About the Market

Pendleton Farmers Market is a volunteer-run, state and federally-recognized 501(c)(6) non-profit organization. Our mission is to provide an open-air farmers market and community gathering place that will bring affordable, fresh-picked and hand-produced goods to customers while offering a profitable business opportunity for regional producers. We encourage vendors from our bio-region, or “foodshed” — the Blue Mountains and Columbia Plateau. We aim to enhance the vitality of our town and countryside!

What can you find at the Market?

Just about everything you could wish for — at its freshest, most delicious and most original!  Our market slogan is "Make it, Bake it, or Grow it" — and sell it at on Main Street! For nearly six full months  (20-24 weeks) of the year you will find high quality seasonal fruits and vegetables, herbs, eggs, meats and baked goods.

You will also find unique hand-crafted jewelry, kitchen and home furnishings, clothing,  leather, wood, and ceramic wares.  These are crafted by talented artisans from the area bringing their entrepreneurial skills and vitality to downtown and to the regional economy.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q. Who is the Pendleton Farmers Market anyway?

A. The Market was started in 2002 by a dedicated group of Pendleton volunteers who wanted to improve our region’s sustainability, food security, and self-reliance by expanding our access to fresh, local food. The Pendleton Farmers Market is a nonprofit corporation recognized by the State of Oregon with a mission of enhancing the regional economy, and community "livability" by providing accessible "direct marketing" opportunities to customers and vendors. The Market is a membership organization with an elected Board of Directors. The Market is made up entirely of volunteers except for the Market Manager position which is a paid position.

Q. What are the Farmers Market hours?

A. The Farmers Market operates from 4:00 p.m.– 7:00 p.m., or dusk (whichever comes first), Friday evenings through the summer. Dates change annually but will likely be from mid-May through mid-October, depending on weather, crop availability and logistics.

Q. Why does the Farmers Market close the street off at 3:30 p.m.? Why not close it later in the evening?

A. Although the Farmers Market starts at 4:00 p.m., volunteers begin closing off the 300 block of Main street between 3:00 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. in order for farmers to set up and to give customers time to leave the 300 block safely. It takes a minimum of 1 hour for many farmers to set their booths up (although some set up much more quickly and others take longer.) Most markets allow one and one half to two hours for setup, and many farmers seemed surprised that we "only" allow 1 hour. Maximization of market hours is optimal in order to provide value to the farmers, who travel between ˝ hour and 2 ˝ hours to reach Pendleton.

Most of the farmers already go to larger, more established Saturday morning markets (Walla Walla, Portland or Pasco) and need to get back home in the evening in time to pick produce and reload their trucks for those markets. They are generally unable to stay later than 7:00 p.m. at our Market.

The Market would not be allowing enough "sales time" if we only operated for less than 3 hours. Round-trip travel takes 1-5 hours for these farmers, and that this does not include setup. Typically, farmers markets operate for four hours (8:00 am to noon is common on a Saturday morning market, for example). Moving the starting time later in the evening would mean losing farmers and shrinking the Market.

Q. Why not operate the Market on a different night or day of the week?

A. Friday night is a good fit for "our" farmers. We could not switch to Saturday morning, for example, and expect to have any farmers attend - they are all at either Pasco or Walla Walla farmers markets.

We have considered a Sunday market and may try that out this year on an experimental basis. We are not sure if Pendleton shoppers would support this time or not. Otherwise we would need to go to a weeknight market, and we do not have the volunteers available to staff the market during the week. Many more established farmers markets have two markets a week, often one on a weekend and one during the week, and maybe someday this would be an option for us as well.

Q. Why doesn’t the Farmers Market move off of Main Street?

A. The Market has evaluated other sites and considered that Main Street provides the best location for the Market at this time. Reasons for this include:

• Access to public restrooms at the Chamber of Commerce
• Main Street 300 block is large enough to fit all of our vendors
• Ready access to public parking at the south end of Main Street
• Access to power for scales and other equipment
• Support of the majority of 300 block merchants

Other sites considered include:

• Brownfield Park (too small)
• Vacant city lot located across from Salvation Army (potentially large enough but is farther removed from public restrooms)
• City Parking Lot across from Chamber of Commerce (this site is large enough but would be unacceptably hot in the summer as there is no shade; remember that we operate in the hottest part of the day during July and August)
• Roy Raley Park (lack of public parking makes this site difficult)

Q. Is the Farmers Market "unfair competition" for downtown merchants and for people who want to park and shop downtown?

A. There is a saying in retail that the best place to locate a restaurant is across from another restaurant. The Farmers Market Board believes that the best way to get people to shop downtown is to offer attractions downtown, and that the competition between a market that is open approximately 20 nights a year and a retail store that is open 200+ days a year is a non-issue.

Overview

Motto: Good Products, Good Prices, Good People.

Purpose: This Corporation's primary purpose shall be to expand local and regional marketing opportunities for area farmers and artisans, while expanding opportunities for local and region consumers to purchase locally and regionally produced goods.

Mission: The mission of the Pendleton Farmers Market is to strengthen diverse community relationships by providing a vibrant gathering place in downtown Pendleton that offers local fresh and prepared foods and hand-crafted goods while providing regional producers with a profitable business environment.

Vision: The Pendleton Farmers Market is a model and extension of a dynamic, healthy and inclusive community, where creativity, integrity and self-reliance are valued and practiced.

Season Dates: The 2009 Pendleton Farmers Market will open on Friday, May 8 and run each Friday through October 23. The only exception will be on Friday, September 18 during the Pendleton Round-Up week when there is no Market scheduled.

Market Hours: Market set up will occur between 3:00 pm and 4:00 pm. Sales to the public begin at 4:00 pm and continue through dusk.

Location: The Market is located on the 300 block of south Main Street in Pendleton, between SE Dorion Ave. and SE Emigrant Ave. Weekly Market registration for vendors takes place on the corner of SE Main and SE Frazier Ave. from 3:00 – 4:00 pm on the Friday the Market is in session. For directions and a map to either the vendor registration table or public parking area, please click here.

Volunteers Needed: Would you like to be a volunteer? We strongly encourage community members to please come forward to volunteer their time or skills to help run the market. Visit our Volunteer Opportunities page to see what volunteer jobs are needed to keep the Market running smoothly.