By Helen Nielsen
The Vista Farmers Market, the longest running Farmers Market in the county (since 1981) is setting records again. This time the Farmers Market, located in front of the County Courthouse on Melrose Drive every Saturday from 8am until Noon is setting the pace for becoming more than just the place to buy savory and seasonal healthy fruits and veggies. It is becoming a major
“Healthy Holiday Shopping Destination”
in North County.
With a “good health” promoting Santa each Holiday weekend who helps parents show kids how to “dump the junk” and helps get them off of the SAD (Standard American Diet) of Fast, Junk, and Processed “foods” which is now creating a landslide of metabolic and other illnesses in elementary aged kids and beyond, the market presents a host of other health and wellness offerings.
The Santa is a member of the Real Santas United for Healthy Kids backed by the Carlsbad based Sustainable Santa Foundation. In addition to taking that Holiday Picture with Santa at less than 10% of the cost in the Mall, this Santa has a three part program conducted in partnership with the farmer vendors to introduce the children to tastes of “Real Food” the kids might not be familiar with, called “Santa’s Garden Bites.” Another fun game called “Eat the Rainbow” conducted in partnership with the parents shows kids how to select and prepare delicious healthy veggies from each of the five color groups into which all fruit and veggies fall – thus learning to “Eat the Rainbow.” The result is a lifetime of good health.
There are a host of handcrafted items from jewelry, to soaps, clothing, wooden bowls, ceramics and many more the likes of which you will not find anywhere else.
“This makes the Farmers Market the perfect place for holiday shopping for that friend or family member not lucky enough to live in our community,” says Mark Wall, Market Manager. People not only buy artisan gifts to send, but combinations of basically non-perishable in the short term fruits such as pomegranates, or dehydrated star fruit, blood oranges and mangos, nuts of all kinds, local honey, even citrus fresh enough to survive the trip to Aunt Jane in Iowa. Those who get these West Coast holiday treats love them, says Wall.
“And best of all, those receiving these Holiday gifts will know that YOU personally selected them”
concludes the market manager.
Plus there is no tariffs on any of these items and all are grown, or created in an Earth Friendly manner. Everyone is happy, including Mother Earth.
Ben and Mary, two of the 50+ farmers and 30+ artisan craft vendors and food makers at each week’s Vista market, slice a seasonal squash for one of the kids choosing an Orange colored veggie to try as part of the “Eat the Rainbow” program. These two are among the lead farmers supplying “nature’s candy” as the healthy substitute to the sugar-loaded commercial confections passed out as holiday gifts. Nature’s Candy is dehydrated fruits, nuts of various kinds, pomegranates, naval organs, honey sticks etc. all of which provide sweetness, good nutrition and fiber without all the harmful added sugars and chemicals.
Farmer Vendors sample tastes of “Real Food” i.e. Raw broccoli and cauliflower, Kombucha, microgreens, dehydrated fruits as “Santa’s Garden Bites” which allows kids to expand their taste preferences beyond Cheetos, Slurpee’s, and other commercial snacks and fast “foods”.
The Vista Santa works with parents and kids of all ages to spread the joy of good health brought about by “Eating Real Food.”
In his Santa House, parents take holiday pictures of their children with Santa for a suggested $5 donation to the work of the Sustainable Santa Foundation.
At the market Santa shares a bite of a raw bell pepper with little Adam as brother Paul and happy parents look on. Teaching kids to love healthy veggies and learning to “Eat the Rainbow” is a key mission for the Real Santas United for Healthy Kids. “ It’s Carrots instead of Candy Canes” says Santa.
