June 27, 2019 by Carol Britton Meyer
Above photo Joe Fisher Opens the Hingham Farmer's Market (Photo by Mark Cullings)
The Hingham Farmers Market 43rd season is in full swing!
HFM, the third-oldest farmers market in the state, features 40 vendors selling the freshest local fruits, vegetables, eggs, poultry, beef, seafood and much more. The market has become a Hingham and South Shore institution. The HFM, located at 96 Otis St. (GPS guidance), is open every Saturday, rain or shine, from 9am - 1pm. Be sure to stop by the Hingham Bathing Beach on Saturday mornings to experience the wide array of offerings.
Joe Fisher, Hingham's newest Selectman, opened last week's Hingham Farmers Market saying, "Join us at the Hingham Farmers Market as we ring in a new season of fresh and locally sourced goods. Fun for the whole family at the Hingham Bathing Beach!”
HFM, Inc. President Mark Cullings expressed appreciation "for our patrons’ patience and understanding with regard to the continuing disruption of the market due to the [bathhouse/snack shop/community room] construction project taking shape. We now hope the project will be largely completed by the fall and that we can then determine just where the market will be located and how it will be arranged."
So far HFM organizers are pleased about how well the market is doing despite the challenges.
"Thanks to the cooperative efforts of the DPW, the Trustees of the Bathing Beach, and our vendors we’ve been able to conduct a near-normal operation," Cullings said. "We believe that the market and the snack shop in the new building will benefit each other, and that the increased number of parking spaces that are being constructed along with the building will be an improvement."
The volunteer Friends of the Hingham Farmers Market are on hand to welcome patrons, answer questions, and to assist those who wish to participate in the SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly referred to as food stamps) program. This is the Friends' fourth year of being involved with SNAP.
This year the Fruit Center Marketplace is working in partnership with the Friends to offer a limited matching program for SNAP participants (up to $15 per person each market day of the season) to bolster purchasing power.
The market offers a weekly newsletter containing up-to-date info about what’s happening there each week. You can sign up for the newsletter on the market Facebook page, its website, www.hinghamfarmersmarket.org, or at the “Friends” tent at the market.
HFM operates from the Bathing Beach parking lot off Rte. 3A Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. from May 4 until Thanksgiving.
Check out the Anchor's latest bathhouse at https://hinghamanchor.com/delayed-opening-for-new-bathing-beach-bathhouse-will-be-worth-the-wait/#more-5185