Southeast Area Farmers' Market offers a bountiful summer

There are a lot of goodies in store for fresh food fans at the Southeast Area Farmers' Market, which kicked off its 2013 season on Saturday, June 1 at Gerald R. Ford Middle School (851 Madison Ave. SE) in Grand Rapids. The Saturday market will be open from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. through the first week of November.

Beginning June 7, a Friday Farm Stand Market will take place, on a smaller scale, from 3 - 7 p.m. at Garfield Park, located between 1558 Madison Ave. SE and 2799 Madison Ave. SE.

Then, on June 22, the market will host its official Grand Opening Celebration with special activities and music -- and an even greater selection of fresh, locally grown, chemical-free produce.

Our Kitchen Table (OKT), located at 8 Jefferson SE, Grand Rapids inside The Bloom Collective, manages the market, and there is even more in store for the rest of the summer and into fall. Market partners Kent County Health Department and Greater Grand Rapids Food Systems Council will host additional market activities throughout the season.

Mark your calendars: Here's the lineup of OKT-sponsored events, all of which take place from noon to 2 p.m. at the Saturday market:

-       June 7, Weekly Walking Club kicks off
-       June 29, Healthy cooking demo with a local chef
-       July 6, Urban Foraging Workshop. Learn about local edible "weeds"
-       July 27, Healthy Cooking demo with a local chef
-       August 3, Make Your Own Hypo-allergenic Soap Workshop
-       August 24, Healthy Cooking demo with a local chef
-       August 31, Healthy Cooking demo with a local chef
-       September 7, Art at the Market
-       September 28, Healthy cooking demo with a local chef
-       October 12, Greens Cook-off and Fried Green Tomato Festival
-       October 26, Food Day Activities and Healthy Cooking demo with a local chef

Our Kitchen Table is a nonprofit, grassroots community activist organization working for environmental justice and food security in Grand Rapids area urban communities. OKT's Food Diversity Program is funded by a grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation.

Get involved:

- Visit Our Kitchen Table's website.
- Grow a Garden.
- Go to the Farmers' Market!

Source: Stelle Slootmaker, OKT Communications
Writer: Victoria Mullen, Do Good Editor

Images: Courtesy of Our Kitchen Table