Images by East Coast Food Stories
On Wednesday, October 9, over 150 buy-local supporters from across Nova Scotia and beyond descended on the Halifax Brewery Market to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Farmers’ Markets of Nova Scotia (FMNS). The Brewery Market–housed in a charming historic brick building from the early 19th century–is beautiful on any occasion, but was made all the more stunning thanks to the warm glow of string lights, gorgeous floral arrangements by Fleur & Gather, and the animation of the atrium space by the music of Amy Lounder and Jude Pelley. And then there was the food! A gracious spread of finger foods expertly prepared by Chef Dany Duguay and her team at Anemone Dining.
Earlier in the evening, we had the pleasure of hearing from an incredible array of speakers. Sue Goyette–Halifax’s Poet Laureate from 2020 to 2024–kicked things off with a grounding and stirring poem that gently pulled everyone in attendance together and warmly welcomed us into the moment. Then came a heartfelt speech by Kelly Marie Redcliffe, Manager of the Wolfville Farmers’ Market for nearly a quarter of a century. Moving pieces by talented food writer Elisabeth Bailey and FMNS’ very own former Director of Training Michelle Wolf were followed by an inspiring accounting of a true farmers’ market success story by Shivani Dhamija, who overviewed how Shivani’s Kitchen started in farmers’ markets before blossoming into a nationwide brand.
We also heard from The Honourable Susan Corkum-Greek, Nova Scotia’s Minister of Economic Development, who provided a sweeping overview of the social and economic importance of our province’s farmers’ market sector, followed by an announcement regarding the expansion of the Nova Scotia Loyal School Voucher Program, a highly successful partnership between FMNS and the Province. Starting this fall, the program will expand to post-secondary students, beginning with a pilot at Acadia University and Nova Scotia Community College’s Kentville campus.
As the celebrations wore on, it was eventually time to cut the delicious cakes that were custom made for the evening by Tart and Soul, and as we did so, we hooked up a monitor to the soundsystem, and played a video made especially by us by Rowena Power, FMNS’ former Executive Director in earlier years of the cooperative.
The evening served as an opportunity for those of us involved in the farmers’ market sector to reflect back on how far our cooperative and our member farmers’ markets have come over the past two decades. We highlighted the growth of our cooperative, from 10 markets in 2010 to over 40 in 2024. We celebrated the values of FMNS, and how we’ve stuck true to them over the years while adapting our services and staying at the cutting edge of our movement. It was also an opportunity to celebrate the hard work of our staff, who have tirelessly helped to grow, professionalize, and hone our organization over the years.
One of the most impactful parts of this 20th anniversary celebration was that not only was it the perfect opportunity to reflect back and look forward, but also to ground ourselves in the moment by celebrating the current importance of farmers’ markets, local food systems, and small businesses to provide so many benefits to Nova Scotia’s communities, while helping us address unfurling challenges. We celebrated the success of our now six-year long partnership with the Province on our Nourishing Communities Food Coupon Program, which has now provided well over $1 million in market bucks to hundreds of households across the province, providing folks with increased access to local food and goods and renewed connections to community, while supporting local producers. We highlighted our new and exciting Taking Root program, designed to reduce barriers to entrepreneurship at our markets. We highlighted FMNS’ increasing role as a leading organisation nationally and internationally, as co-founder of Canadian Farmers’ Markets and the World Farmers Markets Coalition.
Amidst the heartfelt speeches, celebratory energy, and warm aura of the evening, was an opportunity to be pensive and present to our current reality. In a time where we’ve been forced to reckon with the seriousness of the increasing impacts of climate change, of rising levels of food insecurity, and the economic challenges facing our farmers and producers, it felt salient and impactful to take a moment to rejoice and to be appreciative of just how important and critical our farmers’ market sector is. To celebrate our hard work. And importantly, to be joyful.
At their core, farmers’ markets have always been about abundance. About community, kinship, and camaraderie. About people, food, and place. And those were the finest of reasons to celebrate twenty abundant years of Farmers’ Markets of Nova Scotia!
