Harvest time in the Panhandle

Sunday marked the beginning of the eight-week harvest season for the farmers who belong to the Panhandle Fresh Market Association.

Their ready-to-harvest produce will be updated online each Sunday for PFMA members to peruse and select for purchase. The weekly sales begin Monday and close Tuesday night; the requested produce is then harvested on Thursday for delivery to five different pickup sites on Friday: from a local farmer's field to a local customer's table in one week.

This will be the first time Charles Bodamer of Milton is participating in the program, but he feels that it is a good opportunity to "sell at retail without spending time at farmer's markets."

Panhandle Fresh Market Association began in November 2007 when it was registered with the Florida Department of State, Division of Corporations, as a not-for-profit 501(c)6; the registering members on record are Cindy Anderson, Ed Gray III and Dick Baker.

For more on this story, see the Sept. 22 issue of the Navarre Press or subscribe online.