MARTINSVILLE, VA – The Harvest Foundation provided a $15,000 Pick Up the Pace! grant to the Martinsville-Henry County Chamber of Commerce’s Partnership for Economic Growth to open a virtual farmers’ market.
It will be open for shopping starting on Sunday for the first market pick up on July 18 with goods available for purchase online.
“There are many people who want to eat locally and support local farmers and producers, but the pandemic has made it more challenging. The virtual farmers’ market will provide an additional way for the community to access healthy local foods,” said India Brown, Harvest Foundation program officer.
Kimberly Keller, uptown entrepreneurial development manager for C-PEG, said as a result of COVID-19, the Uptown Farmers’ Market was not easily accessible to individuals within the community who are high-risk or not comfortable going out in public to shop at this time.
“The public needed a safe option to shop for goods while our vendors needed a safe method to sell,” Keller added. “We are thrilled to have the opportunity to implement a virtual farmers’ market, and to work with Harvest Foundation to eliminate issues regarding safety concerns and access to the market during this time.”
Keller said while they welcome customers to shop at the market onsite, they are encouraging customers to take extra precautions and place their orders online and pick up at the market to remain safe and well.
The virtual farmers’ market will make the online shopping experience easier, Keller said, as customers can shop with multiple vendors at one site and pay by checking out one time versus with each vendor.
Customers can access the virtual farmers’ market here.