Farms

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Sitka wins top market in Alaska honors for third straight year in American Farmland Trust Farmers Market Celebration

The Sitka Farmers Market was the top market in Alaska and ninth in the Pacific region during the American Farmland Trust‘s Farmers Market Celebration voting that ended earlier this week. This was the 11th year of the contest.

This is the third straight year the Sitka Farmers Market has been the top market in Alaska, and fifth time in six years. The contest uses online voting, but each email address is only allowed to vote once so people can’t stuff the ballot box. Voting opened in June and ended earlier this week.

“We have a small market compared to others around the country, but I’m happy the people who visit our market think enough of it to recommend it in this contest,” said Charles Bingham, board president of the Sitka Local Foods Network which sponsors the Sitka Farmers Market. “We thank everybody who came to one of our markets this summer and supported more local food in Sitka and Southeast Alaska.”

The Sitka Farmers Market also was listed on the Guide To Exceptional Markets from the Certified Naturally Grown program this summer.

This year the People’s Choice Award (the only national award this year) went to the Troy Waterfront Farmers Market of Troy, N.Y. Finishing second in the People’s Choice competition was the Coventry Farmers Market (Conn.), followed by the West Windsor Community Farmers Market (N.J.) in third place, the Charlottesville City Market (Va.) in fourth, and the Williamsburg Farmers Market (Va.) in fifth place.

The top market in the Pacific region was the Kaka’ako Farmers Market of Honolulu, Hawai’i. In second place was the Kailua Town Farmers Market of Kailua, Hawai’i, followed by the Moscow Farmers Market (Idaho) in third, the Olympia Farmers Market (Wash.) in fourth, and the Albany Farmers Market (Ore.).

Sitka was the top Alaska market in ninth place. The other Alaska markets to make the top 50 in the Pacific region were the Homer Farmers Market in 18th place and the Soldotna Saturday Farmers Market in 45th place.

The other regional winners were the Flint (Mich.) Farmers Market in the Midwest, the Troy (N.Y.) Waterfront Farmers Market in the Northeast, the Charlottesville (Va.) City Market in the Southeast, and the City of Dripping Springs (Texas) Farmers Market in the Southwest.

The last Sitka Farmers Market of the summer was on Saturday, Sept. 21, but the Sitka Local Foods Network will have a SLFN farm stand with fresh produce from St. Peter’s Fellowship Farm at the 25th annual Running of the Boots costumed fun run fundraiser on Saturday, Sept. 28, at Totem Square park. Registration opens at 10:30 a.m., the costume contest is about 11, and the race starts at 11:30 a.m. The entry fee is $10 for individuals, $30 for families. This event benefits the Sitka Local Foods Network and Youth Advocates of Sitka.

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Scenes from the Sitka Kitch’s class, ‘Bees, Pollinators, and Honey, Oh, My!’

Students at the free Sitka Kitch class, “Bees, Pollinators, and Honey, Oh, My!” on Friday, Sept. 20, learned about the importance of bees in pollinating local plants.

The class was taught by former Sitka resident Christi (Wuerker) Henthorn, who now lives in North Carolina and runs 20 or so bee hives as a side business. Christi also taught the students some basics about beekeeping and some of the challenges faced by bees from chemicals and urban growth. After the class the students had a chance to taste a wide variety of honey types from when the bees are near certain types of plants.

Adrienne Wilber, a Sitka resident who started beekeeping this year, attended the class, and Christi showed some of her bees in a jar and a honeycomb from one of Adrienne’s bee boxes.

Some scenes from the class are in a slideshow below. Also, click here for a link to her PowerPoint presentation (as a PDF document) is below.

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Sitka Kitch to host free class, ‘Bees, Pollinators, and Honey, Oh, My!’, on Sept. 20

Learn the basics of bees, pollinators and honey in this special, free Sitka Kitch class, which takes place from 7-9 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 20, at the Sitka Kitch community rental commercial kitchen.

