Food desert solution? Erie groups launch pay-what-you-can market concept downtown
Downtown Erie has been a food desert for a few months since the loss of the Erie Food Co-op, but the Erie Downtown Partnership and others are making strides to bring in healthy and affordable food options.
Starting Friday, the Downtown Partnership is partnering with the Erie Food Policy Advisory Council, Build CDC, Hamot Health Foundation, Grow and Glow Urban Collective, Wildfield Urban Farm, Erie Farm to School, the Conscious Food Project at Raintree Farms and Groundwork Erie to bring sustainable food access to Erie.
The Downtown Partnership will host pay-what-you-can markets each Friday through Oct. 25. from 4-6 p.m. in Perry Square.
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How does the pay-what-you-can concept work?
Dave Tamulonis from the Downtown Partnership said the pay-what-you-can market is a model started by local farmers with multiple stands in areas including Buffalo Road and Parade Street.
“They collect excess and leftover produce from the market stands at some of the farmers markets in the area, like the Sisters of Saint Joseph, and there’s one down in Edinboro,” Tamulonis said. “They provide the produce that would just go to waste for free or as pay-what-you-can offerings. If folks want to donate to it, they can to support the model, or for those in need who don’t have easy access to fresh produce it's (available) for little or no cost.”
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What items will be offered at these markets?
The produce will be all local and different week to week depending on what is left over or excess from the markets. Items might include, for example, blueberries, pears, tomatoes and lettuce.
“We really don’t know what we’ll have until they (the markets) will collect all the stuff that happens during the week,” Tamulonis said. “They will put leftover stuff into cold storage and add to it throughout the week and then stock these pay-what-you-can stands.”
The stands will change up the produce weekly. Some weeks will include fruits while other weeks will have a mix of vegetables.
“It’s going to change as things go in and out of season,” Tamulonis said. “So now you are going to see a lot of early summer fruits. I’ve heard from a couple of farmers that the season is running about 10 days to 14 days early due to the heat that we’ve had.”
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Get help with meal ideas from the market
Wondering what to make this week with your haul from the markets? The farmers will offer suggestions and tips to ensure you get the most value.
“The farmers there will suggest what you could do with select items,” Tamulonis said. “They are very knowledgeable with food produce. So if you are unsure of how much you need or you are unsure of what you may need to cover you for the week, they can help you with that. You can show up with little money or show up with farmers vouchers. They also accept WIC vouchers and senior vouchers. We have an equivalency for what those will be used for.”
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Contact Nicholas Sorensen at [email protected].
This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Erie Downtown Partnership to host pay-what-you-can market