Shelby Farmers' Market Springs to Life Saturday

Fresh produce, delicious cookies and flowers will kick off Shelby Township’s Farmers Market season.

The market will open on Saturday, May 5 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. and continue every Saturday through October. The farmers market is held at the Packard Proving Grounds on Van Dyke between 22 and 23 Mile roads.

Mary Anne Demo, manager of the farmers market, told Patch local farmers will produce all of the products.

Demo, a lifelong Macomb County resident and Eisenhower graduate, said she remembers riding the bus through Shelby and picking up the farmers' kids. Now, all of the stops have been replaced with subdivisions and most of the farmers have migrated north.

For the first few weeks, there will be mostly flowers and some greens until the weather gets warmer and fruits and vegetables are in full bloom.

Demo’s mission is to promote organic food and get people in the habit of buying local.

“Since we can buy produce all times of the year, we lose track of the fact that you can get freshly picked products,” said Demo, who added that there is nothing like the taste of an outdoor-grown Michigan tomato.

Demo said the prices at the farmers market will be a little higher than the grocery store but not much because the farmers are growing the produce themselves and bringing them verses a grocery store that is buying produce in large quantities.

“I think anybody that has grown things in their own garden really appreciates it even more. You know how much work goes into the produce if you have your own garden,” said Demo.

Thanks to Michigan’s new cottage industry law, other vendors are welcome to apply to exhibit their wares at the market this season. Visit www.ShelbyFarmersMarket.com for more information and to submit an application.

The market will be open rain or shine. In fact, a little-known tip Demo gave Patch is that shoppers who brave the rain will likely find better deals.

To see pictures from last year's Farmers' Market, .