Otsego 2000 Awarded $49,339 Grant for Coop Farmers’ Market
COOPERSTOWN—The Cooperstown Farmers’ Market, a program of Otsego 2000, was awarded $49,339.00 in the latest round of the New York State Farmers’ Market Resiliency Grant Program, officials announced on Monday, August 25.
“This grant will enable us to invest in the continued success of the Cooperstown Farmers’ Market,” said Ellen Pope, executive director of Otsego 2000, which founded the farmers’ market in 1991. “We will be able to raise both overall visitation and the use of SNAP and other food access initiatives at the market.”
“It’s a great opportunity to spruce up the 34-year-old market and make it even more inviting for our wonderful customers for years to come,” said Alex Webster, Otsego 2000’s farmers’ market manager.
Webster said facility and design upgrades include farm-themed murals.
“We are an important third space in the community, where people can relax and connect,” said Pope. “All of our vendors are within 50 miles of Cooperstown, and grow, raise, create, and make all the food and goods they offer. The market plays a key role in the local economy while providing people with healthy local food.”
Pope said that the grant will be implemented by the Otsego 2000 team which, in addition to her and Webster, includes Jennifer Armstrong, finance and operations manager, and Peg Odell, program and communications manager.
The Cooperstown Farmers’ Market links local farmers, makers, and artisans with people looking for fresh local food and locally made goods. The market’s indoor space enables it to operate year-round, with 51 Saturday Markets, 13 Summer Tuesday Markets, and a Holiday Evening Market in December.
The Cooperstown Farmers’ Market is open year-round on Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. and also on summer Tuesdays through September 30, from noon to 4 p.m. The market welcomes customers shopping with SNAP, and through two matching programs—from the Cooperstown Lions Club and Double Up Food Bucks—a $20.00 SNAP spend results in $60.00 worth of local food. The market also partners with the Cooperstown Food Pantry to provide its clients with fresh fruit and vegetables from local farmers.
The Cooperstown Farmers’ Market has a roster of 45 farmers, artisans, makers, bakers, chefs, and growers, including Alex’s World Picnic, Andy’s Edible Gardens, Arabeth Farm, Ariginal Art, ARK Floral, Art Farm Flowers, Baskets by SusanDee, Bison Island Ranch, Black Willow Pond Farm, Byebrook Farm, Chatty Wren Coffee Roasters, Chloe’s Bakeshop, Cooperstown Maple Works, Crystal’s Customs, Empire Natural Foods, Gaia’s Breath Farm, Girasole Farm, Healing Crystals, Heller’s Farm, Horned Dorset Inn, Italian Cookie Home, L’ouvriere Candle Studio, Laura’s Chocolates, Leatherstocking Exotics, Lost Valley Farmhouse, Middlefield Orchard, Mill Hollow Maple, Mimikis Fibers, MKO Creations, Mountain View Dairy, Nectar Hills Farm, Pail Shop Vineyards, Painted Goat Farm, RevSpirits, Rock Hill Farm, Sasha Glinski Studio, SkinBiome, Straight from the Hive, Tech Tamer Woodworks, Terracotta Republic, Traveling Herb Farmer, Weinert’s Elk Creek Farm, Wild Pines Pumpkin Patch and Gardens, Wildwoods Woodturning, and Windfall Designs.
For more information, see www.cooperstownfarmersmarket.org.
The Cooperstown Farmers’ Market is one of 25 markets across New York State to receive funding.
New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets Commissioner Richard Ball said, “This program ensures our markets reach more consumers in new, innovative ways, build greater bonds between farmers and their customers, and get more local New York foods onto tables across the state, especially in our underserved communities through critical services like SNAP. I congratulate all the awardees of this program and look forward to seeing all the great work they will do with this funding in the years to come.”
