Mark Your Calendars! Boise Farmers Markets Prepare for New Season

The sun is shining. The high for Friday is 65º. It's no longer pitch black while we're driving home from work. Spring is just around the corner and so are the return of farmers markets from Boise to Caldwell!

2020 was a roller coaster for farmers markets in the Treasure Valley. Idaho's original, largest and oldest outdoor farmer's market, the Capital City Public Market, bid farewell (for now) to 8th and Idaho in Downtown Boise. The new location and smaller format came weeks after the market faced backlash on social media for announcing that they would move forward with their plans to open in April. Deemed essential in Governor Little's "Stay-Home Order," the market knew it would have to adapt and change from the format that drew thousands of shoppers every Saturday but people wrongfully assumed that the market would operate like it has for years. Ultimately, they postponed opening weekend until the beginning of May, moved to the 34th Street Market in Garden City and opened with fewer vendors. They'll return to that location this year.

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Boise Farmers Market took a different approach. They converted their market to a drive-thru operation where people could place their orders online Tuesday and Wednesday and pick-them up on Saturday. The pivot led to accolades from American Farmland Trust which named Boise Farmers Market the best farmers market in the Pacific Northwest. When they open for the season, that drive-thru model will return.

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So when do the Capital City Public Market and Boise Farmers Markets open for 2021? Here's a look at the opening dates as they stand now!