- Salt Lake City's Downtown Farmers Market returns with a new layout amid Pioneer Park renovations.
- Cold snaps severely impacted local fruit vendors, leading to some pulling out this year.
- Rico Brand exits the market to focus on expansion, welcoming new entrepreneurs to join market.
SALT LAKE CITY — Utah's largest farmers market will look different when it returns this weekend, as its home undergoes a facelift.
There will also be new faces, as some familiar vendors deal with the impacts of a "fruit famine" and others step aside for the next generation of businesses when the Salt Lake City Downtown Farmers Market returns this Saturday.
"Things will be laid out really differently ... but we are maintaining the same size of market as we have in the past," said Carly Gillespie, director of Urban Food Connections of Utah, which oversees the market.
A new layout
Salt Lake City broke ground on its $18.4 million Pioneer Park project in February. Market organizers explored alternative locations when they learned about Pioneer Park's construction timeline, as the weekly event brings over 10,000 customers every week, but they ultimately settled on staying at the park and working with the space they had.
This year's market will be a partial street affair while construction is carried out, but it's not expected to affect the number of vendors at the event this year. The downtown market attracts 250 to 300 vendors annually, and Gillespie told KSL that she expects that to remain close to the same this year, though she said some veteran vendors pulled out over this year's challenges.
"It was really important to us not to decrease the size of our market and to maintain the same capacity," she said.
Downtown Farmers Market changes
- Pioneer Park's south field is still open, which will host arts and crafts booths, while some will also be scattered across park spaces near 300 West and 400 West that are still open.
- Farm and food vendors will set up at spaces near 300 West and 400 South that are still open.
- Northbound lanes of 400 West will be temporarily closed between 300 South and 400 South for food trucks and other food vendors to set up.
- A beer garden and musicians will be scattered throughout the market space.
Some street parking is available for $3.50 per hour for up to two hours. Customers are urged to park at The Gateway, which offers free one-hour parking and $2 per hour thereafter, or take transit. Utah Transit Authority's TRAX and several bus routes each stop within a few blocks of Pioneer Park.
This year's market runs every Saturday (8 a.m. to 2 p.m.) through Oct. 24. Salt Lake City's park project is expected to be completed by the end of this year, creating a new permanent layout that will be visible next year.
Weird weather affects this year's market
Construction isn't the only hurdle for some vendors. Some notable names were forced out of this year's market after cold snaps in April and May — after an unseasonably warm winter — crushed many growers. Gov. Spencer Cox declared an emergency over it, noting that losses of 95% to 100% were reported from farmers who produce apricots, sweet and tart cherries, plums, peaches, pears and apples.
Smith Orchard, Wilson Peaches and Perfect Peach are among the companies that have pulled out of the Downtown Farmers Market this year due to the situation. Pioneer Valley Fruit Company, known for its jams and jellies, also pulled out over a lack of local fruit sources, organizers said.
Fowers Fruit Ranch will sell some peaches and apples it was able to grow, with a few trees being spared, while others, like Pyne Farms, are scaling back to sell apple cider and doughnuts. Its owner, Kent Pyne, told KSL last month that his farm had a complete crop failure for the first time in over 50 years.
A western Colorado vendor was still able to grow fruits that will be at the market, Gillespie said. Those who typically grow berries and other less-prone fruits, as well as vegetables, will also still be able to sell produce this year.
Rico moves aside
Rico Brand has also pulled out for a different reason. Jorge Fierro, the company's founder and owner, announced this week that his company will not be at the market this year for the first time since the Mexican food company was established in 1997.
"We have made the decision to go in a different direction," he said in a video posted to social media.
The company has long been viewed as a success story of the Downtown Farmers Market, catapulting the brand from a stand at the park into products sold at many supermarkets across Utah. It's currently working to expand to other states as it continues to grow, he said.
Fierro, who still serves on the market's board of advisors, credited the market for the business's position, calling it an "economic tool" to help new business ideas grow. The decision to leave, he explained, allows the next entrepreneur to come in and potentially have the same success.
"It's exciting to see new faces, new people who want to start their own business and new products," he said. "I think it's really exciting what's happening in our town."
