 St. Thomas is the perfect place to shop farm to table essentials. The area has a wide variety of markets, stalls, and farms that offer fresh produce, baked goods, meat, dairy, and cupboard staples. Shopping locally is easier than you might think. Follow me through a day at the markets and see all the goods I pick up to create my own market basket composed of products that are $10 or less. Horton Farmers' Market Horton Farmer’s Market runs all year long, but is at its peak time during the summer. With vendor stands inside and outside the Horton building, there is always a wide variety of goods offered every single week! Find fresh produce, meat, cheese, prepared foods & drinks, and artisanal goods all in one spot.
Briwood Farm Market Briwood Farm Market has a large outdoor garden center with fresh flowers, trees, vegetable plants, and more. Inside, find a large produce section, deli, and dairy section that also features Mistyglen dairy products and Shaw’s Icecream. Find a variety of bulk products like flour, nuts, seeds, dried fruit, and more. Their pantry section is filled with cupboard essentials along with Dutch and other specialty products. There is always something new to try at Briwood Farm Market.
SParta LAvender FArm Tour the parterre gardens with over 10,000 lavender plants in their field at Sparta Lavender Farm. View their seasonal flower garden, pollinator garden, and butterfly garden. Inside is a small shop with women owned vendors or housemade products from the lavender grown at the farm. Find salad dressings, culinary lavender, soap, facial oil, stain sticks, and more. Owner Karen Parr’s favourite product is their Radiance Facial Serum that she uses daily.
Old Imperial Market Every Saturday the Old Imperial Market fills with a variety of vendors with farm fresh produce, baked goods, frozen meals, fresh meat, and artisanal goods. One of the highlights of the market is Abby Mae’s Gluten Free Cafe and Bakery, open daily. Find cookies, brownies, specialty coffees, and teas all made gluten-free.
Clovermead Honey Shop Clovermead is home to over 24,000,000 bees, who make the delicious honey that the Hiemstra family has been selling for generations. The honey shop offers a wide variety of honey-related products such as spreadable honey, bee pollen, salad dressings, beeswax candles, and more. Behind the honey shop is Clovermead’s Adventure Farm with over 65 attractions, including: play kitchens, play grounds, animal barns, and mazes.
Mistyglen Creamery Mistyglen Creamery is family-owned by farmers who have lived in Elgin County since 1816. Today, the farm focuses on dairy cows, the creamery, and store front. Mistyglen dairy products differ from those at the store due to their processing procedures. Mistyglen Creamery does not homogenize their milk to keep the milk fat whole instead of breaking it apart and re-adding the fat to the milk in order to keep more of the naturally occurring enzymes and properties of the milk that aid in natural digestion. Mistyglen pasteurizes their milk at a lower temperature for a longer period of time, opposed to the faster process of heating the milk to a higher temperature and killing off not just harmful bacteria, but the natural enzymes and properties from dairy that aid in digestion. Owners Kris and Tom are looking to soon expand their farm and amalgamate Kris’ passion for geriatric nursing and implement programs at their farm to help local elderly dementia patients.
Howe's Farm Market & Bakery Howe’s Farm Market & Bakery is full of fresh produce from across Ontario and from Howe’s own farm just outside of Aylmer. Their baked goods section is full of seasonal favourites made from scratch, including strawberry pie in the spring and caramel apple in the fall. Also find shelves full of delicious preserves ranging from pickled beans and relish to peach and blackberry jam. Howe’s is known for their delicious strawberries in the spring and summer and their award-winning pumpkin patch in the fall.
Harris Flower Farm Harris Flower Farm has been in the Harris family for generations. They create beautiful bouquets with flowers they grow themselves on their farm. Find them at the Horton Farmers’ Market every Saturday with beautiful seasonal bouquets of varying sizes and varieties.
Ferguson's Produce Ferguson’s Produce is a local favourite. The small farm stall features fresh seasonal favourites, including their infamous strawberries and corn, sold during the summer. The farm stall is on a first-come, first-served basis, so come early if you want to snag their produce before they sell out.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
