The Jamestown Mobile Market at the James Prendergast Library

Jamestown Public Market‘s Mobile Market begins its season today.

The Mobile Market brings fresh, local food to five sites around Jamestown on every Wednesday and Thursday through September 28.

Jamestown Public Market Food Access Coordinator Emily Le Blanc is overseeing the Mobile Market this season.

The Mobile Market buys produce from Abers Acres, Hidden Valley Farm, and baked goods and jams from an Amish baker, Lizzie Byler.

Every Wednesday the Mobile Market drives to local farms and bakers to pick up food for distribution. It then drives back to Jamestown with St. Luke’s Episcopal Church as the first stop. The church runs the Eat Fresh, Do Good CSA, the proceeds of which help support the Mobile Market.

The Mobile Market then drives to various locations throughout the city which include:
– The Resource Center at 890 E. Second Street, to be there from 10am to 11am.
– James Prendergast Library, from 11:30am to 12:30.
– The Chautauqua Center, staying from 1:00 to 2:00.

The Mobile Market makes two stops on Thursdays:
– Silver Tree Seniors at 8 Crane Street, from 1:00 to 2:00pm
– Bush Elementary, from 2:30 to 3:30pm.

The Mobile Market accepts cash, cards, SNAP, the Farmers Market Nutrition Program, Veggie Rx, and, starting in July, Double Up Food Bucks.

The Jamestown Public Market is continuing a collaboration with Office of the Aging’s Local Roots Program. Thanks to a grant via Blue Cross Blue Shield of WNY, a new vehicle has been added to the roster. This new sprinter van will be refrigerated, and utilized to bring produce for OFA’s program to various senior living sites across Chautauqua County.

For more information on the Jamestown Mobile Market or the Veggie RX program, visit www.jtownpublicmarket.org

(Left to Right) James Galbato, Brigiotta’s Farmland Produce; Luke Fodor, St. Luke’s Rector; Cassandra Skal and Emily Reynolds, Cornell Cooperative Extension of Chautauqua County; Linnea Haskin, Jamestown Public Market; Vince DeJoy, City of Dunkirk Director of Planning and Development.

Cornell Cooperative Extension of Chautauqua County has applied for a grant to expand local food access.

CCE submitted a proposal in January for the NY Food for NY Families program, aiming to bring significant dollars to Chautauqua County focused on expanding healthy food access and economic development for local agricultural growers and producers.

Food insecurity is a high concern for Chautauqua County, with 17% of residents living below the poverty line.

Their proposal includes the implementation of several distribution sites and events across Chautauqua County, which, if funded, would begin this summer. CCE hopes to hire a coordinator who would oversee the project, working with county and regional farmers, dairy producers, and other state Agriculture producers to procure produce, dairy products, meat products, baked goods, and other local foods.

Over $500,000 would be invested in state products. Partner organizations include Brigiotta’s Farmland Produce who would be the lead partner in packaging state procured foods into up to 500 individual boxes per week. Distribution events will include collaborative sites with the Office of the Aging’s Local Roots Program, aimed at servicing senior citizens in areas such as Brocton, Cassadaga, and Fredonia; St. Luke’s Episcopal Church and the Jamestown Public Market’s Mobile Market program, aimed at low-income and minority communities; Rural Ministries of Dunkirk, aimed at servicing food insecure individuals; and Five Loaves + 20 Fish Ministries, servicing the ‘food desert’ area of Sherman/Clymer, specifically youth and families.

If awarded funds, the food boxes would be distributed at no cost to community members.

For more information on the NYS Food for NYS Families initiative visit: https://agriculture.ny.gov/news/state-department-agriculture-accepting-applications-nearly-26-million-new-york-food-new-york.

Volunteers assist in packaging CSA shares during the Jamestown Public Market’s 2022 market season

The Jamestown Public Market and St. Luke’s Episcopal Church are celebrating National CSA week the week of February 20 through 25.

Public Market Director Linnea Haskins said CSA stands for “Community Supported Agriculture, “You invest in a farm ahead of the growing season and in exchange you basically get the product that they grow or raise. So most CSA shares are vegetables or fruits, produce, but there are also flower shares, meat shares, some people do bread and eggs.”

