The Saluda Tailgate Market will begin its third season on Friday, May 4 at 4:30 p.m. in downtown Saluda.
What began as a few individuals interested in having a local growers’ market in the summer of 2010 has quickly become a Saluda spring-to-fall tradition.
Organizers said they realized early on that this market was more than just providing locally grown food options and supporting neighbors who wanted to grow produce. They said it was part of a larger food movement that is shifting the way we all think about food: how we eat, shop and socialize and how we think about our community and the land that surrounds us.
“Why stand in a line at a generic box store with a cart when you can don a hat, pick up a basket and meet your friends downtown?” organizers asked. “In addition, you can get to know the farmer who has grown what you will serve for supper. Luckily, we live in a rich and diverse bioregion and abundance seems too small a word to encompass all that has shown up in the west end parking lot on Friday afternoons. Vendors bring every kind of vegetable, fruit and herb that grows in Polk and Henderson counties, along with chicken, beef, eggs, cheese, honey and locally —  sourced baked goods. This year we will see fresh rainbow trout and Saluda raised lamb.”
Interested vendors can go to www.saludatailgate.com to download rules and applications. Call Shelley DeKay with any questions: 828-606-5713 or 828-749-9365.
– article submitted by Shelley DeKay