I was very excited today to be going to a new Victorian Farmers’ Market Association accredited Farmer’s Market at Fairfield Primary School, Wingrove Street, Fairfield.

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I didn’t take the “serious” camera as it was drizzling, but I will do a wrap up for those if you who didn’t get out of bed today, to encourage you to come to the next market on 16 June.

This is the fifth Melbourne Community Farmers’ Market (my favourites) – St Kilda, Collingwood Chidren’s Farm, Gasworks Park and Abbotsford Convent “Slow Food” market. Held on the 3rd Saturday of the month it’s an alternative to Gasworks Market and currently opens from 9am (which seems so LATE for some of us!).

While I waited for the stall holders to set up I grabbed a coffee made from Eureka Coffee beans and chatted to Josephine of Paterson’s Pastry. Josephine is continuing the tradition of the fondly remember Paterson’s cakes, by using the family recipes to bring ready made pastry and uncooked biscuit dough to the markets. I can personally vouch for the shortcrust, puff, lemon biscuits and dutch spice biscuits.

The Vietnamese Street food stall next door smelled amazingly good, but I didn’t try the spring onion pancakes with pork floss this time, maybe next month.

The market has good access, on a bitumen playground mostly and has a childrens’ play area.  There’s plenty of room, train station nearby and parking in the street.

I was really pleased to see Darryl’s Dry Roasted Peanut Butter. I’ve really missed freshly ground peanut butter from health foods stores. It seems to have disappeared.  Darryl dry-roasts Queensland nuts and adds just salt. No emulsifiers, no oil, no sugar – Hooray!  It’s bloody delicious too!  I spread it on a pretzel from Rustic Sourdough bakery  – double yum!

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I’ll be having some of the baguette I brought with my french style cheese from L’Artisan Cheese. I bought a raclette style, a washed rind and a coulomniers style brie.  Hmmm…. Can’t wait.  And they also bring fromage blanc to the markets which I will be researching straight away for recipes to use it in.

I caught up with Simon from Schulz Organic Milk and had a long chat to Lauren from Bundarra Berkshires.  Her free-range, rare breed delicious pork is used by some of our best restaurants.

On my way out I picked up a dozen free range eggs from Real Free Range Eggs

Here is a list of some of the other producers – I know I missed some, let me know if you’re not on the list.

Alpine Cherries & Chestnuts

Blac LEather Creek Farm

Hi-fye Pistachios

Mackieson Highland Beef Pies (Weekly Times story on them)

The Mushroom Shed

Otway Prime meat

Pacdon Park (pork pies, sausages and bacon)

Peregrine Ridge wine

Raw Honey

Spring Creek Organics (vegetables)

Villa Pilegi Olive Oil

There was also garlic, berries and another vegie stall … sorry guys!

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A very promising market.

VFMA has posted a link to a Department of Agriculture, Fisheries & Forestry paper on food suppliers in Australia.  From page 51 they talk about Farmers’ Markets and their expansion in Australia.  Thankfully, they are growing in number, and in market share.

This entry was posted Saturday, June 9th, 2012 at 9:00 am and is filed under Farmers' Markets . You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.