Haskins said a lot of farms like to do CSAs because it helps expand their customer base and guarantees income prior to the growing season, “So, they can rely on that income to help them to grow what they need to grow, and harvest, and pay for any supplies, etc. But it’s a wonderful way for people to invest local.”

The Jamestown Public Market will be offering its third season of the ‘Eat Fresh, Do Good CSA’ this summer.

Working with local farms, such as organic produce farm Abers Acres and Amish-led Hidden Valley Produce, the Jamestown Public Market cultivates three sizes of CSA shares community members can ‘invest’ in prior to the growing season.

The cost of each share covers the produce people will receive week to week for 16 weeks, from June to September, as well as a donation towards the Jamestown Mobile Market program.

For more information on how to sign up for an ‘Eat Fresh, Do Good CSA’ share visit https://www.jtownpublicmarket.org/csa

Lisa French

The 2022 Murray L. Bob Lecture will focus on food insecurity.

The annual lecture will be held from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. tonight at the James Prendergast Library.

Community Outreach and Programming Manager Jennifer Champ said it will feature Field and Fork Network Co-Founder and Executive Director Lisa French, who will be joined by Jamestown Public Market Director Linnea Haskins, “She’ll be addressing different aspects of food insecurity and what they do to combat, and foster a sustainable food system. And joining her, of course, will be Linnea who has worked closely with them to start the ‘double-up food bucks’ program here through the Jamestown Public Market and the Mobile Market. And she’ll talk about how that has had an impact on the Jamestown community in particular.”

No registration is needed for the free event and it will feature a reception after the presentation.

For more information, visit www.prendergastlibrary.org

The Chautauqua Center

Volunteers helped assemble the backpacks filled with school supplies that will be given away at TCC’s Community Picnic Events as well as for every school district in the county.

The TCC Community Picnics will be held 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., Monday, August 8 in Dunkirk at the Salvation Army located at 704 Central Avenue. The Jamestown picnic will be held 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., Tuesday, August 9 at Jackson-Taylor Park on Washington Street.

The free picnic events have been rebranded this year with an emphasis on healthy eating and active lifestyle. They will include food, music, bounce houses, and children’s games. New this year is the addition of the Jamestown Public Market’s Mobile Market that will offer free produce to attendees as well as food demos by Cornell Cooperative Extension, recipes, and information on SNAP and Double Up Food Bucks promotions that make eating fresh foods more affordable.

TCC also will provide free health screenings and education, and onsite clinical providers including pediatricians and nutritionists who can help answer questions for parents about healthy eating and preventative care.

To receive a backpack, students must have a family member or caregiver over the age of 18 present. All ages are welcome to attend the community event and take advantage of the education and giveaways available to all.

A local resident uses a VeggieRx “prescription” voucher to get fresh fruits and vegetables from the Jamestown Mobile Market.

The Chautauqua Center has brought back its Veggie Rx program for a third year along with some new partners.

The community health center is now collaborating with The Resource Center and the Fredonia and Dunkirk Farmers Markets to participate in the Veggie Rx program.

Under the program, medical providers and other staff at partnering health care organizations give “prescription” vouchers that act as money to their patients. Those patients spend the vouchers on fresh produce at area public markets. Veggie Rx patients receive five free servings each week through the duration of the season (June 15 to September 29).

The program is made possible through a collaboration between The Chautauqua Center and the Jamestown Public Market and is funded through TCC’s sponsorship of the Mobile Market.

In the southern portion of the county, vouchers can be redeemed weekly at any of the six Jamestown Mobile Market stops. Patients in the northern part of the county can redeem their coupons weekly at the Dunkirk and Fredonia Farmers Markets.

For the complete schedule and more information, visit www.jtownpublicmarket.org.

Jamestown Public Market Director Linnea Carlson presents to Jamestown City Council on a proposal to do a Food Action Plan and also obtain funding for a “Jamestown Kitchen.” (May 16, 2022)

The Jamestown Public Market is requesting funding from the City to create a Food Action Plan and “Jamestown’s Kitchen.”

Market Director Linnea Carlson said for the last four years the market has operated as a food system and food advocacy organization with the mission to build Jamestown’s food system, “And we do that in a variety of ways. Not just through the Jamestown Public Market, where we offer incubation space for small businesses and economic development, but also through the support of agriculture with our Mobile Market, as well as for our community at large. And also, we’ve taken over the Grow Jamestown Community Gardens on Lakeview and Washington (Streets).”

