Celebratory drinks, an elaborate cake and a loud rendition of Happy Birthday helped the community to ring in a new year for its favourite food market.
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The Slow Food Earth Market Maitland turned five in The Levee on Thursday and everyone agreed it was a huge milestone in the city's ongoing fresh food revolution.
"It's significant because they say in business if you can get to five years then you must be doing something right and I think we have proved that," chairwoman Amorelle Dempster said.
The cake was a nod to beekeepers and the challenging times the industry is facing as the varroa mite parasite continues to spread in the region.
It had an orange and honey flavour and was decorated with honeycomb, flowers and native bees.
The market's four beekeepers - Eddie Williams, Crissy Rowcliff, Jennifer Sandstrom and Len Chesworth - played a special role in the cutting of the cake.
There have been 100 markets since the earth market began in August 2017. About 100 tonnes of food has been sold in that time and 10 tonnes has been donated to people in need during drought, floods and the pandemic.
Ms Dempster said the market had shown shoppers just how wonderful fresh produce was and it had built a vital link between the farmer and the consumer.
"We started with three farmers -Tom Christie, Matthew Dennis and Austin Breiner - and it has developed from there," she said.
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"We have been an incubator for giving people the opportunity to develop their business. We've seen beekeepers like Jennifer Sandstrom be able to come here to sell her product, we've seen Matthew Dennis branch out to do his vegetable boxes direct from the farm and we've seen growers like Crissy Rowcliff use the market as another income stream."
About 50 volunteers have helped to make the market possible since it began. Six of them have been with the market from the very first day.
The venture started as Maitland Produce Market in 2016, through a partnership with The Mercury, after a mammoth pumpkin stall that saved Matthew Dennis' crop.
Slow Food Hunter Valley served up Nojitos - a non-alcoholic version of a Mojito -all day to celebrate.
The drink showcased local lemons, limes and oranges.
"Citrus is in abundance at the moment. We don't have as much this year as we did last year, but it's still important that we use it all," Ms Dempster said.
The next market will be held on Thursday, August 18 between 8.30am and 1pm in The Levee. Shoppers are urged to bring their own bags.
Belinda-Jane Davis
Passionate about community news
Passionate about community news
