19th of January, 2020 had our Farmers Market event with Ahmedabad Farmers’ market. It happened at our farm premises at Upaj, Dumad village, Sama-Savli, Vadodara.

This year, Upaj celebrates its 10th year of foundation from 2010. So we wanted to begin 2020 by being grateful to the community that has supported us in this journey of a decade.  The farmers' market was one of the ways to engage everyone and show our gratitude.

I hope you were a part of the unique Farmers Market Event. The event celebrated a healthy mix of a modern yet traditional Indie culture. It involved both cooking and harvesting farm-fresh produce.

Read further to relive some moments from the beautiful Sunday morning. 

This Is How You Make the Best Time at a Farmers Market

No event is successful without good food. At our event, there were plenty of food joints for every palate to relish.

Lily Pond Bakery offered handmade and fresh loaves of bread. While Goodies Cafe offered live and customized egg dishes. The range of cuisines was wide and impressive.

Between bread and eggs, there was a wonderful display of handmade artisan cheese by Khet se Plate. There was an interesting pallet that comprised of the ones that are not native to India.

Sufoo had energy bars and balls made of natural ingredients. Their orange and chocolate balls were reminiscent of 80s childhood.

There were a few local delicacies as well. Matla Undhio was everyone’s favorite. Hot juicy jalebis accompanied this beautiful rustic dish. Fresh “ponk” (sorghum) from the season got sold out within a few mins after the vendor set up his counter! Also, steamed corn-on-cob was the most popular snack that everyone enjoyed.

Everyone was in luck to have coffee/tea to avoid a nap after overeating.

When was the last time you unleashed your creative side? If you were at the event. Then, you must have had a good time designing a scarecrow.

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A post shared by Upaj Farm (@upajfarm) on Jan 16, 2020 at 2:02am PST

Lots of kids and adults indulged in making their DIY straw man. It must have confused the birds. They would have never seen the scarecrow change its look every few minutes.

For sure the birds would now start considering the scarecrow scary.

This by far was the most indulging activity at the event. It was a sight to watch the flock of crowds squatting to pluck greens.

 Upaj believes in the philosophy of involving everyone in activities related to soil. Be it gardening or farming.  

That is why it was exciting to see toddlers adept in uprooting tubers from the soil. What a delight it was to watch them pull out organic red radish and fall back on their little backsides!  

Our farming practices do not use any toxic chemical-laden pesticides. That is why It was a moment of joy to see everyone getting closer to nature.

Farmers are the usual workforce on farms. Therefore, urban farmers harvesting at farms made an unusual visual. 

Digging into the soil, holding freshly harvested produce in their hands. Then, smelling herbs and flowers was an experience that the visitors will savor for a long time. 

Such a calming and refreshing experience brings one closer to Mother Nature. Furthermore, it also meant giving a thought to the hardships that bring food from the farm to the plate.

If living a holistic organic lifestyle fascinates you. Then, you must have got impressed with HiOrganiks showcasing handmade cosmetics.

The entire range of bath and body products from them were free from parabens, SLS. None of the offerings contained artificial colors or fragrances.

From artisan cold processed soaps to melt and pour ones, the range was huge and vibrant.

Santrampur on the banks of Suki river in Aravalli hills is a beautiful town.

The town prides itself on indigenous flora. Thus, our farmers market event had a kiosk on gourmet delicacies from there.

They had tea, jams, sherbets, chutneys, and organic flours from their local produce. It was interesting to note that they used hibiscus, rosella and snap melon to make their products.

It goes without mention that they did not use any preservatives and colors.

Though it is worth a mention that the royal family of Satnampur hosted these delicacies.

The grace exhibited by the family added to the flare of their offerings.

You could not have missed the colorful display of bags and storage boxes.

They had chequered strips of recycled plastic interwoven to form bags.

The kiosk by Ecosia served as a reminder to create the best out of waste. 

A kiosk at the extreme end of the farmers market offered Chirotherapy. Yes, you heard it right! 

Its location was strategic to culminate the busy day with a dose of relaxation.

The kiosk by Chirolives offered relaxing balms and scrubs to ease out stress.

A few minutes of therapy with them was the best unwinding experience.  

In Conclusion

It is overwhelming to organize a farmers' market. Though we were fortunate to have Ahemdabad Farmers' Market by our side.  

Three passionate ladies from Ahmedabad have curated many such events. Their prolific experience in conducting similar events brought smoothness to the entire process.

Almost every vendor at the event sold out all their inventory. The biggest testimony to the event's success was the cheerful crowd. There were happy people roaming all around the Upaj Farm. The warm smile on every face brought satisfaction to the entire Upaj team. 

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A post shared by Upaj Farm (@upajfarm) on Jan 10, 2020 at 10:43pm PST

I am not sure if you were present at the event. But if you were, do let me know how you enjoyed it. 

Your feedback is valuable.  Please feel free to comment on this post. That will help us bring out a better event next time.

Team Upaj and Ahmedabad Farmers’ Market is thankful to every vendor who was a part of the event. Gratitude to everyone below (the list in not in any order) :

• LilyPondBakery
• Mishika Foods
• thegoodiescafe
• The Banyan Deli
• Sufoo Energy balls
• Hi Green
• Satvik Organic Store
• Brew House
• AstraeaGreenTea
• Aumfresh
• @FreshForest
• HiOrganiks
• Verynutri
• Shillar House ( Honey all the way from Himachal)
• ecosia_gallery
• Santrampur Field and Flower
• KhetSePlate
• KorebiCoffee
• fitbitesby_dina
• visavis_studios
• barefootorganics
• chirolives
• Prakrutik Aahar
• ALabhya by PrakrutiFarm
• grouplandmark