{"id":1029,"date":"2016-08-02T17:56:29","date_gmt":"2016-08-02T17:56:29","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.summerfunguide.ca\/blog\/?p=1029"},"modified":"2025-10-21T18:04:16","modified_gmt":"2025-10-21T18:04:16","slug":"ontarios-artisanal-food-farmers-markets","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.summerfunguide.ca\/blog\/ontarios-artisanal-food-farmers-markets\/","title":{"rendered":"Ontario\u2019s artisanal food &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp; farmers\u2019 markets"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"b12171e95ca29a06569361a76d0dc3e3\" data-index=\"1\" style=\"float: none; margin:10px 0 10px 0; text-align:center;\">\n<script data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-6144103376590397\" async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js\"><\/script>\n<\/div>\n<p>Food tastes better when you meet the producers!<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-1030\" src=\"\/\/www.summerfunguide.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/Screen-Shot-2016-08-02-at-1.43.33-PM-300x222.png\" alt=\"Screen Shot 2016-08-02 at 1.43.33 PM\" width=\"300\" height=\"222\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.summerfunguide.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/Screen-Shot-2016-08-02-at-1.43.33-PM-300x222.png 300w, https:\/\/www.summerfunguide.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/Screen-Shot-2016-08-02-at-1.43.33-PM.png 640w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Whether you live in an urban environment or a rural one, there is something about going to a farmers\u2019 market or buying directly from the producers that just makes food taste better. One reason is that the meat and produce have usually travelled less distance and are therefore, much fresher and another is that talking to the producer and hearing his\/her stories gives you a personal connection to the food. When you know that someone\u2019s grandmother brought a recipe for mustard or jam or whatever as a memory of a country or family left behind, you really want to support that producer. So support local producers; your taste buds will thank you!<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-1031\" src=\"\/\/www.summerfunguide.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/article1_june302016.jpg\" alt=\"article1_june302016\" width=\"257\" height=\"141\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Farmers\u2019 Markets<\/p>\n<p>There are a shocking number of farmers\u2019 markets in Ontario, with more springing up every week. From the first market in <a href=\"http:\/\/www.kingstonpublicmarket.ca\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\">Kingston<\/a> in 1801, the number of markets in Ontario is close to 200 now, so you shouldn\u2019t have to travel far to find one. <a href=\"http:\/\/www.keadylivestock.com\/farmers.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\">Keady Farmer&#8217;s Market<\/a> is close to Owen Sound (SW) and not only has 250 vendors (!), but it is a cool experience to visit during its thrice weekly livestock auction.\u00a0 Or if you are in Northern Ontario, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.josephinesvegetables.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\">Josephine\u2019s Vegetables<\/a>\u00a0 grows 65 different veggies on site, and you can stop next door for a game of mini golf at Dinosaur Valley, which is also theirs. And if you are visiting Niagara, check out the largest market in the Niagara region \u2013 The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.welland.ca\/Market\/index.asp\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\">Welland Farmers Market<\/a> is a great place to pick up some produce, meat, cheese and fresh bread for a picnic to go with the wonderful wines of the region.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-1032\" src=\"\/\/www.summerfunguide.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/article2_june302016.jpg\" alt=\"article2_june302016\" width=\"257\" height=\"141\" \/><\/p>\n<p>When a market is more than a market<\/p>\n<p>Some markets have built a whole experience around the market, with entertainment &amp; festivals. Check out <a href=\"http:\/\/www.evergreen.ca\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\">Evergreen Brick Works<\/a> in Toronto &#8211; in addition to the market, it has bike rentals, an open-air garden, a winter skating surface, festivals, &amp; workshops.\u00a0 Or visit <a href=\"http:\/\/www.stjacobs.com\/farmers-market\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\">St. Jacobs Farmers&#8217; Market<\/a>. Canada&#8217;s largest year-round market has all the usual stuff, plus farmyard animals for kids &amp; buskers for everyone!\u00a0 Ottawa\u2019s <a href=\"http:\/\/www.byward-market.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\">Byward Market<\/a> is Canada&#8217;s largest outdoor market &amp; is Ottawa\u2019s #1 attraction &amp; destination for shopping, dining, arts, &amp; entertainment. Finally, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.coventmarket.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\">Covent Garden Market &amp; Outdoor Farmers\u2019 Market<\/a> has a Public Square, ice rink, family programs, Music\/theatre fests &amp; community events year round.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-1033\" src=\"\/\/www.summerfunguide.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/article3_june302016.jpg\" alt=\"article3_june302016\" width=\"257\" height=\"141\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Honey<\/p>\n<p>We are very dependent on bees as they pollinate 1\/3 of everything we eat and over 80% of the crops grown for human consumption, in addition to crops for cows and other livestock. They have fallen victim to colony collapse disorder, in which whole colonies of bees were wiped out. Honeybee colonies have definitely taken a hit, but we are lucky to still have some honey producers in Ontario. <a href=\"http:\/\/www.clovermead.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\">Clovermead Adventure Farm<\/a> has a whole bunch of bee-themed Adventure Farm activities including bee train rides but also has Beekeeper tours, Ontario&#8217;s largest glass bee display hive &amp; more.\u00a0 <a href=\"http:\/\/www.munrohoney.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\">Munro Honey &amp; Meadery<\/a> has Honey but also mead, an alcoholic drink made from honey. <a href=\"http:\/\/www.dickeybeehoney.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\">Dickey Bee Honey<\/a> in Cookstown (central) offers tours, tastings &amp; workshops plus a museum and store.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-1034\" src=\"\/\/www.summerfunguide.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/article004_june302016.jpg\" alt=\"article004_june302016\" width=\"257\" height=\"141\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Cheese<\/p>\n<p>When one thinks of cheese, varieties like French Brie, or Italian Parmesan come to mind. However, Ontario\u2019s local cheesemakers are producing award winning cheeses, with distinctive flavours. It even has a <a href=\"http:\/\/www.ingersoll.ca\/visitors\/cheese-and-agricultural-museum\/cheese-agricultural-museum\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\">Cheese Museum<\/a> in Ingersoll! <a href=\"http:\/\/www.fifthtown.ca\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\">Fifth Town Artisan Cheese<\/a> produces artisanal cheese with local goat &amp; buffalo milk. <a href=\"http:\/\/www.blackrivercheese.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\">Black River Cheese Company\u2019s<\/a> Maple, Honey and Wine-cured cheddars are all delish. They also have a year round ice-cream bar!\u00a0 <a href=\"http:\/\/www.gunnshillcheese.ca\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\">Gunn\u2019s Hill<\/a> is a 3rd generation dairy farm where you can learn about dairy farming and cheese making and sample delicious varieties of hand crafted artisan cheeses.<\/p>\n\n<div style=\"font-size: 0px; height: 0px; line-height: 0px; margin: 0; padding: 0; clear: both;\"><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Food tastes better when you meet the producers! Whether you live in an urban environment or a rural one, there is something about going to a farmers\u2019 market or buying directly from the producers that just makes food taste better. One reason is that the meat and produce have usually travelled less distance and are&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[134],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1029","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-ontario-region"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.summerfunguide.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1029","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.summerfunguide.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.summerfunguide.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.summerfunguide.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.summerfunguide.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1029"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/www.summerfunguide.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1029\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3588,"href":"https:\/\/www.summerfunguide.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1029\/revisions\/3588"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.summerfunguide.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1029"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.summerfunguide.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1029"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.summerfunguide.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1029"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}