New farmers’ market seeks to provide solution to East Waco food desert

WACO, TX – A new bi-weekly farmers market aims to bring fresh, healthy options to a community with few food options.

The East Waco Farmers’ Market began about a month ago, led by the Waco chapter of the National Women in Agriculture Association. On Wednesdays and Fridays between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m., the organization and its salespeople set themselves up in a parking lot on the corner of Elm Ave. and Dallas St.

In the Friday market, fresh produce, plants, and artwork lined the tables for vendors like the Victory Oasis Farm & Ranch, owned by Cynthia Lyons.

“This area is considered a food wasteland. So there are no options, no shops, for a local resident to buy fresh produce and groceries, ”said Lyons.

A “food wasteland” is a community with little to no access to supermarkets. The USDA defines a food wasteland as a community with a poverty rate greater than 20 percent and where at least 33 percent of the community lives more than a mile from a supermarket or grocery store.

“Most people can point out a problem. And so it sounds like something special when you can identify a problem, ”said James McCoy, an East Waco resident. “You’re special when you can solve it. That’s a solution.”

McCoy was excited to stop by the market on Friday morning at a community where he has lived for 72 years.

“This gives me and my community the opportunity to eat something other than potato chips and wings and hamburgers. Some real food. said McCoy.

As several people stopped by the East Waco Farmers’ Market on Friday morning to shop, they hope more community members will begin to take advantage of a place to shop for fresh produce in East Waco.

“I want to encourage everyone to come out, meet and say hello, and we can share with you all that we are going to do here in this community to help this community grow and grow and learn about fresh food” said Lyons said.

The market hopes to be able to open on Saturdays in the coming weeks. In the future, organizers plan to run courses to teach people gardening and farming techniques that they can use to grow their own food at home.

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