Ottawa Main Farmers’ Market — operated for years at Saint Paul University on Main Street — will move temporarily to the Canadian Museum of Nature for both the 2015 and 2016 season beginning May 2. It’s a plan that both the museum and the food sellers hope to reap benefits from.
“We could not be more pleased with the new partnership with the Canadian Museum of Nature,” said Sue Cavanaugh, chair of the Main Farmers’ Market board of directors, in a press release after an extensive search for a new temporary home.
“Our market has always been committed to making local products available in the downtown core and creating a gathering place for the community. We look forward to continuing this at the museum.”
The farmers who sell produce reached out to the museum after learning that the market, in Old Ottawa East would have to relocate while major road construction takes place along Main Street.
The McLeod Street museum met the farmers’ request with open arms, says spokesman Dan Smythe.
“We’re quite happy about working with them for the next two seasons,” he says. “We feel that it will be an interesting experience on Saturdays for the people of Ottawa. We feel it’s a nice fit for us to host the farmers’ market in Centretown.”
He adds: “We’re thinking of the museum as a destination that goes beyond a visitors and knowledge destination. We’re trying to think of it as a community spot and it has been that for 100 years since it opened. So in a way we’re just keeping up with our traditions here.”
A number of community groups and other organizations are already using the museum for certain events. It also hosts conferences and weddings. Now, each Saturday from May 2 until the fall, the market will be offering its products to museum guests and other Ottawa residents.
Representatives of the community-run market say they are thrilled to enter new fields and will feature more than 30 vendors offering a range of locally produced or packaged meats, vegetables, baked goods and crafts, all from within 100 miles (160 kilometers) of downtown Ottawa. The market stalls will be set up along the front plaza of the museum, the area that faces McLeod Street
“We’re definitely excited,” says market spokesperson Christine MacIntyre. “The museum is a beautiful spot and it opens up Centretown for us. We hope that the new venue will bring more people to us who will have the unique opportunity to meet and get to know the people, who grow and make their food.
She adds that it will offer residents of Centretown an opportunity to see and enjoy fresh, seasonal foods. One of businesses in the area that is looking forward to seize the opportunity to establishing connections with Main Farmers’ Market vendors is Ivan Gedz, owner of local restaurant Union 613.
“Supporting local farmers, community groups and food security have been important to this restaurant from its inception and we are very excited to be able to forge new relationships with farmers from our region, specifically the chance to meet them face-to-face and talk about the produce,” he said on the Markets website.
“You just can’t beat that quality and freshness that comes with just harvested goods that have been nurtured with care, and often by hand. I think this will be a great boon to the Elgin to Bank corridor.”
The museum calls the collaboration with the Main Market a “win-win situation” and Smythe says they hope the partnership will attract more clientele for both.
“We feel that we’re a good location for a market like this. It’s a very popular area, so from a location perspective we thought it would make sense for the market to use us,” says Smythe.
“But we are also getting something out of this. The market offers fresh products that our visitors on Saturday might enjoy picking up on their way home for Saturday dinner – and there will certainly be coming people to the market that maybe want to pop into the museum, as well. So it absolutely works for the both of us.”