Christi Henthorn

This class will be led by former Sitka resident Christi (Wuerker) Henthorn, with assistance from Brinnen Carter of Sitka National Historical Park. The class features a short PowerPoint, a Q&A, and some honey tasting. “I will NOT be focusing on discussing becoming a beekeeper, but will answer questions,” Christi said.

Christi lived in Sitka from 2008-2014, when she worked at SEARHC, and now resides in North Carolina, surrounded by BEES!  Although just a side gig, she currently manages 20-plus hives and is very active with the Granville County Beekeepers Association.  Christi is currently working on her Master Beekeeper Certificate through the North Carolina State Beekeepers Association and enjoys talking about bees and pollinators to pretty much anyone who will listen.

Even though this is a free class, we ask people to pre-register so we have an idea how many people plan to attend.

For those who haven’t been to the Sitka Kitch since we moved last year, we now are located in the Sitka Lutheran Church kitchen. Please enter through the back entrance, through the alley off Harbor Drive that runs next to the former location of Bev’s Flowers & Gifts. Please use public street parking and don’t use the small parking lot immediately behind the church.

For more details, contact Chandler O’Connell at 747-7509 or Jasmine Shaw at 747-9440.

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Sitka Farmers Market ranks seventh in PNW, first in Alaska, in early standings from the 11th annual American Farmland Trust Farmers Market Celebration

The American Farmland Trust (AFT) released some early standings on Tuesday, Sept. 10, from the 11th annual AFT Farmers Market Celebration, and the Sitka Farmers Market ranks seventh in the Pacific Northwest and first in Alaska.

The Farmers Market Celebration is a contest where supporters cast their votes online for their favorite markets, and the contest runs through Friday, Sept. 20. The Sitka Farmers Market — a project of the Sitka Local Foods Network — was the top market from Alaska in 2018 and 2017, and took second in 2016. During the final 10 days of the contest, we encourage you to go online and recommend the Sitka Farmers Market. The Sitka Farmers Market also is on the Guide To Exceptional Markets from the Certified Naturally Grown program.

This is the first year the contest has compiled regional standings (before there were only national and state rankings). The Moscow (Idaho) Farmers Market is the top market right now in the Pacific Northwest, followed by the Kaka’ako Farmers Market from Honolulu, Hawaii, and the Olympia Farmers Market from Olympia, Wash.

Besides Sitka in seventh place in the PNW, other Alaska markets in the rankings include the Homer Farmers Market (13th) and the Soldotna Saturday Farmers Market (39th).

The last Sitka Farmers Market of the 2019 summer is from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 21, at the Alaska Native Brotherhood Founders Hall (235 Katlian Street). The Sitka Local Foods Network will host a small farm stand during the 25th annual Running of the Boots costumed fun run fundraiser on Saturday, Sept. 28, at Totem Square Park.

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Scenes from the sixth Sitka Farmers Market of the 2019 summer

PHOTO COURTESY OF SITKA LOCAL FOODS NETWORK
TABLE OF THE DAY: Sitka Farmers Market manager Nina Vizcarrondo, right, presents the Table of the Day award to Nalani James, second from right, her son, Lennox, left, and daughter, Ilima, during the sixth Sitka Farmers Market of the 2019 summer season, held Sept. 7, at the Alaska Native Brotherhood Founders Hall. Nalani sold a variety of baked goods, including chocolate chip cookies, lemon bars, muffins with local berries and carrot cake. She received a certificate, a Sitka Farmers Market tote bag, a Sitka Local Foods Network apron, a Redoubt Rhubarb t-shirt, some salad mix, beets and chard from St. Peter’s Fellowship Farm, some taster straws of Bridge Creek Birch Syrup, a Chugach Chocolate candy bar, a jar of Evie’s Brinery fermented food, and some Barnacle Foods kelp salsa. The Sitka Farmers Market recently was listed on the Exceptional Markets list by the Certified Naturally Grown program. The last Sitka Farmers Market is from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 21, at ANB Founders Hall (235 Katlian St.), plus there will be a Sitka Local Foods Network farm stand at the Running of the Boots event on Sept. 28 at Totem Square park. For more information, go to http://www.sitkalocalfoodsnetwork.org, or like our Sitka Local Foods Network page on Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/SitkaLocalFoodsNetwork, and our Sitka Farmers Market page on Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/SitkaFarmersMarket.

