The Bowen Island Farmers Market is set to enter its fourth weekend of the season, with a renewed focus on the importance of local, sustainable food production.
The gathering takes place each Saturday morning at Bowen Island Community School (BICS) from 10 am to 12:30 pm. Visitors to the market will find many of the island’s small food producers selling a range of products, from dairy items to fruits and vegetables and teas and desserts. Each week the space also sees local artists and crafters set up shop, all while island musicians create a market-going ambience with their live music. There’s often a selection of coffee and pastries available from local cafes too, such as Tell Your Friends or Artisan Eats.
Jenni and David Griffiths help organize the weekly market, under the umbrella of the Bowen Agricultural Alliance. They have some core reasons why they wish for a bustling market each week.
“We’re really trying to get that connection between things grown and consumed here, or at least regionally,” says David. “We live on an island, and the pandemic and Donald Trump’s tariffs have shown us that we might not be able to always rely on food to be in the supermarket. So if we support local systems, they are there should something bad happen.”
Jenni adds that the benefits of local food systems are also evident without the presence of an emergency. “It’s also really amazing to have food sources that are local and we know how they’re grown and that they’re healthy,” she says.
In addition to delicious food and creative crafts and tunes, over the next two weeks the market will host its two biggest special events of the year, starting with the Children’s Fair this Saturday, May 31. The event is organized by the Bowen Children’s Centre and West Vancouver Schools and expects to see hundreds of participants.
“We’re going to have loads of vendors here at that time too, with lots of stuff for kids,” says Jenni. Children’s musician Katie Brock will be part of the festivities, which aim to connect young families on the island while also allowing kids who will be starting school at BICS to explore the space.
The following week, on Saturday, June 7, the market is home to the start of the Bowen Island Pride festival. There will be face painting, sign making, snacks and more before the parade down to the Bowfest field begins from the school shortly after 11 am.
The market has also put an emphasis on public information, and works on having a community-based space whenever possible. This included a table dedicated to the Official Community Plan (OCP) review earlier this month.
“We want the market to be a community event. We’re happy to have tourists walk through and partake as well, but the focus is a community event,” says Jenni.
The Farmers Market is currently working on setting up a website to reduce their reliance on social media posts, particularly Facebook. “We would like a website where we can have vendors email us if they want to be vendors, and tell us what they’re going to be selling. We want community members to sign up so we can tell them about special events. Because Facebook doesn’t reach everybody,” says David.
Until it’s up and running, anyone interested in having a table at the market can reach the organizers by writing to [email protected]
The Farmers Market runs every Saturday through Thanksgiving weekend, aside from on Bowfest. Jenni says it’s best to bring cash, though some vendors have the ability to take cards. She also reminds people to bring their own bags for shopping. The market will have bags with their new logo – designed by Erin Sinclair of Seabird in Artisan Square – available to purchase soon.
