cook together while supporting local farmers and food producers in the process. We work with schools and other youth sites to develop a specific program to meet the needs of that group. This may include any of the following: food and recipe bags to take home, group lessons in school, additional resources for the family, vouchers to shop at a farmers’ market, and more.

Learn more about our Education Programs here.



donatebuttonTo learn about how to support our programs through volunteering
or a monetary donation, please visit our page Get Involved.