The Weblog

The local foods movement is alive and well in Champaign County! Here are some updates on other projects while we finalize our virtual market:

Local Producers Map:
Our local producers map is ready for publication and you will soon be able to find it on gochampaign.com. Copies will be distributed around the community, in the local telephone book, and other “hangouts”. The guide lists the location and contact information for nearly 50 local producers within our county. The map was a project of the Local Food Council and printed with the help of some local sponsors including the Monument Square District, Champaign Bank, the Community Improvement Corporation, the Chamber of Commerce, the Farm Bureau and others. It is a great start to finding a local source for Champaign County’s finest!



 
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Good eve!


This post expired on April 05, 2023.

Good evening shoppers! All went swimmingly at the market tonight thanks to the Charlene and our newest helper Michelle Comer of Homecomer Traditions. You know Michelle lovingly as “The Pretzel Lady” around this neck of the woods. She does more than that but my personal addiction is indeed her pretzels! Thanks Michelle and Charlene for the awesome job!

Thank you to all the vendors and customers who are perfecting our new changes that help the process flow better. We are really trying to get things to work with fewer hands as all our vendors are busy growing their businesses in many avenues. Thanks again to Pam and Mark for staying with us as long as they did! We will miss you both for certain!

Some updates on things…don’t forget it is flea market weekend and many of our vendors will be selling there too. As I stopped by Katie Hoover’s home tonight at nearly 9 PM, she was still in the kitchen baking brownies and goodies with plans for a few more batches until bedtime. She should be in her same spot in the corner of the horticulture building I believe. Swisher Hill Herbs (Charlene and Joe as we know them) will be out there (4-H building last I knew near the restrooms) and I know they were prepping tonight too. Also look for Jared with his honey (I think he is still in the merchant building). ( I apologize if I left someone out, or gave you the wrong building, but that was the last I knew so be sure to message me if I did and I would be glad to help spread the news!)

We have some exciting news too that Swisher Hill Herbs are now offering live plants for the 2013 planting season.  In addition to their selection of herbs and veggies they have added scented geraniums and for the cat lovers “cat grass”. Sounds awesome!

For those curious about the maple harvest, both Connolly’s and Valley View report great syrup seasons and are both done boiling. While I only got to visit with Marc briefly tonight, Shirley Connolly said they had a record year and had run out of storage space for syrup! Luckily they were able to help out and share with a producer in Wisconsin who needed some due to their weather! I’ll be looking forward to some creative recipes in addition to my pancakes! Yummo!

I had feedback from our friend who was collecting the survey of shopping habits of local food and she was glad to report that we had a huge turnout from Champaign County! Great job everyone!

Thanks again to Shannon and Beth with the Y for being so assertive in making a positive impact on the market. Paying directly to them frees up the money box job for us and while you might have had a bit of a trip around the lobby, it really makes things easier for us and our volunteers.

Have a wonderful weekend and thanks for everything tonight!