CULLMAN – Cullman Parks & Recreation announced recently the reopening and revitalization of the Farmer’s Market at the Festhalle. The kickoff day for the market was on Tuesday, April 2, and Waid Harbison, director of marketing at CP&R says that there are a lot of exciting days on the horizon for the Farmer’s Market.
“We have added quite a few new things this year to the Farmer’s Market,” said Harbison. “The biggest thing that will be coming up in another month or so is the Strawberry Festival that Parks & Rec recently took over. With Parks & Rec being over the Farmer’s Market, we thought it would be a good fit for us to take over organizing that event. We’re really excited about that.”
The Strawberry Festival is an annual event that will take place this year on May 1 and 2, with the kickoff will take place on Friday night beginning at 4 p.m. The Farmer’s Market will be open that night as well.
“We are also going to be doing a cool event called Friday Nights at the Festhalle beginning the first Friday in May,” said Harbison. “Basically, once a month we will be staying open late at the Farmer’s Market with extended hours. Farmers will be able to stay from about 3:30 p.m. to about 7:30 or 8 at night. We will have food trucks on site, and bands playing and downtown businesses will also be staying open late.”
This new late evening event will allow those who are not able to make it to the regular hours of the market to have the chance to support local growers.
“The hours are normally 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday,” said Harbison. “So a lot people are not able to make it out there at those times due to work. So we are thinking that this Friday night event will become a cool hangout where people can spend a Friday evening.”
Agriculture is still the biggest industry in Cullman, and according to Harbison, supporting these local farmer’s keeps that tradition alive, as well as adding benefits to your home.
“It is really good for local economy when we support our local farmers,” he said. “Another benefit is that when you buy from the store, you don’t know where the produce is from and what pesticides were used or anything. With these farmers, they are on hand to answer any questions. You also can’t beat the freshness of fruits and vegetables freshly harvested the day before as opposed to grocery items that could be a week or two old by the time you take them home.”
For more information on the Farmer’s Market, the Strawberry Festival or Friday Nights at the Festhalle, call 256-734-9157.
