The Dane County Farmer’s Market kicked off its first market of the year with large crowds and sunny weather Saturday.
Bill Warner, owner of Snug Haven Farm in Belleville, Wis., and former director of the Dane County Farmer’s Market, said a few new vendors arrived for this year’s market but the venue is so far seeing familiar faces from years past.
Warner said there are 10 or 12 permanent vendors on each side of the Capitol Square where vendors have purchased the spot for the entire year. He said there is seniority to how spots are delegated, and this year there are only five new vendors.
Warner said the market is unique primarily because of its location on the Capitol Square as well as it being the biggest producer market in the U.S.
As a producer market, he said producers must “grow what they sell.” There are different rules for different products, and the owners of each business must be present at the market.
“This is the best market in the U.S.,” Warner said. “There are more people here than anywhere else.”
Pete McCluskey of the McCluskey Brothers Farm in Hillpoint, Wis., said this is the fourth year his farm has sold their products at the Dane County Farmer’s Market.
Among the products sold by the McCluskey Brothers are organic grass-fed beef, maple syrup, daffodils and other flowers, garlic, leeks, Morel mushrooms and other seasonal vegetables, and this year the farm will produce its own cheese.
“It’s a gorgeous day for the market,” McCluskey said. “This is a good place; we’re right here by the Capitol, so that’s a neat piece of Wisconsin history.”
He said though this is his first year personally to the Dane County Farmer’s Market, he is pleased to see so many people, equating the constant flow of people around the square to the long line at the Madison Senior Center to the winter farmer’s market.
From 6:40 a.m. onwards, McCluskey said the stream of market-goers was fairly constant Saturday and the influx of people was almost always new.
“What’s neat is seeing all the different races and cultures walk through here,” McCluskey said. “There’s a lot of diversity in this city. If you don’t venture out, you don’t see much of it, but it’s here.”
Bob Fenbert of Merrimac, Wis., said he comes to the Dane County Farmer’s Market a few times a year but more often to the less crowded Wednesday market held on Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard.
He said the market changes slightly from year to year and there are different vendors in the spring versus the summer, depending what products are in season.
“It kind of brings in the spring,” Fenbert said. “It’s fun to see people and kids here, and it’s a beautiful day.”
University of Wisconsin junior Alex Sorensen said he comes often to the market, only missing a few every year. He said it is convenient for him because he lives near the Capitol and he is able to get fresher produce than he would at the grocery store.
He said he enjoys the market being the biggest producer market in the state and the location around the Square.
“It’s something everyone does, so it’s a really great tradition,” Sorensen said.
