Santa Clarita farmers markets are a big part of our community, serving both as an opportunity to get fresh produce directly from the source, instead of shopping at your local grocery store, and being a great way to support local SCV businesses and families. 

In Santa Clarita there are three main farmers markets: there is the Valencia FivePoint farmers market, the Old Town Newhall farmers market, and the Santa Clarita farmers market. The Valencia FivePoint farmers market is open every Sunday 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., the Old Town Newhall farmers market is open every Saturday 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m , and the Santa Clarita farmers market is open every Sunday from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. All three of these markets offer a wide variety of produce, food, drinks, and other products. 

Purchasing from farmers markets instead of grocery stores can be beneficial in a plethora of ways, like helping our community. One of the local business owners, Tony, who owns Antipasti LA, spoke to us about farmers markets and how they can help benefit our community and people’s health. When asked why he believes these farmers markets can benefit our community, Tony responded, “It helps overall create a sense of community with the people around us. A lot of people go grocery shopping and go in and out of stores but don’t actually talk to people and make conversations. Having that connection with people helps them understand what’s going into their bodies and it builds a sense of community.” 

Farmers markets also provide healthier options than grocery stores. When Tony was asked about how he thought the farmers markets helped promote better health, he said, “Having an understanding of where it comes from gives a sense of direction and [knowing] what is in your food. Everything in the grocery stores is processed, here it is just from the farm to the market to your door.” During the interview Tony provided an amazing point of view on these farmers markets and how they serve a paramount role in our community.

Melinda Gilmore, the owner of Gilmore Girls Coffee spoke to us about how it feels like to be a small business owner at a farmer’s market and her journey as a business owner. When asked about why she chose farmers markets she said, “I was doing some consulting work and I didn’t enjoy it. I wanted to do something I would enjoy so I told my daughter let’s start a coffee business.” Melinda Gilmore is one example of a business owner who pursued what she really wanted to do and made it a success. 

Farmers markets are a big part of a community and can really bring people together. They are also a great benefit to the community by promoting healthier choice options. You are able to know exactly where you are getting your groceries from and it can really help you to understand how your food is being prepared before you consume it. It also has many health benefits due to your food being freshly grown without pesticides rather than processed food you get at the grocery store. 

However, for some, these farmers markets are the main source of income for people. When interviewing the owners of “Lemon Shake Ups” created by Tracey and David they mentioned how during the pandemic they both got laid off from their jobs and with all their newfound free time put their skills together and created a business. David mentions how he was in the film industry but with all the covid regulations he lost his job because no filming was going on, and Tracey adds how she was in accounting but with covid happening they had to lay off half the staff her being one of them. These farmers markets are not just about produce and baked goods, but also a beautiful story of how and why the business came to be. After the interview David gave us a very inspirational speech and said “Don’t let another person destroy another’s dreams and how if someone tells you no, you say okay walk away and do it again because you shouldn’t care what other people think you can and can’t do”. He emphasized this a lot for the solid reason that he is part of the latino community and growing up added how “things were difficult back then, nobody wanted to hire a person of color”.