It was a slow weekend when we held our sixth Sitka Farmers Market of the season on Saturday, Sept. 7, at the Alaska Native Brotherhood Founders Hall. We didn’t have as many booths, but there still was steady business at the market.

Now that we’re deeper into the season, we had more produce available than in our earlier markets, and this time we had some extra produce left at the end of the market that was donated to the Salvation Army soup kitchen. Even though is was a smaller market, our vendors had a wide range of other products for sale. We had vendors selling Indian tacos and frybread; home-baked bread; fresh, frozen or jarred seafood; homemade caramels; garlic, lettuce, carrots and other produce; arts and crafts; and more. And this year we introduced a couple of new Alaska Grown product lines at the Sitka Local Foods Network’s farm stand.

The last Sitka Farmers Market takes place from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 21, at the ANB Founders Hall. Also, mark Saturday, Sept. 28, on your calendar for the 25th annual Running of the Boots fundraiser (and farm stand) at Totem Square Park. We still have room for new vendors at our last farmers market.

To learn how to be a vendor at the market or how to be a volunteer, contact market manager Nina Vizcarrondo at (907) 738-9301 or assistant manager Charles Bingham (907) 623-7660, or email us at sitkafarmersmarket@gmail.com. We also have a kids vendor program at the market for young entrepreneurs age 12 or younger. Don’t forget to like our Sitka Farmers Market page on Facebook.

A slideshow of scenes from the sixth Sitka Farmers Market of 2019 is posted below.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

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Scenes from the fifth Sitka Farmers Market of the 2019 summer

PHOTO COURTESY OF SITKA LOCAL FOODS NETWORK
TABLE OF THE DAY: Sitka Farmers Market manager Nina Vizcarrondo, third from left, presents Nancy Furlow, left, Rachel Henderson, second from left, and Grace Larsen, right, of the Alaska Native Sisterhood Camp No. 4 with the Table of the Day award during the fifth Sitka Farmers Market of the 2019 summer season, held Aug. 31, at the Alaska Native Brotherhood Founders Hall. ANS Camp No. 4 sold Grace’s frybread and Indian tacos. They received a certificate, a Sitka Farmers Market tote bag, two Sitka Local Foods Network t-shirts, some salad mix from St. Peter’s Fellowship Farm, some taster straws of Bridge Creek Birch Syrup, a Chugach Chocolate candy bar, a jar of Evie’s Brinery fermented food, and some Barnacle Foods kelp salsa. The Sitka Farmers Market recently was listed on the Exceptional Markets list by the Certified Naturally Grown program. The next Sitka Farmers Market is from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 7, at ANB Founders Hall (235 Katlian St.). The last market this summer is Sept. 21, plus there will be a Sitka Local Foods Network farm stand at the Running of the Boots event on Sept. 28. For more information, go to http://www.sitkalocalfoodsnetwork.org, or like our Sitka Local Foods Network page on Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/SitkaLocalFoodsNetwork, and our Sitka Farmers Market page on Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/SitkaFarmersMarket.

It was a busy weekend when we held our fifth Sitka Farmers Market of the season on Saturday, Aug. 31, at the Alaska Native Brotherhood Founders Hall. In addition to our farmers market, the Sitka Mermaid Festival and Sitka Seafood Festival had a marketplace at the same time, and the Mudball softball tournament was in full swing.

Now that we’re deeper into the season, we had more produce available than in our earlier markets. But we still ran out of most of our produce fairly early. Still, our vendors had a wide range of other products for sale. We had vendors selling Indian tacos and frybread; home-baked bread; fresh, frozen or jarred seafood; homemade caramels; garlic, lettuce, carrots and other produce; arts and crafts; and more. We also had a food truck outside (Ashmo’s). And this year we introduced a couple of new Alaska Grown product lines at the Sitka Local Foods Network’s farm stand.