Carlson said the COVID-19 Pandemic was an eye-opener with the experience of food shortages due to supply chain issues as well as the increased need for food pantry access. She said they also learned that Jamestown is “data poor” in terms of not having information on what the city needs in terms of food beyond food access, “It’s talking about people who want to start food-based businesses. People who want to see culturally appropriate foods at the market. Farmers that need support, whether that’s funding opportunities to help them expand their farm, to hire new staff, or to get new equipment. The second piece that we look at when we look at our city, is that we have extensive opportunities to invest in local, small business. We have virtually no value added food processors in this community and in the region.”

Carlson said the next step for the Public Market is to create a Food Action Plan that is focused on local food business development and neighborhood health. She said this would be an 18 month process to survey the community on what they want or need for food, “It would also work to, at the end of the 18 month plan create real long-term strategies. And we would be working with not only community members, but also local non-profits, local businesses, local farmers, and other funders to understand how we can invest in food in this city in a sustainable manner.”

Carlson said the project would help identify easy, achievable food projects and initiatives they can hit the ground running on. She said the cost to do the Food Action Plan is mainly in staff costs to implement the project as well as extensive community outreach throughout the city. She estimates the cost to do a Food Action Plan is $145,000; which she hopes the city would be willing to fund using American Rescue Plan monies.

Carlson also presented on a proposal to create a “Jamestown’s Kitchen.” This would be a community space that could house the public market year round and also create a space for the development of culinary and hospitality skills. The cost for this proposal was estimated at nearly $2 million, with Carlson hoping ARP funds could be allocated by the city.

Carlson said she’s been in discussions with the Jamestown Department of Development and, if funding is received, she hopes to have the Food Action Plan completed by 2023 and the Jamestown’s Kitchen open by 2024.

Jamestown Public Market Director Linnea Carlson and St. Luke’s Episcopal Church Minister Jessika Frederick talk about the return of the Mobile Market CSA program as well as the Grow Jamestown event happening in April.

Public Market Director Linnea Carlson the CSA, or Community Supported Agriculture, program was started last year as an effort to reach more people beyond the public market while supporting the Mobile Market.

She said when people sign up for the CSA, you’re not just supporting local farmers but supporting the Mobile Market, “Because some of that, your investment, goes into our general operating budget for things like gas and maintenance for our vehicle and that sort of thing. But what you get in return, for the 16 weeks that the Mobile Market runs, every Wednesday you come to St. Luke’s. We have a pick-up time frame. And you will get a crate of fresh fruit and vegetables.”

Carlson said 50 people signed up for the CSA last year and they hope to double that to 100 people this year.

Carlson said there are three levels to the CSA , with the first level being good for those who have never done a CSA and who want to introduce more seasonal vegetables into their diets, “We suggest that you start with our fun size which is the smallest. But then we have two sizes up. We have a family size and then a full size. And that depends on, you know, we recommend the full size for people who just absolutely love their vegetables and they know they’re going to eat the variety.”

Carlson said you can learn more about the Public Market programs and sign up for the CSA at https://www.jtownpublicmarket.org/.

Market Director Linnea Carlson said moving to Third Street from Cherry Street helped increase the visibility of the market, “So we saw a lot of individuals who lived in Jamestown or were from the area who didn’t even know we had a Farmer’s Market, but because we were so visible they stopped to see what was going on and discovered us and then would come back week to week.”

Carlson said the new space made it possible to double the number of vendors from previous years. She said while cash sales aren’t analyzed at this time, SNAP, double-up-bucks, Sprouts program, and credit and debit sales are tracked, “The SNAP numbers drastically increased. Last year between SNAP and double-up, we reimbursed the farmers around $12,000 and this year it was $20,000. So we definitely saw a really big increase in sales and we believe that translates to cash sales as well. All of our vendors were thrilled with how the season went.”

Carlson said there were 415 individual customers for the Mobile Market program, which is the highest number of customers they’ve had at the Mobile Market. She credited Blue Cross Blue Shield of Western New York for helping support the addition of two sites for a total of five mobile market sites with the increase in customers.