The Airdrie’s Farmers’ Market is opening for the 2022 season next week for another fruit-tastic summer.
The Airdrie Farmers’ Market is opening for the season on June 1 and guests can expect a “full house” of vendors and food trucks, according to Candice Kolson, the owner and manager of the weekly market.
For the first time since 2019, the market will be operating without any COVID-19 restrictions, Kolson added.
“It was very difficult – it cost an awful lot of money to run these events just because we had to bring in extra staff and extra help and all of those things to meet the COVID requirements,” Kolson said. “I’m very, very excited to see what this year will bring.”
Acting as a community gathering place, the Wednesday afternoon market “gives many businesses, local and regional, an opportunity,” Kolson said, adding it is a place where food business owners can reach a large number of customers in a short amount of time.
“It is definitely a stepping stone for businesses that are trying to grow,” she said.
Airdrie residents are invited to stroll through the weekly farmers’ market, which is located at the Plainsmen Arena parking lot every Wednesday from 3:30 p.m. until 7 p.m., starting in June. The market serves guests, rain or shine, until the Thanksgiving weekend in October.
The market also features the Food Truck Dash and Dine. After working up an appetite from perusing the market, guests can choose from seven food trucks every Wednesday, featuring a variety of different foods, like Happy Fish Greek cuisine and Meat Street Pies. The food trucks will differ from week to week, Kolson added, but some trucks are expected to return every week.
With a rotating list of 60 to 100 vendors, attendees can expect something new every time they visit the market, according to Kolson. Since the market has so many different rotating vendors and food trucks, she argued attendees are treated to a different shopping experience every Wednesday.
Although fresh produce and homemade goods remain fan favourites at the market, attendees shouldn’t expect to see many fruit options for the June opening of the market. But, Kolson added, fruit fanatics can anticipate seeing more juicy goods by the end of June.
Carstairs-vendor Shirley’s Greenhouse should see “their cucumbers and tomatoes and regular peppers and all of the great produce that they bring in towards the end of June, beginning of July,” Kolson said.
The market is fun to visit with friends but, Kolson said that pets are not permitted at the Airdrie Farmers’ Market unless they are registered as a service dog. Because the farmers’ market sells food, “it is just like going to the grocery store,” the market manager added.
Guests can visit the Airdrie Farmers’ Market website for a complete list of the potential food trucks and expected vendors. According to Kolson, the Airdrie Farmers’ Market Facebook page will be updated on Tuesdays to include the food trucks participating in that week's Dine and Dash.
