Student brings farmer’s market to Clemson campus

Published: September 10, 2009

CLEMSON — Clemson University sophomore Ashley Adams wants to support local agriculture, so she is bringing it to the Clemson campus for everyone to enjoy.

Adams is the driving force behind the Clemson Farm Fresh Market, which will open on Tuesday, Sept. 15, in the field behind the Edgar A. Brown University Union. Farmers and vendors from around the Upstate will sell fresh produce and other locally made products from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Local musician Dave Scherrep will provide entertainment during the market.

South Carolina Agriculture Commissioner Hugh Weathers will be on hand along with Tom Scott, interim dean of the College of Agriculture, Forestry and Life Sciences, for a ribbon-cutting at 10:45 a.m. Beth Crocker, general counsel for the South Carolina Department of Agriculture, also will attend.

Funded by a $10,000 grant from the South Carolina Department of Agriculture, the market will be a monthly event, held on the third Tuesday of every month. Adams secured the grant and sought support from others on campus, including Katie Black and Paula Beecher of the Bookhart Student Services Center in the College of Agriculture, Forestry and Life Sciences.

Adams, an English major from Forest City, N.C., said she was inspired by a visit to the University of South Carolina’s Healthy Carolina Farmer’s Market.

“After seeing a farmer’s market on campus there, I thought, ‘If USC can do this, Clemson can too’,” she said. “And, after all, we are the agriculture school; we should be able to do it better.”

The market is a win-win situation for everyone, said Adams — it gives local farmers a place to sell their products; it gives Clemson students and employees a place to buy fresh, healthy produce; and because all products are locally grown, it is good for the environment.

“I enjoy agriculture, I want to support local agriculture and I want my friends to be excited about agriculture,” Adams said. “Farmer’s markets on college campuses are becoming more and more popular. I want Clemson to be on this bandwagon.”

The Clemson Fresh Farm Market also will be held Oct. 20 and Nov. 17. Adams said if the market is a success, it could be open twice a month in the spring semester.

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