BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET) — For over 30 years the F Street Farmer’s Market has fed the community of Kern and now partners are coming together to celebrate National Farmer’s Market Week.

“At 7:45 is when the Farmer’s Market starts. 8:30 is the resource fair.” said Savannah Maldonado with the Community Action Partnership of Kern, “So there will be a lot of opportunities to not just get food, but also participate in finding a lot of the services that are available to you. There will be free food boxes for the first 250 people.”

Buying from Farmer’s Markets means supporting local families.

For the Verhoefs, it’s 15 years of dedication.

“We first started selling tomatoes. My kids were young, and my son wanted to major in Agriculture.” said April Verhoef, now F Street Farmer’s Market Manager, “So we sold in Farmer’s Markets in Shafter and all we sold was tomatoes, and they liked it, and it continued from there, and now all my kids are participating. My son’s a farmer, and my daughter works in the Agricultural Industry as an auditor.”

One organization joining the event follows the lifestyles of cities that have healthy and long life expectancies.

“Eating wisely doesn’t mean giving up your favorite foods. It just means, instead of having a steak dinner every night, swap it out and add some veggies to the plate, add some beans to the plate.” said Melissa Rossiter with the Blue Zones Project Bakersfield, “A lot of the original blue zones, beans is a major staple of their diets instead of meat.”

America’s only Blue Zone is just three hours away, the city of Loma Linda, in a community big on farming, there is always more than one Farmer’s Market you can visit around town.

  • Saturdays, F Street Farmers Market, on 2819 F St.
  • Saturdays, Riverlakes Farmers Market, on 3825 Riverlakes Dr.
  • Sundays, Haggin Oaks Farmers Market, on 8800 Ming Ave.

The F Street Farmer’s Market also accepts EBT year-round, and if you spend $15 dollars, they match with $15 dollars for free. It’s located in the parking lot behind In Your Wildest Dreams, between 28th and 30th streets.