Farmers’ market pleased with changed proposal guidelines

The Saskatoon Farmers’ Market co-operative is pleased city council wants to keep dedicated market days at the current space in River Landing.

After an assessment, council put out a request for proposals looking for tenants who could keep the building operating year-round for more than its current three days-a-week schedule. That  initial request for proposal was open to anyone and everyone.

The proposal was amended this week to specifically include farmers’ market days.

Co-operative president Adi Ramachandran applauded the move.

“A public market is a step backward, a public market will take the local food scene in Saskatoon back 50 years and that is not an exaggeration,” he said.

Following the amendment to the request for proposals, the Farmers’ Market cooperative indicated it could seek like-minded vendors to couple with and put together a winning submission.

“The opposite would be a public market where vendors re-sell goods —so they don’t make, bake, gather or grow the goods they produce— they purchase and re-sell them,” Ramachandran said.

The current lease at the farmers’ market site expires in May of next year.