SNAP FUNDRAISER TOUR OF THREE LOCAL AND HISTORIC FARMS SPONSORED BY lEXINGTON FARMERS MARKET

Maintaining the farming heritage of Lexington:  the LFM brings fresh, healthy food to all through a SNAP fundraising tour of three LOCAL & historic farms

For 5 years the Lexington Farmers Market has offered a double incentive to our snap customers, encouraging them to shop, cook and eat locally grown nutritious foods. When SNAP customers shop at the LFM, we provide them with DOUBLE their SNAP money (up to $20.) Thus, one is able to purchase 40$ worth of nutrient dense-farmed foods for $20. As a result, our SNAP customers have been increasing annually; in 2013, we gave away $2500.

This saturday we are hosting fundraiser / “garden tour” . On June 14th,  from  9:00-11:30  we are hosting a VERY “local farms” tour, to honor the agricultural tradition of this town. Three historic farms:  two in Lexington and one in Winchester are the focus of this event. Preservation of these farms and the sustainable methods in which they  are being farmed is to be celebrated.  The more local farms we can support, the healthier our community and all it’s inhabitants.  These farms are a haven from the hectic lives we lead, bringing us back to our roots, our sustenance. 

Our first farm is one mile from the center of Lexington. Meadow Mist Farm is the former Meek Dairy Farm of the early 1900’s, which produced dairy products and later wholesale vegetables on 16 acres. Today, John and Lauren farm the remaining 6 acre parcel, off Marrett Rd. on Bacon St. They are using organic feeds, making their own compost, and avoiding any type of insecticide, herbicide or fungicide. Meadow Mist raises beef, lamb, chicken, pork and eggs, and grows vegetables and berries in season. Though small in size, Meadow Mist today is a working farm, an integral part of the local community, and an unspoiled remnant of the town's once vital agricultural past.

Lexington Community Farm, is a non-profit community farm in the location of the old Busa Farm,  bordering the Arlington  Reservoir.  Janet Kern, previously an LFM volunteer, managed a successful grassroots effort to preserve the land. The town had purchased this parcel with the intention of building soccer fields and housing. The mission for Lexington Community Farm is to "preserve and transform this historic farmland for public benefit: offering hands-on education, volunteer, and recreation programs, food donations to food pantries, and making the landscape of a working farm accessible to residents of all ages."

Lastly, Wright-Locke Farm in Winchester, which has been operating as a farm since 1638! In 2007, the Town of Winchester purchased the farm to protect the 20 acres from intensive residential development.  The Town formed the Wright-Locke Farm Conservancy to oversee the operation of the farmstead and arable fields, and in 2011, granted the Conservancy a 30-year lease on 7.6 acres that comprise the present day farm. Wright-Locke has a CSA and pick your own raspberries. A barn built 1827 is used for farm-to-table dinner parties and events, such as the family farm nights held Thursdays beginning mid-June. Local musical groups perform and families can picnic while meandering about the farm. These events are free, and the family "PICNIC" dinner can be ordered ahead of time and delivered by BISTRO 7, a wonderful Italian restaurant that features locally sourced foods, in Medford.