Cottage Foods Workshop June 23rd

Are you a baker? Make great jam? Interesting in creating spice blends? You can start a cottage foods business and sell this summer at the farmers' market!

An artisan breadmaker's display at a farmers' market in Sydney, Australia

The Arlington Farmers' Market is hosting a workshop for those of you interested in starting a home-based foods business with the help of the new Cottage Foods law on Saturday, June 23rd from 11am to 3pm in the Arlington Depot building in downtown Arlington. 

This workshop will give you all the information you need to open your business, navigate regulations, develop a winning brand, and plan for success!

Topics:

Understanding the Cottage Foods Law Q&A with Fred Berman, WSDA

Developing Your Brand with Tamila Morgan, UrbanFarm Naturals

Planning for Success with Carolyn Eslick, Grow Washington

Marketing tactics like attractive labeling can make all the difference!

Bring your questions, ideas, logos, materials, business plans, and a notepad and pen--and come to the table ready to see your dreams develop into your new cottage business!

Registration is $20 per person in advance, or $25 at the door. Find the registration form here, on our Farmers Market Applications page!

Sponsor Thanks: Toby Barnett of Keller Williams Realty

We’d like to take a moment to thank one of the Arlington Farmers’ Markets business community sponsors: Toby Barnett, a realtor with Keller Williams in Marysville! He took a moment to share with us what he’s all about and why he believes that supporting the market is important.

Why do you support the AFM?

Local farmers have to compete against large conglomerate franchises, which tends to push out the small farmers as they cannot compete at scale. As a local business owner, I too have to compete against large teams and franchises, so we are similar in that we both depend on the strength of the local economy. It’s important to purchase locally to maintain a well-rounded business network. Also, farmers markets have healthier, less processed food. Our “fast” lifestyles in America tend to contribute to bad eating habits, so shopping at the market is a way to take a step towards improving our quality of life, and helps us teach our future leaders the importance of a healthy lifestyle.

What sets you and your business apart?

As a second generation real estate broker and University of Washington business graduate, I bring a unique perspective and consider my job to be much more than just showing homes and filling out paperwork. I also make it my mission to know my community inside and out so that I can be a better resource for people relocating who are looking to balance their commute with their hobbies. I am also a tech savvy broker and can help sellers get their home in front of as many buyers as possible on the web and create the most opportunity.



Thanks Toby! You can find Toby on the web at www.barnettassociates.net, by phone at (425) 210-0709, or in person at 1027 State Ave, Suite 102 , in Marysville. Tell him the farmers’ market sent you!



If you’d like to become a business community sponsor of the market and help grow our local food economy, please contact us at arlingtonfarmersmarket@hotmail.com.

FRESH screening at Olympic Theater in Arlington

“FRESH is more than a movie, it’s a gateway to action,” begins the manifesto on the film’s website.

FRESH, a feature documentary film by Ana Sofia Jones, celebrates the food architects around the country who are boldly reinventing local food systems by presenting a solution-based conversation about the needs of the system as a whole—examining the needs of farmers, consumers, and the environment.

The Arlington Farmers’ Market is sponsoring a community screening of FRESH on May 26, 2012, at 11 am at the Olympic Theater in downtown Arlington. Suggested admission is $10 for adults, $5 for kids. Funds raised will benefit the market’s operating costs, especially local advertising to boost market attendance this summer.

 “Farms, like any other business, really benefit from increased visibility through advertising, but most small farms have tiny advertising budgets, this fundraiser will help us drive more patrons to the market this summer, and the farms won’t have to pay for the ads themselves.

After the screening, local farmers will be available for Q&A, and a basket of gardening supplies donated by organic farm Garden Treasures will be raffled off. We encourage our community members to come whether they choose to make a donation or not, and to invite friends and family. We’d just love to see a theater full of advocates for Arlington’s local food system. It would be great to look around at a full house and realize how much we can do when we’re all working together.

See you May 26th, and please bring your neighbor!