By The farmers market returned Wednesday at the Friendship Walk after a year-long hiatus. Nine vendors served a variety of foods such as organic fruits, tamales, cheesecake and pupusas.
According to Associated Students Inc., the one-year break was due to a search for a new company to provide the vendors for ASI to partner with.
“The students have always wanted it to come back, so we were really excited to be able to find a vendor who could provide this service to the students,” said ASI assistant director of programs Taylor Buhler-Scott.
ASI works with one company directly to provide each vendor on campus. The company remains in contact with all the different vendors that travel to multiple farmers markets.
[aesop_image img=”http://lbcurrent.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/farmers4.jpg” panorama=”off” credit=”Ryan Guitare / Daily Forty-Niner” align=”center” lightbox=”on” captionsrc=”custom” caption=”
Syndel Cabanilla, a fourth-year health science and community health major at CSULB enjoys pupusas and aguas frescas at the farmers market Wednesday. ” captionposition=”left” revealfx=”off” overlay_revealfx=”off”]
For vendors like Joe Quintana, the location of the market provided good business.
“It’s convenient right here on one of the main arteries of the school, students can grab a quick bite then go study,” Quintana said. “We’re in the second hour of the market and business is great.”
The farmers market is a main attraction to students because it provides foods not traditionally sold on campus. Other foods at the market included: fresh hummus, organic nuts, and Acai bowls.
[aesop_image img=”http://lbcurrent.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/farmers12.jpg” panorama=”off” credit=”Ryan Guitare / Daily Forty-Niner” align=”center” lightbox=”on” captionsrc=”custom” caption=”Fresh tamales from The Tamale Fiesta tent at the Farmers Market Wednesday. ” captionposition=”left” revealfx=”off” overlay_revealfx=”off”]
“I like it, it’s a great variety of stuff and there are a lot of vendors here from the past so it’s pretty cool,” said Kevin Bello, a fifth-year kinesiology major.
There are things that students hope to see in future farmers markets, such as different time frames to accommodate class schedules and breaks. Bello said that having a different time slot for the farmers market could cater to more students
Students also wanted to see vendors from previous years to come back. Nia Sanchez, a fifth-year biomedical engineering major, had one vendor in mind that she would like to see again.
“I think it was called the “Bundt Cake,” Sanchez said. “They sold different types of bread with nuts and things like that…they usually come every semester.”
Students can look forward to seeing this farmers market throughout the rest of the school year.
The farmers market will be held every second and fourth Wednesday of the month from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., at the Friendship Walk
