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INWOOD FARMERS' MARKET OPEN HOUSE TO CELEBRATE FALL FRUIT HARVEST, WEST VIRGINIA GROWN PRODUCTS
Apple harvest season has begun and the Inwood Farmers’ Market is celebrating the season with an open house Friday, September 7 from 11 a.m.-4 p.m.
West Virginia Commissioner of Agriculture Gus R. Douglass and local dignitaries will be on hand to take part in the festivities, which will include samples of a wide variety of West Virginia Grown products for the public.
Among the products to be featured are Martinsburg-based Vita Foods’ new line of soft-drink-based marinades and sauces, which were a leading seller at the West Virginia Department of Agriculture’s (WVDA) Country Store at the State Fair of West Virginia.
Other products will include the Custard Stand’s hotdog chili, and West Virginia wines from Lambert’s Vintage Wines, Potomac Highland Winery and West-Whitehill Winery.
“The Inwood Farmers’ Market, given its easy accessibility and proximity to other states, is in a prime location to bring dollars into West Virginia,” said Commissioner Douglass. “Farmers’ markets are growing in popularity throughout the state and nation because consumers are expressing a preference for fresh, locally produced products.”
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) estimates that since 1994, the number of farmers’ markets in the country has grown from 1,755 to 4,385 in 2006.
The West Virginia Department of Agriculture (WVDA) operates the Inwood Market, as well as markets in Logan and Charleston. There are approximately 100 farmers’ markets and farm stands throughout West Virginia, said Jean Smith, Director of WVDA’s Marketing and Development Division.
Market Manager Faye Roberts said local apples have started to arrive at the market, including Gala, Ozark Gold and Ginger Gold varieties.
This year will also mark the 15th anniversary of the opening of the public retail products market featuring value-added West Virginia products. Although it was operated as a farmers’ market prior to 1992, offerings were mainly local fruit.
The location has been an agricultural landmark since 1920, when a Demonstration Community Apple Packing School was built, following a $25,000 appropriation by the West Virginia Legislature. The facility helped producers improve their packing methods, and allowed fruit to be inspected and graded by licensed inspectors before being sent to market on the adjacent Cumberland Valley Branch of the Pennsylvania Railroad. During the first year of operation, 12 orchards provided 120,000 barrels of apples to the school.
The West Virginia Department of Agriculture protects plant, animal and human health through a variety of scientific, regulatory and consumer protection programs, as mandated by state law. The Commissioner of Agriculture is one of six statewide elected officials in West Virginia. Currently, Commissioner Gus R. Douglass is the longest-serving agriculture commissioner in the nation. For more information, visit www.wvagriculture.org.
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