Have we mentioned before that we LOVE Crossroad Farmers Market? Well, we really, really do. And we were even more excited when the idea of holding our 2nd Reusable Bag Drive came up.

What better way to help a great organization, support local farmers and purveyors, families in our community AND our enviornment? We’re IN! Are you? Simply take a look around your house for all of those reusable bags that are going unused. Or, perhaps you never remember to take them into the store with you and you’ve also got a pile of those brown paper bags piling up. We’ll take them! In fact, we’ll even swing by your place to get them.

Ready to join us? Sign up HERE.

Want to learn more? Keep reading…

Crossroads Farmers Market in Takoma Park, Maryland, is a lively community gathering space for people of all backgrounds and incomes, where families, foodies, neighbors, gardeners, live-music fans, and coffee lovers meet every Wednesday afternoon to eat lunch and stock up on fresh ingredients for the week ahead. This producers-only farmers market features a range of vendors selling fresh fruits, vegetables, eggs, honey, coffee, flowers and plants, Central American herbs like chipilín, and tasty prepared foods, as well as food demos and tastings, kids’ activities, live music, free health screenings, and other seasonal events like our annual Halloween Spooktacular and pre-Thanksgiving Fun Before the Feast. On average, produce travels just 72 miles from area farms to our market, and our vendors collectively cultivate 622 agricultural acres of fresh food.

Crossroads Farmers Market was founded in 2007 to make fresh, healthy food more affordable and more accessible to residents of the Takoma/Langley Crossroads community. To help increase access to fresh fruits and vegetables, they gladly accept all federal nutrition benefits: Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly known as food stamps); Women, Infants, and Children Fruit and Vegetable Checks (WIC FVC); Senior/WIC FMNP (Farmers Market Nutrition Program checks); and DC WIC. Not only was Crossroads Farmers Market the first farmers market in Maryland to accept these benefits, but also it was the first farmers market in the country to launch a “double dollar” incentive program to match them.

Through their innovative Fresh Checks program, eligible shoppers can get up to $20 in FREE fruits and vegetables every week, enabling them to stretch their buying power to bring home more fresh, healthy food while at the same time supporting local farmers and vendors. Here’s how it works: SNAP shoppers can swipe their Independence Card at our Market Information Tent’s EBT machine, and we’ll match the amount spent up to $20 every week. WIC and senior shoppers can redeem their FVC and FMNP vouchers directly with the farmers, then get a matched amount (up to $20 every week) in Fresh Checks to buy more healthy food.

If you’ve shopped in Takoma Park in the past two years you likely noticed that The City of Takoma Park has banned the use of single-use, point of sale, plastic bags within the boundaries of the City of Takoma Park. Farmers Markets were exempt from this ban until December 2017. While compostable bags are acceptable to distribute, they cost 10 times that of the traditional plastic bag. It was clear that this was an opportunity for Silver Spring Cares!

Perhaps you have tons of reusable bags lying around not being used. Or, you’ve been saving paper bags from the grocery store just in case. Now is the perfect time to cull your collection for a great cause! We’ll even come and pick them and deliver directly to the farmers to use in lieu of plastic! Everyone wins!

Simply sign up HERE. On Mondays from April 29th – May 20th, we’ll swing by to pick them up and deliver to the market.

Want to volunteer to pick up bags or serve as a neighborhood/workplace drop off point to help us save time driving around? Let us know – email us for more information.

Thanks for being awesome and making Silver Spring a great place to thrive!