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Old July 18, 2017   #421
Urbanheirlooms
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Default Our Market This Year

I sell my tomatoes wholesale to a Farm to Table farmers market which in turn resells them and does not allow outside vendors for the produce section of the market. I regularly volunteer to help promote this market and push sales. Last weekend, we had an event which was deemed Tomato mania and had a tasting & vote table. This was highly successful and we probably sold 200-300# of tomatoes at an average cost of $4.00 per pound that day. Here are some pictures:





[IMG][/IMG]

It was a lot of fun and we had a huge crowd. The results were favorite:

Mr. Stripey
German Pink
Pink Berkley Tie Dye
Mortgage Lifter
Green Zebra
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Old July 18, 2017   #422
bower
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That looks great, Urban! Once again, flowers and tomatoes are very eye-catching together!
I'm glad to hear it was such a success.
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Old July 18, 2017   #423
BigVanVader
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Did all those tomatoes come from you?
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Old July 18, 2017   #424
oakley
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What beauty. All those tomatoes displayed so perfectly. A tasting is such a great
selling tool.
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Old July 18, 2017   #425
Urbanheirlooms
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BigVanVader View Post
Did all those tomatoes come from you?
No, the owner has a variety of sources including growing some himself.
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Old July 18, 2017   #426
Cole_Robbie
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Nice pics. What sort of regulatory hoops did you have to jump through? Illinois just created a separate license for a person who gives out food samples.
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Old July 18, 2017   #427
oakley
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NY has no regulations that I know of. All farmer's markets give samples. Even our local
grocery gives samples all over the store....cheese, fruit, berries, olive oils, etc.
Weekends it is a meal.
Might be a toothpick rule as they are always used and available.

Costco uses the small mini cupcake papers. Good thing they sample as so much of the
jarred/frozen processed stuff is crap.
That giant jar of three bean salad must have 3 cups of sugar in it....
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Old July 18, 2017   #428
Cole_Robbie
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I don't think anyone gives tomato samples at my market. That's part of what I like about cherries and small fruit - it's easy to just give an intact one to a customer. If they bite into it, that's their business, not mine. But if I cut into a tomato and give out a piece of one, it triggers a lot of food handling rules like requirements for a hand washing station and a separate person to only handle samples. I think as of this year, that person has to have a state license as well.
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Old July 18, 2017   #429
Urbanheirlooms
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Quote:
Originally Posted by oakley View Post
NY has no regulations that I know of. All farmer's markets give samples. Even our local
grocery gives samples all over the store....cheese, fruit, berries, olive oils, etc.
Weekends it is a meal.
Might be a toothpick rule as they are always used and available.

Costco uses the small mini cupcake papers. Good thing they sample as so much of the
jarred/frozen processed stuff is crap.
That giant jar of three bean salad must have 3 cups of sugar in it....
It is the same here as far as I know. There are numerous food vendors at this market and I would guess they would be required to have a license.
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Old July 22, 2017   #430
Cole_Robbie
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Hopefully today will be the hottest market morning of the year. The heat index is around 110. I started slow, but had a good morning, and sold all of my flowers. My best customer of the day owned a landscaping service and bought all my zinnias and marigolds. They are destined to decorate a nearby Cracker Barrel. He said it was hard to find flowers for sale at this time of year. Greenhouses sit empty right now. He was calling up to two hours away before he came to market to look there. He has a big business and I got his information, so I may have a new wholesale customer. He was interested in buying more.
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Old July 22, 2017   #431
Gerardo
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great news, those plants are lookers
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Old July 22, 2017   #432
bower
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Yeah the flowers look super in spite of 110 heat!!! Excellent break with the landscaping contractor. That's exactly what you need to keep flowers moving later in the season.
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Old July 22, 2017   #433
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Yep, I can see why he bought them. Hope it leads to big things you deserve it.
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Old July 22, 2017   #434
Ricky Shaw
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Very deserved, I hope it works into a good arrangement Cole Robbie.
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Old July 22, 2017   #435
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Yea hope that works out for you.
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