Morse Brook Farm
This is our third year at the Putney Farmers' Market. We like it because it is truly local and we are vending next to our neighbors. It has a very relaxed and welcoming feel and we have a very pleasant group of vendors who support the market and each other.
We are a hill farm on the eastern slope of the highest ridge in Westminster, with a view of the Connecticut River Valley. We have 80 open acres of pasture and hay fields. We pasture-raise sheep and Dexter cattle as well as tap 1,000 maple trees.
We are trying to use sustainable and regenerative practices. We also host sheepherding-related activities and do herding demonstrations with our border collies at nearby events.
We sell lamb, mutton, yarn (some hand-dyed with invasive species that we are trying to remove from the property), blankets, and sweaters made from our wool, and sheepskins. We also sell maple syrup. By next spring, we will have beef. We also have farm notecards with photographs. -Liz Shaw (morsebrookfarm.com)
Leaping Bear Farm
This is our farm's sixth season at the Putney Farmers" Market. We love connecting with locals in Putney every Sunday. We've seen this market bounce back from just a handful of vendors (who kept us going through the pandemic) to what it is today, averaging between 21 and 25 vendors every week.
In five seasons we have produced over 5,000 pasture-raised chickens, as well as fresh eggs, microgreens, homemade broth, and pet food topper.
We are focused on making a positive impact on our land, in our management of animals, and in your health and diet.
We're amazed at the variety, quality, and talent that this market attracts and think it's truly a hidden gem in the area. We also love the location.
We're first-generation farmers with a passion for healing our environment. Justin has a background in permaculture design and education, and Vanessa is a graphic designer and marketer. We use our past experiences daily to grow our farm and to help refine our customers' understanding of regenerative agriculture, organic growing practices, and how they can positively contribute to healing our food systems. We pride ourselves in providing high-quality, fresh, and healthy food from the land in a way that benefits the environment.
We deeply value our community, which makes our work rewarding, but we know food producers are facing some serious challenges (because of ongoing climate change) and we want to help face those issues head on.
How our food is farmed can either add to the destruction of our planet or it can do the opposite - creating abundance and resiliency across our communities. We are committed to regenerative agriculture and are certified Real Organic, a testament to our pasture and animal management practices.
When our animals are out on the pasture they get moved to fresh grass daily. This keeps them healthy, and allows them to leave behind a tremendous amount of nutrients that build rich, functional, and resilient soils that capture and store carbon in the ground.
Productive soils are the key to a healthy environment and support healthier people and animals, resulting in better meat and a clean, nutritious, and sustainable diet. -Justin Bramhall and Vanessa Rose (Leapingbearfarm.com)
Lost Barn Farm
We are a small, diversified veggie farm in East Putney, very close to the Connecticut River. The land has been in our family since the 1950s, and we grow about 5 acres of mixed fruit and vegetables each year.
With so many things to grow, we try to grow a little bit of a lot of things, so our weekly offerings at the market vary.
In addition to being known for growing offbeat veggies, we also grow a fair amount of herbs, 10 varieties of garlic, and several types of flint corn, which we use to mill cornmeal.
We sell a wide variety of fruits and vegetables, from staples like peas, carrots, lettuce, and strawberries to not-so-common items like escarole, okra, tarragon, and mulberries.
Some fresh items like fava beans and sour cherries might be available only for a week or two, while storage items like onions, potatoes, and winter squash can last for months.
We also sell eggs from our pasture-raised, organic-grain-fed chickens, and occasionally we have a surplus on our dried beans and we offer them for sale. We strive to offer as much variety as possible, and we enjoy discussing what to do with some of our lesser-known crops.
This is our 14th year at the Putney Farmers' Market. We feel that local, in-season produce is the best, and knowing the folks that we grow for makes it even more meaningful.
Having grown up in Putney, it's important to us to support our local community, and it doesn't get much more local than the Putney Farmers' Market that's only 4 miles from our farm! -Marisa Miller, Reed Miller, and Kathy Miller (lostbarnfarm.com)
Counter Cultures Kitchen
This is my second season at the Putney Farmers' Market, and I am enjoying watching it grow into something truly special. The variety of vendors continues to expand and represents even more of the best that Vermont has to offer. The community is loyal and kind, and my fellow vendors are supportive and fun!
I make and sell fermented hot sauce and seasonal and rotating kimchi, pickles, and sauerkraut, as well as cultured cashew cream, a spread or dairy substitute made from raw organic cashews soaked in brine from various ferments (dill pickle, kimchi), then blended with nutritional yeast and lemon juice.
I fell in love with fermentation 13 years ago in Santa Cruz, California, while trying to make a hot sauce that would neither be too sweet nor so hot that there would be no flavor and only pain. My new obsession quickly led to pickles and fermented vegetables of all kinds.
I was lucky to grow up in a multicultural community, and this informs my offerings. I do my best to honor traditional methods and flavors while using and incorporating local ingredients, and I am never afraid to be experimental.
I am super excited about two new creations I'll be offering soon: Szechuan ginger bok choy, and strawberry rhubarb kimchi.
I am committed to uplifting the food system and nourishing my community by sourcing all my produce from local organic farms, particularly small farms; people-of-color farms; queer, femme farms; and family owned/run operations. I always use high-quality and ethically sourced ingredients, and I try to generate as little waste as possible.-Grace Guerra (instagram.com/countercultureskitchen/)
Jamu Indonesian Foods
My husband and I joined the Putney Farmers' Market last year so we could share our unique Indonesian food and jamu, an herbal drink made from turmeric and ginger. I learned to cook from my mother in Java, where I grew up. My grandmother introduced me to her traditional jamu recipe.
Being part of a community effort, like the Putney market has always been a priority for us. -Diana Dunk (instagram.com/jamu_jahmoo/)
This News column by Victoria Chertok was written for The Commons.