Ebt info:
For years, I went to the farmers market at the…read moreold location. Recently, I learned about the ebt benefits of shopping at the farmers market and I was so excited to check it out.
I have now been four or five times this summer. They match up to 15 dollars a week at Lexington farmers market. You can use this money at any booth! Your only limit is that you can't buy hot prepared food. You can buy frozen tamales, frozen dumplings etc. go to the farmers market manager tent, present your food stamp card and tell them the amount you would like pulled off your food stamp card. If you decide you want 15 dollars, they'll match your 15! They give you paper money that doesn't expire, so if you don't spend all the money you can save it for next week or next month or whatever works for you.
There is also another program that is included with ebt, right now it's 40 dollars a month (minimally, I think) that you can use at select booths (Kelley farms, busa, farmer Dave & I think stillmans farms, maybe another I'm forgetting) if you use this, you hand them your ebt card directly. They will run your card directly at the booth. The money you spend out of this 40 will be put back on your ebt card for the month. I suggest using this money first so you have time to use the replenished amount on your card. This does not roll over month to month, so use it up!
Review of farmers market:
I absolutely adore this farmers market. It's spread over a flat piece of field with tons of parking on worthen road. There are some booths that come every few weeks, but there are always great booths with produce, baked goods, dairy and fish.
I absolutely love Kelley farms. It's an organic Asian greens and vegetables tent. The owners are a lovely married couple. We got the best bok choy and Chinese tomatoes. We got absolutely giant scallions that were delicious grilled, but are also so good in stirfry, quiche and salads. If you don't know what something is, ask! The owner will explain anything you need. She's great!
She let me sample a tomato (it was pretty big!) and it was so so yummy. I bought a bag and immediately came home and made a tomato salad. Kelley farms is my go-to now, everything is so fresh, so yummy and elevates any meal your preparing.
I got a (very affordable) pound of haddock that was so fresh and yummy. They were so welcoming and answered all my questions.
Busa farms is always packed with delicious produce. The fruit and vegetable options are extensive. The booth always looks fantastic. They are so friendly.
I forget which booth it was, but one booth has delicious scones and zucchini loaves. They are also very organized and have beautiful produce.
The farmers market managers are always on site, so friendly and do a great job remembering returning patrons. On super hot days, they have staff handing out cold towels to the staff running all the booths and I love seeing that they take care of each other.
For farmers market week they had performers for kiddos and live music. I appreciate the work they put into making this farmers market a community hot spot and not just another grocery trip.
There are also art booths that come and sell handmade art. Last week there was a ceramics booth with absolutely stunning mugs, stoneware and art. Tania, (the woman who runs the booth) teaches ceramics classes in Lexington for both children and adults. 8 week sessions, very affordable. Tania was so friendly, happy to answer questions and welcoming. She and her husband made it clear that all art levels are welcome. I signed up for a session before I even left the market.
I highly suggest Lexington farmers market!
