Indoor farmers market returns on Super Bowl Sunday

MAPLEWOOD, NJ — Feb. 6 may be Super Bowl Sunday, but the real crowd-pleaser that day will be the Slow Food Northern Jersey and Maplewood Loves Wellness-sponsored winter farmers market, from noon to 4 p.m., at the Woodland on Woodland Road in Maplewood.

With its wide variety of local products and contributions to community causes, the indoor winter farmers market returns to the area for a third time; it was first held last winter and then again on Dec. 13, 2015, with great success.

This market is an opportunity to meet local farmers and food artisans, and to stock up on local, sustainably produced foods while supporting the growth of school and community vegetable gardens in low-income areas of Northern New Jersey.

Visitors can purchase seasonal vegetables, grass-fed beef, pastured pork, goat, lamb and poultry, eggs, cheese, breads, mushrooms, chocolate, coffee, pickles, jams, olive oils and other prepared foods.

A suggested donation at the door supports Slow Food Northern NJ’s school and community garden fund, as well as the activities of Maplewood Loves Wellness.

The Northern New Jersey chapter of Slow Food is part of Slow Food USA, the global Slow Food network of more than 100,000 members in more than 150 countries. The goal of the Slow Food network is to provide local and seasonal food, respect the biodiversity of the environments where the food is grown, and support fair pricing for those who labor to provide the food.

“We decided to bring the winter farmers market back to Maplewood for a third time because the community was so supportive of the first one held in February 2015, as well as the one held more recently on Dec. 13, 2015,” Julia Lawlor, the Slow Food Northern New Jersey chapter leader, said in a recent phone interview with the News-Record. “More than 600 people attended our first one held in Maplewood in February 2015, and many people who attended asked that we do more events like this in the winter.”

Lawlor also noted that there is a growing trend among food vendors and farming operations of women taking the reins as both owners and operators. This is reflected in the upcoming winter market: of the 25 vendors, 12 are either single women or equal partners in a couple running an operation.

One such owner-operator is Margaret Asselin of Maplewood, who runs Lickt Gelato.

“I started the company back in 2011, when I was at a point in life where I had a small child and I needed more flexibility in my schedule, but also a way to leverage my talents and strengths from my previous career in the corporate world,” Asselin said in a recent phone interview with the News-Record. “I was also able to bring in two other Maplewood mothers who needed similarly flexible schedules, but wanted to hone the skills they already had developed from previous experiences.”

What started as a small-scale operation that was mostly sold at local farmers markets is now a thriving business that includes a store in Maplewood that is open on Thursdays and Saturdays in the winter, and has expanded hours in the warmer months, and is also sold at local specialty gourmet shops, such as Mia Famiglia in Millburn and the Wine Library in Short Hills.

“We started out five years ago at Maplewoodstock, which was a great opportunity for us,” Asselin said. “We were able to receive instantaneous feedback from people about what they liked or didn’t like about our flavors, and we also got ideas about new flavors to try in the future.”

Another woman who enjoys the opportunity to bring fresh food to others is Jess Niederer, who owns and operates Chickadee Creek Farm, which sells organic vegetables and herbs.

Niederer, whose family has been farming for four generations, participated in last winter’s indoor farmers market and was
recently named the 2016 Outstanding Farmer of the Year by the New Jersey Department of Agriculture.

“We really liked the customers who came out last year, and they seemed really enthusiastic and people seemed really excited about our carrots,” Niederer said.

Niederer said that farming and sustainable agriculture is a great career, and while she’s not sure why it took so long for women to enter the industry, she is glad for it.

“I think that it’s partially because it has historically been male-dominated, and it takes a while to break those barriers down. Farming is mostly learned by going to other farms; it doesn’t require a degree, although having one can be helpful,” she said. “It helps to see and have other women doing it and owning the farms. We’re not just the employees, we’re running the show. I would want other women to take note that it’s very possible.”

In addition to providing the community with fresh, locally-grown food, the winter farmers market is also an opportunity to secure funds for Slow Food Northern New Jersey’s current projects.

Their current projects include partnerships with four public schools, Trinity Child Care in Jersey City, and the SWAG project, which is an urban farm, food justice and community building project in the South Ward of Newark.

“We raise money for a school and community garden fund that targets low-income areas of northern New Jersey,” Lawlor said. “The SWAG project sells fresh produce in Newark and at their farm site, and they partner with local schools in the South Ward of Newark to teach children about healthy eating and planting seeds and harvesting vegetables.

“We are donating money for their new project because they are starting a healthy bucks program, and they will have coupons to give out to anyone who comes to their markets in the summer,” Lawlor continued. “The customers will get coupons for every $5 of vegetables they buy and the coupons will also be handed out to patients at St. Michael’s and people at a local food pantry.”

Spreading education and awareness about healthy eating locally is exactly why Maplewood Loves Wellness sponsors events like the farmers market, said organization head Kathleen Leventhal.

Leventhal, a former deputy mayor of Maplewood who retired at the end of 2015, started Maplewood Loves Wellness while serving on the Township Committee as a way to further conversation within the community about how to live a healthy lifestyle.

“It’s good that we have the local farmers markets in June through November, but what about eating fresh foods in the winter months?” she asked during a recent phone interview with the News-Record. “We love this market because they’re bringing in fresh food in the winter months, and by doing it on Super Bowl Sunday, people can serve all this great food at their parties.”