Jul 1

Jul 1 Hyperlocal

Photos by Keren Nedivi

It is a Thursday afternoon in early June. Julie Tumamait-Stenslie, who can trace her Chumash roots back to the mid-18th century, stands in the shade of an old Ash tree and gives a blessing to a new farmers' market in Ojai. She tells the crowd assembled in the courtyard of the historic Chaparral High School building that she feels this market's work is helping the health of the Valley's land and community.

The Ojai Community Farmers' Market project sprouted over six years ago when Heath Perry (LIVIN) and Michelle Lopez Dohrn (Wild at Heart) looked into creating a food co-op in the Ojai Valley. Attorney Julie Gerard (Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund) got on board and suggested organizing a community farmers’ market instead. They were all aware of local farmers and food artisans needing space to gather together in the Ojai Valley. And so, the mission remained the same, but the goals shifted. They brought in Grace Bueti Malloy and Steve Sprinkel, both board members of the Center for Regenerative Agriculture. Grace has experience organizing market events as Program Director of Poco Farm in Meiners Oaks that she runs with her husband Dan Malloy. She worked with Steve, and his wife, Olivia Chase, at Meiners Oaks organic grocery and cafe Farmer and the Cook to start its 15-year-old CSA program.

"There are not enough outlets for these folks to sell directly to their community," explains Grace. "This market is an answer to the call for a more resilient local food system that supports its land, farmers, cooks, eaters, makers, as well as the children who will become the next generation of all these food system stewards."

GRACE BUETI MALLOY, BOARD MEMBER OF OCFM

It has taken about three years for this plan to come to fruition. The primary challenge was to find a suitable place to hold a crowd while meeting city requirements, such as providing accessible bathrooms. The group explored many properties over the years. It wasn’t until they started looking into educational opportunities that they connected with Tiffany Morse, the Ojai Unified School District Superintendent. Their shared vision made for a perfect partnership.

The market has made its home at the downtown Chaparral campus — ideal for its central location, intimate courtyard layout, and school hours. Although the future of the property is unknown, Grace is confident that there will always be a place for the Ojai Community Farmers’ Market.

When asked if the idea of a brick-and-mortar market has been shelved, Grace was frank, "The amount of funding needed to start something like that would be astronomical. That being said, I don’t think it’s out of the question. We would just need some heavy hitters involved."

The term "farmers market" is flexible. Here in California, markets can be run by either a farmer or a nonprofit. Each entity has different motivations for doing so. Santa Barbara Certified Farmers' Market requires that all vendors grow what they sell — so if you see pies or bread, those folks grow their own wheat. Many of their vendors are small farms from Santa Barbara County, but farms can be of any size and come from anywhere. Some markets exist only to make money, like any other business. Other markets are groups of farmers working together to lift each other up financially (the SB farmers market association is a business association of farmers, for example). Or, markets can also be run by nonprofits with a bigger purpose.

As a 501(c)3, OCFM's mission is to source everything as locally and ethically as possible. Grace says, “We are hyperlocal, a 501c3 run by a board of community members and farmers, and have an educational mission. Over 75% of our farmers, food artisans, and makers live and work in the Ojai Valley.” The board members are personally involved in helping each vendor with their individual permitting and certification processes, which can be grueling. They also help vendors source local ingredients or materials for their products. That said, they have had to make some tough calls. Both Frecker Farms and Alcantar Organics are located in Carpenteria and Alcantar has another piece of land in Buellton. Ojai farmers have trouble growing certain produce — brassicas or greens, for example — in the middle of the summer. Frecker and Alcantar can because of their coastal climate. Spring and summer produce can mature a little earlier, too, because they have fewer freezes.

Grace says, "We try our best to assess each vendor on our mission criteria," but to achieve a balance and variety of market offerings, exceptions can be made.

Inclusivity is part of that mission. All of the market's signage is bilingual and it has a Spanish language Instagram account, a Spanish-speaking market leader, and Spanish-speaking vendors. Many market vendors display information in Spanish about what they grow and what they sell. OCFM is working on an outreach program to the Hispanic community and a vendor and customer survey targeted toward making the market more accessible and user-friendly for Hispanic folks. "Poco a poco, we hope to learn how to help make healthy, local food more accessible to everyone in our local community," says Grace.

OCFM Farmers

The market accepts SNAP, (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) WIC, (Women, Infants, and Children Nutrition Program), and SFMNP (Seniors Farmers Market Nutrition Program). It participates in California's Market Match program to double the value of nutrition assistance dollars spent at the market. For example, if you scan your CalFresh EBT card for $30, you will get $60 total to spend at the market.

CLICK ABOVE to watch a video about the CA Market Match program

OCFM has three different tokens. One is for CalFresh EBT dollars, one is for Market Match dollars — different foods are eligible for each — and one is called Market Money, which shoppers can purchase with a debit or credit card and use just like cash. In addition, OCFM is running a carbon reduction promotion this summer. If you ride your bike to the market, you get $2 in Market Money. If you ride the Ojai Trolley, you get $3, and if you ride the Ventura County bus, you get $4. Shoppers can collect their tokens at the info booth before they hit the farm stands overflowing with fresh, healthy, local food.

OCFM is partnering with local schools through their teachers, agricultural programs, and entrepreneurial opportunities. Grace is grateful for the district's involvement.

"Tiffany Morse has been our champion and guide throughout — she is truly a gem, as is David Rogers (OUSD Director of Operations), and all their staff."

Summit School of upper Ojai currently has a booth where the students sell the plants and food they grow, such as perfect, billowy oyster mushrooms.

Several vendors and the market itself employ Ojai students (and parents!). OUSD Entrepreneur students have a booth where they sell their goods and learn the specifics of running a business. OCFM will be finding more opportunities for student involvement as the market grows and school is back in session, including working with programs like OUSD Nutrition Services, Food for Thought, Nordhoff High School Environmental Science classes, Chaparral Horticulture classes, and much more. OCFM hopes to serve as a conduit between local farmers and students, connecting interested, motivated kids to local farms and vice versa.

In addition to fulfilling all of your pre-weekend grocery needs, visiting the market is simply a pleasant way to spend an afternoon. Several live local musicians are hosted each week in partnership with Greater Goods, run by Vaughn Montgomery. There are plans to expand its programming, with speakers on agriculture and nutrition, cooking demonstrations, presentations by students, storytime for children, farm and market tours, and more. OCFM has grant funding to pilot the educational programs in the fall.

Xocoyotzin Moraza and Friends entertain the crowd with a trio including Moraza’s Arpa jarocha (Mexican Harp)

Grace encourages shoppers to "Come and stay awhile, enjoy the music, hang out with friends, and let your kids play."

Opportunities are still available for new participants at Ojai Valley Community Farmers' Market. Individual vendor spaces are roughly 10' x 10' (or under) and, if space allows, a vendor may also request expansion beyond one tent. Flexibility is the reward to the early adapter. An applicant is reviewed to make sure it aligns with the mission of the market and the board often interviews applicants and makes farm visits.

Businesses offering ready-made foods, like tacos or salads, are especially in demand. The market will serve as an incubator for anyone looking to move their business above ground. OCFM is currently working with six potential vendors with a passion for food if not the tolerance for paperwork or manpower to put in the countless hours to get their businesses permitted. Ojai has no other venues for outdoor food sales and no other weekly or monthly events with the necessary permits to host this particular type of business.

New volunteers are also welcome. One can sign up to help with physical tasks like setting up or taking down the market, engaging with educational programs and community outreach, sewing bunting, painting banners and signs, or fulfilling administrative tasks such as bookkeeping or grant writing. There will always be room for involvement from anyone in the community.