Originally the Twin City Farmers Market in Sterling, Illinois was its own nonprofit organization. After some time, the market was then managed by the nonprofit Sterling Main Street. Janna Groharing is Main Street's executive director. She said that the farmers market was originally an indoor only market until the COVID-19 pandemic. Luckily the city of Sterling and Main Street decided to redevelop a nearby lot and construction wrapped in early 2020, which then allowed the farmers market to stay open as an outdoor market.
The Twin City Farmers Market has an importance with local growers and producers. Groharing said they have 25 year-round vendors, and when the market opens the outdoor portion during the first weekend in May, that adds another 30 to 40 vendors on any given weekend. She said over the course of the summer they’ve had over 75 unique vendors at the outdoor portion of the market alone.
If there is something you’re searching out, Groharing suggests showing up before 10 am before the market really starts to crowd up.
Every weekend offers food and produce, but there are also many special events on the calendar at the Twin City Farmers Market.
Earth Day with the Master Gardners, a petting zoo and a Harvest Moon Festival at the end of October are just a small sample of what the market offers its patrons.
Plus, as the weather warms there will be a car show the first weekend in May, and cruise nights on the first Fridays of June through August.
Groharing also mentioned that the Twin City Farmers Market worked with the USDA to begin accepting SNAP benefits, with the hope of being able to fully launch that initiative by May.
Groharing ended our conversation with a helpful tip for past and future farmers market patrons.
“The thing that cracks me up," she said, "we’ve been open for almost 20 years. Without fail every February and March people will always ask when the farmers market will be open. My answer is always Saturday. Know what? Its open year-round, and it has been since day one.”
The Twin City Farmers Market is in Sterling, Illinois and is open every Saturday from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m.
