What’s new at the market is Cali Keck, grocery buyer at Nash’s Organic Produce and the market girl for the Sequim Farmers Market.
Keck grew up on a small farm on Whidbey Island and became excited again for farming when living in Port Townsend as an Americorps garden coordinator, bringing local food to food banks, the senior center and public schools.
“Cali has been great to add to the farm because she can pick up skills fast, she helps make systems more efficient and she is a Jane of all trades. She can hem all the table cloths, pick the basil and grow with the farm,” Nash’s farm manager Kia Armstrong said.
What’s coming that’s new?
Keck said Nash’s always has lots of grains and flours and it expanded dry goods to legumes and kidney beans, corn and cornmeal and buckwheat flour, among other flours.
“Strawberries will be big for about a month,” she said. “We will have good deals on flats of strawberries for the coming weeks and our first harvest of basil will be at the market.”
She said you can buy your basil in bulk and garlic and chard are coming. Spinach will be available through the summer, early cucumbers are now available and will be throughout the summer. Fresh fava beans will be coming in late June.
“Not everything in the pantry has to be organic or local, but keep a few items in there,” she said. “This supports keeping farm land open. There are free classes and workshops open all the time at Nash’s. We also have a recipe blog on the website or you can submit one. You can search for recipes by the specific vegetables, that is really helpful!”
What products are most popular at the Sequim Market?
“For some reason, green cabbage is very popular in Sequim,” she said.
“People also love the fruit, corn; they like the staple stuff that is easy to use. The WIC and senior coupon users are a strong part of our customer base. People come get the staples and I encourage them to try something new. Try some buckwheat flour, try some dried fava beans. If you are interested in a 100-mile diet, you can experiment with products grown in Sequim and then make them your staple source.”
How fresh is the produce that comes to the market? “The produce coming to the market mostly has been harvested Friday afternoon, occasionally it may have been picked on Thursday,” Keck said.
With strawberry season coming in she encourages us all to put some in the freezer to enjoy throughout the year.
She recounted one cute strawberry story from the market.
When passing out sample strawberries a boy told her he didn’t like strawberries.
“I will give you anything on the tables if you can eat this and honestly tell me you don’t like it,” she told him. He ate it and said “Hey, this doesn’t taste like the strawberries from the supermarket, this is delicious.”
Family fun on tap
Come enjoy our Free Family Fun Series every Saturday from 10 a.m.-noon June-August. Each week is a different community organization coming to offer hands-on activities for youngsters.
On June 14 the Sequim Library will leading the activity and on June 21 the Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe will be leading the activity.
On June 14, Cort Armstrong and Company will take the stage, while on June 21, Still Kickin’ will rock the stage once again.
Live music happens each Saturday from 11 a.m.-2 p.m.
The Community booth will be hosted by the Sequim Dog Park on June 14 and the Gem and Mineral Show on June 21.
Sequim Farmers Market
June 14 and 21
Open Saturdays 9 a.m.-3 p.m. through October
Corner of Sequim Avenue and Washington Street
Saturday 9 a.m.-3 p.m.
