A Farmers Market Opens at El Camino Hospital

Resident of Los Altos, Mountain View and Sunnyvale, and employees and patients of El Camino Hospital now have another option to stay healthy with fresh fruits and vegetables.

Every Friday from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. this fall, the hospital will host—along with Bay Area Farmers’ Markets Association (BAFMA)—a weekly farmers’ market, which will feature locally grown organic produce, fresh eggs, cheese, breads , kettle corn, fish and nuts.

The effort is part of the hospital's increasing focus on wellness, to provide both employees and the community with a variety of fresh, healthy and seasonal food options.

At the inauguration on Friday, Oct. 5, Mayor Mike Kasperzak congratulated El Camino Hospital and said he looked forward to further collaborations.

Kasperzak also shared that he understood the connection between high mortality rates and low quality food. He acknowledged that the market would be in one of the highest income areas of Mountain View—but that as policy makers, he and others should keep in mind the impact of zoning on food accessibility.

The next areas that would be great to have a farmers market would be around the community center area, he added.

While the farmers' market has permits for the fall season, hospital CEO Tomi Ryba said they have started working on getting the permits in the summer.

In addition to the produce, from vendors like J&M Ibarra Farms, where Nelson De Jesus arranged any mix of vegetables from his family farm for $2, the booth Specialty Produce sold "super sweet tomatoes," said Christina, the granddaughter of Los Altan Jeannie Trembois of Los Altos who sold produce from their farm in San Juan Bautista.

Also, consumers could purchase olive oil and balsamic vinegars from Campbell retailers Big Paw.

Another vendor included mobile clothing boutique La-Te-Da, owned by Debbie DeJesus. DeJesus had a storefront in Grass Valley and "paid top dollar," she said. But after moving to Sunnyvale, she decided to try a mobile boutique, an idea she picked up in Los Angeles.

What do you think about the new farmers' market? Are you happy about the location? About the time? Would you like to see more in Mountain View and Los Altos?

Don't miss a thing in Mountain View!

Follow on Twitter | Like us on Facebook | Get the daily newsletter | Post to our calendar | Share an announcement