The changing face of farmers markets
As people’s love for farmers markets grow in popularity, some locals are working to offer more convenient options for fresh, local produce and farm-grown food.
Birmingham-based couple Will and Hayley DeShazo recently launched Alabama’s first online farmers market, Till, in the beginning of April when they realized some people weren’t able to get the fresh food they wanted because going to the farmers market is an obstacle for them. Till offers Homewood and other Birmingham residents the opportunity to have food from local farmers delivered to their doorstep.
“We both think the farmers market is great, but with how busy people are, you take any kind of market, a young professional who works five days a week from 9 to 5 and Saturday is their only day off, or a mom with three kids with two dogs who can’t walk through the farmers market holding their bags of food, elderly who don’t have transportation or can’t go to the farmers market,” Hayley DeShazo said. “There’s so many people out there who honestly can’t do it and some that just want convenience.”
Will and Hayley DeShazo said Till connects locals to nearby farmers in a more convenient way through fee-based delivery. It also offers members the chance to come by and get their personalized selection of farm-fresh products, ready to go from 8 a.m. to noon in Cahaba Heights every Saturday, instead of shopping item by item at a farmers market.
Till operates through relationships with over half a dozen farmers. So far, they said, people have loved Till and been thrilled at the new service.
“People want to eat healthy and people want to eat local, but they don’t want to eat inconveniently, hence why everyone just chooses to go to Chick-fil-A or McAlister’s, because really when do you have access to super hyper-local food throughout the week? You really don’t, which is completely why people are thrilled,” Will DeShazo said.
Even though the website works on a membership that costs $12 a month, they said people don’t have to be paid members to browse the website and look at the available options. Membership gives locals access to order produce and farm products from Sunday at 8 a.m. through Wednesday at 5 p.m. Each Sunday, Will DeShazo said, members are emailed what new options are available from the farm that week.
“Just like you would go to the grocery store on Sunday, you have the availability to till, so till through the farms, till through the updated products, add to your cart,” he said.
By placing the order Wednesday, the farmers have the next few days to pick the requested produce and have it ready Saturday morning for pickup or delivery. Will DeShazo said he loves how fresh food connects people, and it’s been powerful to see that happening in Birmingham in live action through Till.
“I love the facts and the stories [the farmers] have to tell about their food, and I think that’s why I was so interested in working on Till. … Hearing the farmers talk about the process of harvesting the food and all the love and nurturing that goes into what we get to enjoy has been the most fun part for me,” Hayley DeShazo said.
Hayley DeShazo is the one who works as a liaison directly with the farmers to add products over the changing seasons. So far, they have offered everything from eggs to dairy products to baked goods to meats, vegetables and fruit. They add about three new offerings a week, she said, and she is currently working to grow the list of farmers so that Till can act as a “one-stop shop.”
“It is a community, and people are just loving the fact that they get to support local. That makes us really happy, and that makes the farmers really happy that they’ve somehow reached a new audience through Till,” Hayley DeShazo said.
Another service for Homewood residents looking to pick up pre-selected baskets of fresh foods straight from local farms is Stone Hollow Farmstead’s Community Supported Agriculture, or CSA, program.
Even though the Stone Hollow Farm is located in the Harpersville area, they have developed satellite pick-ups every Tuesday all across Birmingham, including from 4 to 5 p.m. at Pure Barre in Homewood, located at 2826 18th St. S.
Stone Hollow Farmstead General Manager Jonathan Parrish said each Tuesday, members can swing by and pick up a basket filled with a selection of fresh vegetables, flowers and dairy products from local farmers. Parrish said they supply a hefty portion of the CSA basket themselves, but they also partner with other nearby farmers to sell their extra produce and fill the growing demand. Since they began their program in 2014, memberships have to become more and more popular, he said.
“[Shareholders] get a really great selection each week that we put a lot of time and thought into, not just the quality of the items that we are featuring, but how they all pair together and how they will work to make some really great recipes,” Parrish said.
He and the Stone Hollow Farmstead staff research recipes with the various baskets and compile them online on a weekly blog called Tuesday Table. It features the breakdown of the week’s shares, artisan profiles and notes from the farm so people can get to know more about where their food came from.
The CSA shares are offered in various 8-week programs, including the annual share, offered all year long; a flower share, offered at various points in the year; and then a spring, summer, fall and winter share. People can purchase a quarter share, which generally feeds a family of two with a small child, or a half share, which generally feeds a family of four, Parrish said.
An average share includes produce, herbs, fresh bread and occasionally dairy and cannery products. People can also add on cow’s milk, cheese, yogurt, hen eggs and fresh cut flowers to their weekly share.
“You have access to something that most people don’t [through the program], and everything just has a much better flavor, and it’s fresher because it’s right when its being pulled out of the ground, basically,” Parrish said.
To learn about Till, go to usetill.com, and to learn about the CSA, go to stonehollowfarmstead.com/csa.