The next Sitka Farmers Market takes place from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 7, at the ANB Founders Hall. The last market of the season is scheduled for Sept. 21. Also, mark Saturday, Sept. 28, on your calendar for the annual Running of the Boots fundraiser (and farm stand). We still have room for new vendors at our last two farmers markets.

To learn how to be a vendor at the market or how to be a volunteer, contact market manager Nina Vizcarrondo at (907) 738-9301 or assistant manager Charles Bingham (907) 623-7660, or email us at sitkafarmersmarket@gmail.com. We also have a kids vendor program at the market for young entrepreneurs age 12 or younger. Don’t forget to like our Sitka Farmers Market page on Facebook.

A slideshow of scenes from the fifth Sitka Farmers Market of 2019 is posted below.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

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Check out the September 2019 edition of the Sitka Local Foods Network newsletter

The Sitka Local Foods Network just sent out the September 2019 edition of its monthly newsletter. Feel free to click this link to get a copy.

This month’s newsletter includes short stories about the 25th annual Running of the Boots costumed fun run fundraiser, info about the last three Sitka Farmers Markets, info about the new Sitka Farmers Market tote bags, a reminder that Aug. 31 is the last day you can update your Pick.Click.Give. donations on your 2019 Alaska Permanent Fund Dividend application, and an invitation to join the Sitka Local Foods Network’s board of directors. Each story has links to our website for more information.

You can sign up for future editions of our newsletter by clicking on the newsletter image in the right column of our website and filling in the information. If you received a copy but didn’t want one, there is a link at the bottom of the newsletter so you can unsubscribe. Our intention is to get the word out about upcoming events and not to spam people. We will protect your privacy by not sharing our email list with others. Don’t forget to like us on Facebook, like our Sitka Farmers Market page on Facebook and follow us on Twitter (@SitkaLocalFoods).

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Scenes from the fourth Sitka Farmers Market of the 2019 summer

PHOTO COURTESY OF SITKA LOCAL FOODS NETWORK
TABLE OF THE DAY: Sitka Farmers Market manager Nina Vizcarrondo, left, presents Patty Dick of the Noow Tlein Dancers Fundraiser with the Table of the Day award during the fourth Sitka Farmers Market of the 2019 summer season, held Aug. 17, at the Alaska Native Brotherhood Founders Hall. Patty sold baked goods, Tlingít drums, medicinal herbs and tinctures, and painted rocks. She received a certificate, a Sitka Farmers Market tote bag, a Sitka Local Foods Network t-shirt, some onions from St. Peter’s Fellowship Farm, some taster straws of Bridge Creek Birch Syrup, a Chugach Chocolate candy bar, and some Barnacle Foods kelp salsa. The Sitka Farmers Market recently was listed on the Exceptional Markets list by the Certified Naturally Grown program. The next Sitka Farmers Market is from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 31, at ANB Founders Hall (235 Katlian St.). Other markets this summer are Sept. 7, and Sept. 21, plus there will be a Sitka Local Foods Network farm stand at the Running of the Boots event on Sept. 28. For more information, go to http://www.sitkalocalfoodsnetwork.org, or like our Sitka Local Foods Network page on Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/SitkaLocalFoodsNetwork, and our Sitka Farmers Market page on Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/SitkaFarmersMarket.

It was a bit cloudy and misty when we held our fourth Sitka Farmers Market of the season on Saturday, Aug. 17, at the Alaska Native Brotherhood Founders Hall. Luckily, the rain ended and the clouds lifted before the market did.

Now that we’re deeper into the season, we had more produce available than in our earlier markets. But we still ran out of most of our produce fairly early. Still, our vendors had a wide range of other products for sale. We had vendors selling Indian tacos and frybread; home-baked bread; fresh, frozen or jarred seafood; garlic scapes, lettuce, carrots and other produce; jams and jellies; arts and crafts; and more. We also had two food trucks outside (Castaway and the Smoothie Truck). We also introduced a couple of new Alaska Grown product lines at the Sitka Local Foods Network’s farm stand.

