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All of the extreme cold that lasted into the late spring months could have spelled disaster for local farmers, but the good news is, it didn’t. Local farmer, Doug Hoffbauer, of FarmerDoug.com shared his optimism for this season. Even though the Hoffbauer’s didn’t get their crops in early during the month of April for the second year in a row out of the 35 years they’ve been farming, they’re doing just fine. After the week of warm weather that was graciously bestowed upon Duluth, they’ve caught up a lot.
“We’re behind on perennial crops. There’s a certain number of berries that will be late, but the potatoes and corn are where they should be,” said Hoffbauer.
Some planters from the greenhouse, tomatoes and peppers, were also slow to start because there was a lack of sunny days this spring. Compared to last year, they’re doing much better. There wasn’t snow on the ground and frost in the ground when they needed to start planting, but there was just the cold weather. The next few weeks will be good for farmers if the weather stays sunny and 75 degrees – without any negative weather effects from the ice-filled lake. As far as the farmers, they’re only thinking positive. With 90% of their crops on time, consumers will find all of the usual goods at the market.
“There wasn’t a bad impact on farmers,” said Hoffbauer, “There was a bad impact on consumers because of the lousy weather. No one wanted to come out when it was cold.”
Doug isn’t worried about his farm. There was some winter damage done to his raspberry plants thanks to the many feet of snow. Hoffbauer indicated that right now his raspberries look better than ever. Apparently a little loss does the farmer good. People can expect farmer Doug to have all of his usual crops – all 20 of them – at the Farmer’s Market this year. As for all the other farmers in the area, Doug assumes that they’re on the same page as he is.
“I’m really only watching my own bobber, but I haven’t heard any bad news,” he said.
While the Lincoln Park Farmer’s Market is only on it’s second year, they’re making a big impact in the community even though the weather has been tough on their crops as well. Sheamus Johnson, coordinator from Seeds of Success, said there have been positives and negatives thanks to the cold month of June. Lettuce, radish, and parsley crops did well in the cold weather because they are cold weather crops. Unfortunately, crops like tomatoes and squash won’t grow without heat. During the month of June, these crops failed to grow and even rotted in the fields. An unfortunate mishap, but again, these farmers are looking on the bright side. The Lincoln Park Farmer’s Market was full of fresh beautiful greens, radishes, peas, and carrots. There are vendors from last year and new ones as well – and they are legitimate. Vendors have to produce everything they sell. This is a hard fast rule of the Farmer’s Market. So along with fresh produce, there are canned goods, jams, pies, cookies and breads up for grabs at the market.
Something to note is the Lincoln Park Farmer’s Market as well as the Duluth Farmer’s Market takes EBT, allowing even more members of the community to participate and buy these local foods. The allowance of EBT is a new thing for Farmer’s Markets. Having EBT coordinators is what made this possible.
“This market is about revitalization for the community and the farmers,” said Johnson.

The Farmer’s Market and the addition of another Whole Foods in the West end are a good response to the food desert here in Duluth. Johnson is excited about the partnership that will happen between Whole Foods and the Lincoln Park Farmer’s Market. It will help stabilize the community and continue to give fresh produce options into the winter months when the Farmer’s Market stops running.
As a consumer I was worried about the effect the winter had for local farms. One would have good reason to worry about the fate of the Farmer’s Market and assume that some crops would be late or even non-existent this year. I’m not a farmer, but I grew up having a garden my whole life. If we weren’t able to get crops in on time, they just wouldn’t grow. Also as a consumer I worried about the farmers well being. Were they doing okay after this winter? I’m glad farmer Doug put my worries to rest. The Duluth Farmer’s Market and the Lincoln Park Farmer’s Market will be just as lively this year.

The Duluth Farmer’s Market is open every Wednesday 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. and every Saturday 7 a.m. until noon. They can be found at 14th Ave. East and 3rd St., Duluth. For more info visit duluthfarmersmarket.com.
UMD Farmer’s Market is open every Wednesday 2 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. They can be found at the Kirby Bus Hub in front of Kirby Plaza. 1120 Kirby Dr., Duluth. For more info call
763-843-9958.

Lincoln Park’s Farmer’s Market is open every Thursday 4p.m. to 7 p.m. They’re located in the Harrison Community center at 3002 W. 3rd St., Duluth. For more information call 218-726-1665.

Downtown Farmer’s Market opens July 15th, Tuesdays 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. They can be found at the corner of Lake Ave. and Superior St., Duluth. For more info call 218-727-8549.

Superior Downtown Farmer’s Market is open every Wednesday 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. It can be found at the corner of Tower and Belknap. Call 715-394-3557 for more information or visit their Facebook site.

Barker’s Island Farmer’s Market is open every Saturday 8 a.m. to Noon. The market takes place in the Barker’s Island parking lot. Contact 715-372-8441.