This article is from page 32 of the 2007-08-14 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 32 JPG
THE summer may have been a wash out but that hasn’t stopped the En- nis Farmer’s Market from thriving. Located in the upper Market Street public car park on Friday mornings, the market is a hive of activity. Traders offer a wide range of foods, fresh produce, cut flowers and crafts. The Farmer’s Market has been up and running since 2004 and consists of a eroup of dedicated food producers and traders with a wide range of lo- cal, artisan and organic foods includ- ing meats, cheeses and local honey,
to name but a few. Most of the pro- duce is sourced in Clare with some coming from nearby Tipperary.
Market trader Aoife Ni Giollacudda said, “A special atmosphere exists on market day.
Customers love coming down to the Farmer’s Market as much for the atmosphere as for what’s on sale. It’s bright and cheery whether there’s rain, hail or sunshine’.
She added “the producers and stall- holders love to chat to customers and will answer any amount of questions about their produce. A lot of it is or- ganic but is not necessarily so. How-
ever, there 1s one common thread throughout, it is nutritious, fresh and completely traceable.”
Traders pride themselves on offer- ing a wide range of fresh and nutri- tious products that are directly trace- able back to producers. A wide range of products can be found at the Mar- ket. They include: local goat, sheep and dairy cheeses; organic beef and lamb; organic seasonal vegetables; free range pork, rashers and sausag- es; homemade breads and cakes; free range eggs; handmade chocolates; local honey; homemade jams; olives; sun dried tomatoes and pesto; fair-
trade tea coffee and crafts; pottery; cut flowers and garden plants.
Aoife said, “The experience of shopping in a farmer’s market is much more enjoyable than shop- ping in a supermarket. So take a trip down sometime to sample what’s on offer”.