The next Sitka Farmers Market takes place from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 31, at the ANB Founders Hall. There also are markets scheduled for Sept. 7, and Sept. 21. Also, mark Saturday, Sept. 28, on your calendar for the annual Running of the Boots fundraiser (and farm stand).

To learn how to be a vendor at the market or how to be a volunteer, contact market manager Nina Vizcarrondo at (907) 738-9301 or assistant manager Charles Bingham (907) 623-7660, or email us at sitkafarmersmarket@gmail.com. We also have a kids vendor program at the market for young entrepreneurs age 12 or younger. Don’t forget to like our Sitka Farmers Market page on Facebook.

A slideshow of scenes from the fourth Sitka Farmers Market of 2019 is posted below.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

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Check out the August 2019 edition of the Sitka Local Foods Network newsletter

The Sitka Local Foods Network just sent out the August 2019 edition of its monthly newsletter. Feel free to click this link to get a copy.

This month’s newsletter includes short stories about National Farmers Market Week from Aug. 4-10 and our Sitka Farmers Market on Aug. 10, our new Sitka Farmers Market tote bags, a reminder that the deadline to add or change your Pick.Click.Give. donations is Aug. 31, info about new classes at the Sitka Kitch, and an invitation to join the Sitka Local Foods Network’s board of directors. Each story has links to our website for more information.

You can sign up for future editions of our newsletter by clicking on the newsletter image in the right column of our website and filling in the information. If you received a copy but didn’t want one, there is a link at the bottom of the newsletter so you can unsubscribe. Our intention is to get the word out about upcoming events and not to spam people. We will protect your privacy by not sharing our email list with others. Don’t forget to like us on Facebook, like our Sitka Farmers Market page on Facebook and follow us on Twitter (@SitkaLocalFoods).

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Two Sitka businesses make the finals in 2019 Path to Prosperity sustainable business development competition

Volunteers and staff of the Sitka Food Co-Op during one of the twice-monthly food deliveries held at Harrigan Centennial Hall.

Two Sitka businesses — the Sitka Food Co-Op and M/V Adak Short- and Long-Term Rentals — have been chosen as finalists in the 2019 Path to Prosperity sustainable business development competition, joining 11 others from Southeast Alaska in the second round of the contest. Started by Sealaska and The Nature Conservancy in 2013 and now run by Spruce Root, Path to Prosperity (P2P) is an award-winning competition for small businesses and start-ups located in the region.

Customers wait to pay their bills during a recent Sitka Food Co-Op food delivery.

The Sitka Food Cooperative, or Sitka Food Co-Op, is “a buying club on steroids,” according to general manager Keith Nyitray. The group started in 2011 as a way for local residents to order healthy food for less than what they’d pay in Sitka grocery stores. It now works with local food producers, giving them a venue to sell their products during the twice-monthly delivery days.

“Being selected as a finalist in the P2P competition is indeed an honor and we look forward to meeting and possibly working with all the other finalists and, more importantly, we look forward to learning how to grow our business and increase our positive social and environmental impacts here in Sitka and SE Alaska,” Nyitray wrote in an email. “For the past eight years the Co-op has been growing (pardon the pun) organically and we’re now on the verge of a major expansion. It’s definitely a challenging time and that’s where the professional and technical support we’ll get through the P2P competition (and from Spruce Root) will come in handy and help us ‘Bring Good Food & Community Together’ to a much greater degree.”

The M/V Adak is a WWII-era tugboat owned by Brendan and Rachel Jones that serves as a bed and breakfast.

Owned by Brendan and Rachel Jones, the M/V Adak is a WWII-era tugboat that serves as a bed and breakfast in Sitka. Even though the business may not, at first glance, have much to do with local food, the Jones family has added a local food component.

