Reduce Carbon Footprints with Growers Market Purchases

The first week of August marked the 22nd Annual Farmer's Market Week by the US Department of Agriculture. It celebrates their importance to the community they support and farmers' tireless efforts. You're watching the Local News Network, brought to you by Sunray Park and Casino and Boon's Family Thai Barbecue. I'm Wendy Graham Settle. Farmer's markets are a literal bite of life. And this year, Farmington's Growers Market offers a real mouthful.

Here we are at San Juan's Soul Patch. Good morning.

Good morning.

Kutac farms on the La Plata highway offers a call ahead service and delivery of their beautiful produce. Over the din of the crowd and a riotous one-man band, owner Keith Kutac describes his goodies.

We have several different varieties of tomatoes from Black Krim, to Early Girls, Celebrity, Romas, Beefsteak, we have some red potatoes. The Santa Fe Grandes, they're just as hot as a jalapeno, if not hotter. Lots of bell peppers, Malay, Gypsy Peppers, hablanos, miscellaneous squash.

One of the benefits of shopping at the farmer's market is that you get to know growers directly. Doug Dykeman is the owner and operator of Orchard Street Gardens, an urban farm on two vacant lots, two blocks north of downtown Farmington.

My landlord charges me one tomato a year for all the rent and all the tomatoes I can grow.

Dykeman grows heirloom cantaloupe, Asian eggplant, Bolivian hot peppers, and cured garlic, but really he's all about tomatoes. And this year he has all sorts of varieties coming out of his ears.

This year seems to be a wonderful year for growing tomatoes. And I think largely the reason is that on the spring time, starting in March, we didn't get very many freezes. So, without getting those hard freezes, the tomato plants really flourished and thrived, and they started producing early. So I've had, this year, some of the earliest producing tomatoes in all the 25 years I've been growing tomatoes. So that's been very good.

It's been said that we all flourish or decline with the farmer. Bridgewater Gardens from Cedar Hill, New Mexico is definitely flourishing. They offer a true bounty of almost everything you can imagine.

Oh, we have just about everything. We've had green beans, okra, cucumbers, onions, potatoes, strawberries, bell peppers, chili peppers, turnips, beets,

How much is our dill?

A dollar a handful. Fennel, celery, kale, Swiss chard, herbs, tomatoes, watermelons, a few ears of corn. I think that's about all of it.

Shape, color texture, fragrance. Gathering fresh produce, we feel clean. Touching and eating things that have recently been in the ground makes us feel closer to Earth. All farmers eat what they grow. They grow food that tastes good to them. Just ask the growers of sweet bi-color corn from Fruit Land, New Mexico.

It's delicious corn. This is the early corn, and there would be a peak corn will be next week, in the next couple of weeks.

Farmer's markets help build our community and connect us to place. The honor of buying something natural in Farmington stimulates not only the local economy, but also a universal feel-good factor.

Oh, we just love coming and checking out the local honey, green chili, and just whatever produce we can find.

We love the farmer's market, my little family. And we really just come out because it's just such a great community, and to support all of the growers here in town. So, that's why we come.

Oh, I love it. I love it.

Just what our world needs: more love and less of a carbon footprint. How often do you get to save the planet by buying delicious food? It's a no-brainer. Support local farmers. Farmington Grower's Market operates from 8:00 AM to noon on Saturdays and from 4:00 to 6:00 PM on Tuesdays, through October. It's located at the Farmington Museum at 3041 East Main Street. For more information, go to farmingtongrowersmarket.com. Thanks for watching this edition of the Local News Network. I'm Wendy Graham Settle.

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