After last year’s Yellowknife Farmers Market was cut short due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the event is expected to return in full this summer.
Potential vendors have until March 31 to submit their applications for this year’s market, which will take place weekly from June to September. Eligible products include produce, processed foods, baked goods, ready-to-eat concessions and non-edible artisanal products.
In September, the final market day of the 2021 season was cancelled due to an outbreak of cases in the city. Yellowknife Farmers Market vice-president Lise Picard says it’s too early to predict how the pandemic and pandemic-related restrictions will impact the market this year. However, she says, “We’re always in very good and very close communication with the Department of Health, and we follow their directives. We were able to hold the market at the height of the pandemic in the last two summers.”
Although Covid-19 restrictions are lifting across the territory this spring, some health measures will still be in place at this year’s market: a maximum of 1,000 patrons will be allowed at the Somba K’e Plaza site at any given time, and vendors will have to be stationed at least six metres from each other. No mask mandate will be place, with the market’s website indicating that the decision to wear a mask will be up to individual patrons and vendors.
Volunteers will also be stationed around the market to facilitate a “Shop, don’t stop” flow to the event, whereby guests will be encouraged to make their purchases in a timely manner and move on so as to avoid crowding.
Since this is the 10th edition of the market, Picard says this year will feature something special, although she says it’s too early to discuss details.
The market is a good opportunity for up-and-coming business owners to promote their products, according to Picard.
“They can come to the market, and then they are in direct contact with their clientele — they hear feedback, they can improve, they understand how the process works.”
In an effort to address and spark conversations about food security, Picard says the market team is once again encouraging local backyard producers to sell their extra produce at the market.
“People who grow things in their garden, and sometimes they have too much, they cannot eat it all. Well, we will have our harvesters’ table where people can bring their surplus and sell it locally, so that’s also quite interesting,” she said.
Some restrictions apply: vendors must be local to the NWT, although some exceptions will be made for outside vendors with products that aren’t already being sold by another participant. Vendors will also have to adhere to the territory’s food safety regulations, as well as the market’s Waste Reduction and Composting Program.
The market will be held every Tuesday from June 7 to Sept. 13, from 5:15 to 7:15 p.m.