“The Joneses join up with third-generation Sitka troller Karl Jordan to provide Alaska’s first sustainable pescatourism experience,” Brendan Jones wrote in an email. “This joint venture will provide guests the opportunity to experience a day in the life of a commercial fishermen, trolling Sitka Sound and Cape Edgecumbe, followed by a night on a vintage World War II tugboat, as Beak chef Renee Trafton instructs guests on how to prepare king salmon. Alaska’s Native heritage, as well as environmentally sound fishing and living practices will be highlighted as visitors gain insight into life on a remote Alaska island.”

In Round 2 of the competition, finalists will participate in Path to Prosperity’s innovative Business Boot Camp where they will get access to resources, work with mentors, and receive one-on-one consulting to develop their business models and plans. Nine of the 13 finalists deal with food first, and a couple of others also have food as a secondary focus to the business. Sitka is the only community to have more than one business make the finals this year. The following businesses were selected as this year’s finalists:

  • Business Name, Applicant, Location
  • Alaska Costal Seaweed, Theresa Abbas, Juneau
  • Around the Bay Lodging, Susan Ritchie, Wrangell
  • Foundroot, Leah Wagner, Haines
  • Gale Force Gardens, Stephanie Jurries, Craig
  • Jellyfish Donuts, Brianna Krantz, Ketchikan
  • Kaawu Shellfish Co., Anthony Lindoff, Hoonah
  • Kootéeyaa Koffee House, Lee Wallace, Saxman
  • M/V Adak Short- and Long-Term Rentals, Brendan Jones, Sitka
  • Sagebrush Dry Gear, John Peterka, Kake
  • Sitka Food Co-Op, Keith Nyitray, Sitka
  • Tamico, Inc., Carrie J. K. Martinsen, Petersburg
  • Tommaso Shellfish, James Greeley, Whale Pass
  • Village Coffee Co., Justyne Wheeler, Yakutat

“Each year, Path to Prosperity receives exciting new business ideas from startups throughout our region, with this year being more competitive than ever,” says program administrator Ashley Snookes. A total of 43 entrepreneurs from 12 communities applied to Path to Prosperity in 2019. “An essential component to economic growth in our region is the growth of small businesses, and we are thrilled to help these businesses thrive.”

A guest of the M/V Adak holds up a couple of king salmon

According to UAA’s Center for Economic Development’s State of Entrepreneurship report, startups contribute 4,000 to 6,000 new jobs to Alaska’s economy each year, with Southeast Alaska contributing the highest percentage of businesses per population in the state. From oyster farming and kelp harvesting in our pristine ocean waters, to truly Alaskan experiences for visitors, to manufacturing the best dry bags one could ask for, the 2019 Path to Prosperity finalists are defining the local products and services of the last frontier, creating jobs, and driving local, sustainable, economic growth.

Over the past seven years, Path to Prosperity has received more than 250 applications from Southeast Alaskan small business owners and entrepreneurs across 22 communities. The program has trained 76 finalists at Business Boot Camp and awarded 13 winners $460,000 to build their local businesses. All of the participants have been trained in the “triple-bottom-line” approach to building a business by learning to measure their profitability as well as the environmental and social impacts of their business. Previous competition winners include Skyaana Coffee Co. (Klawock), Barnacle Foods (Juneau), The Salty Pantry (Petersburg), Port Chilkoot Distillery (Haines), Icy Straits Lumber (Hoonah), and others.

Path to Prosperity is a Spruce Root program. Spruce Root provides local entrepreneurs with access to business development and financial resources in the form of loan capital, business coaching, workshop, and competitions. Together, these programs support both new and existing businesses in Southeast Alaska and empower business owners through increased self-sufficiency.

To learn more about Path to Prosperity or Spruce Root’s other services, visit their website at www.spruceroot.org or email grow@spruceroot.org. Also, to learn about the Path to Prosperity Master Class (deadline to register is July 31, cost is $450), click this link, https://www.spruceroot.org/2019masterclass.