This Week is National Farmers Market Week

National Farmers Market week began Sunday by proclamation of the United States Department of Agriculture.

The USDA cited the importance of farmers markets for both suppliers and consumers as a reason for the proclamation. Farmers benefit from another outlet to market their wares while providing customers with access to “affordable, convenient and healthful products sold directly from the farm in their freshest possible state,” according to a USDA press release.

“I encourage the people of the United States to celebrate the benefits of farmers markets and the bountiful production of our [n]ation’s farmers with appropriate observances and activities,” said U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Thomas Vilsack in the proclamation.

The USDA also emphasized the role of farmers markets in local and regional food systems. It said farmers markets encourage interaction between farmers and community members and provide a source of community spirit.

The increased use of electronic benefits transfer (EBT) technology, the successor to food stamp programs, at farmers markets was cited in the proclamation. The USDA also praised donations from farmers markets to food banks and other feeding programs.

Connecticut farmers markets also participate in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC), which provides supplemental food to low-income women who are pregnant or have recently given birth and children up to five years old that are at a nutritional risk.

The event runs from Sunday, Aug. 7 through Saturday, Aug. 13.

Want to celebrate the week by visiting a farmers market in North Central Connecticut? Check the list below for a sampling of farmers markets in and around the area. The events are mostly outdoor affairs and may be affected by inclement weather.

East Windsor:

Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Connecticut Trolley Museum, 58 North Road, East Windsor, CT

Coventry:

Sundays, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Nathan Hale Homestead, 2299 South St., Coventry, CT

Enfield:

Enfield Farmers Market

Wednesdays, 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.

Town Hall parking lot, 820 Enfield St., Enfield, CT

Manchester:

Manchester Community College Farmers Market

Wednesdays, 1:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.

60 Bidwell St., Manchester, CT

Storrs:

Saturdays, 3 p.m. - 6 p.m.

Mansfield Town Hall Parking Lot

www.localharvest.org/storrs-farmers-market-M3812

Storrs Midweek Mini Market: 

Wednesday Evenings

Mansfield Community Center, 10 South Eagleville Rd.

www.localharvest.org/storrs-farmers-market-M3812

Suffield:

Suffield Farmers Market

Saturdays, 9 a.m. to noon

South Town Green (Intersection of Mountain Road and Main Street), Suffield, CT

Tolland:

Saturdays, 9 a.m. to noon

21 Tolland Green, Tolland, CT

Looking for more? The Connecticut Department of Agriculture maintains a list of farmers markets by county here.