Changes needed so farmers markets can operate safely

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Local farmers markets likely will focus on solo shoppers and not be their traditional family affair when they open this spring, a health department official said.

Recommendations from the Lincoln-Lancaster County Health Department to allow operation of these markets include more hand-washing stations, increased space between vendor booths, a ban on free samples and stricter money-handling guidelines, among others.

“I know it totally changes the tenor of the thing,” said Scott Holmes, environmental public health director for the Lincoln-Lancaster County Health Department.

But the department wants to allow these key access points for healthy food to be open while also reducing the transmission risk of the coronavirus in Lincoln, he told the Lincoln Journal Star.

Health officials plan to soon review the recommendations with market managers, who remain uncertain when they’ll be able to convene their vendors for the start of the seasonal attractions.

The Sunday Farmers’ Market at College View was set to open April 26, embarking on its 15th season.

But the market’s all-vendor board made the decision this week to move it back to June 7.

“It weighed heavy on their shoulders,” said Jen Burianek, who manages the Sunday Farmers’ Market.

The vendors know the importance these markets hold in connecting small businesses and farmers to their customers, averaging more than 2,500 customers a week, she said.

In Los Angeles this month, the mayor shut down all farmers markets over concerns about crowds, according to news reports.

Burianek said the Sunday Farmers’ Market board doesn’t want to jeopardize anyone’s safety, and they plan to regroup in May and assess their plan.

“We’re going to make sure when we open we do it right,” she...