Farmers market in western Henrico opens April 25

Western Henrico to get farmers market April 25 Twice-weekly Gayton Road market is part of a growing trend in the Richmond area

Henrico County is fairly new to the farmers-market movement, but it's making up for lost time.

This month, the Henrico Board of Supervisors approved the West End Farmers Market, which will operate twice weekly at the Gayton Centre Shopping Center at Gayton Road and Ridgefield Parkway.

It joins the Lakeside Farmers' Market, which began last year on Wednesdays and Saturdays at 6110 Lakeside Ave. The Crossroads Market, inside the Crossroads Art Center off Staples Mill Road, began operating March 5.

The new market is being established thanks to Kris Riley. She waited 10 years for someone to open a farmers market in western Henrico. Eventually, with the last of her three children entering school, she decided it was time she did it herself.

The West End Farmers Market will be open from 8 a.m. until noon, Wednesdays and Saturdays, from April 25 to the second Saturday in December. About 25 vendors have committed to the market, Riley said.

"I grew up on a produce farm and I became passionate about fresh products," she said of her childhood in New Jersey. "I try to buy locally and to get my hands on organic products."

All products sold are required to be produced within 100 miles of the market, except seafood, which must be from Virginia, Maryland or North Carolina.

A minimum of 75 percent of vendors must sell edible products, and no more than 25 percent may be artisans. No crafts or flea-market items will be permitted.

"Consumers should be able to get everything they need for dinner, including fresh bread and a pie for dessert," Riley said.

The market will sell heirloom vegetables, eggs, organic meats, dairy products, and flowers and plants, Riley said.

Wednesday's markets will target groups, including children, who can learn about trades from the vendors and have story time.

The Richmond area has caught the national wave of interest in buying local, said Elaine Lidholm, communications director for the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.

"You've got the combination of the economy, security, wanting to know your farmer and costs, though things you buy at the farmers market are not always cheaper," she said.

The bigger explanation might be the simplest one, she said.

"Part of the 'buy local' thing is that if someone picked it that morning, it's going to be fresher, it's going to taste better and it's going to be more nutritious."

Contact Lisa Crutchfield at (804) 649-6362 or .