The fall 2023 season for the Farmers Market at the University of Maryland came to an end on November 15, leaving students and vendors to say goodbye to this yearly tradition.
The market opened on August 30 and has been active every Wednesday. With fourteen vendors from small businesses around College Park, the Farmers Market offers students a variety of products such as spices, bakery items, fresh produce, jams, handmade jewelry, popcorn, coffee and more unique items.
Arushi Srinivasan, a freshman computer science major at the University of Maryland, was a regular weekly visitor of the farmers market due to the large array of products.
“I like the fact that I can get bread, coffee, pickles and also that there’s a vegan booth,” Srinivasan said.
While explaining her love for one of the vendors, RavenHook Bakehouse, Srinivasan agreed that she was going to miss the fall farmers market and all of the products that it had to offer.
Melanie Parker, the owner of the baked goods and pastry business Mel’s Munchies, has been a vendor at the farmers market since 2019. When asked about why she has continued to return to the farmers market every year, she explained that through being a vendor at the farmers market, she has, “develop[ed] a relationship with different students every year.”
Parker continued on to say how she has made connections with students and returns each year to see them grow up and eventually graduate. Parker also said that she returns to the farmers market every year because it has, “more of an upbeat energy than other markets.”
Students and vendors alike look at the farmers market as a fun experience that provides them with fond memories and breaks in their busy schedules.
While the fall season of the farmers market has drawn to a close, there will be a one-day University of Maryland Holiday Market on December 6, as well as a spring season of the farmers market beginning in April 2024. Even though the fall farmers market has ended, there are still many more markets to look forward to in the coming months!