Rules and information for vendors at Farmers’ Market:
1. Donald Isaac Grimmer handles vendor registration, takes fees and manages the Market setup each Saturday. They is your source for general enquiries through penderislandmarket@gmail.com. If urgent you are able to call or text 250-222-0421
2. Your weekly fee pays for a spot at the market. 10’ x 10’ canopy tents are $15 extra whilst 8’ and 6’ tables are $5 extra to rent.
3. Vendors that chose spots at the vendors meeting in April have priority for that location over all others.
4. Second in line are those that were at the previous market and told staff they will be at the next market.
5. Third in line are those who emailed Isaac to book a specific date.
6. The above hierarchy also applies to booking a tent if there are not enough for all.
7. The only time you would need to tell us you are NOT coming, is if you previously said you were coming.
8. A map is on the ManageMyMarket site showing confirmed vendors and available locations for that Saturday’s market.
9. Vendors must confirm their table by Thursday midnight.
10. A final map is available Friday morning with any changes as per above hierarchy and the Thursday midnight cutoff. Please download this map to see if you have been relocated.
11. After 6 pm Friday the map with any corrections is with Isaac for Market setup in the morning and vendors need to contact him with any issues.
12. Vendors who have booked a spot and don’t show up must pay for what was set up.
13. Nutrition Coupon Program coupons must be turned in at the PIFI desk for reimbursement before you leave the market for timely reimbursement. Procedures will be updated for the 2024 market: Each farmer vendor will be given a binder with labels and elastic bands. Coupons are to be bundled, labelled, and the number recorded by the vendor. Only hand in coupons that were bundled and labelled with your name and the number of coupons. In 2023 over 7,000 coupons were handed in - so please help us improve our service to you. Thank you.
To sign up for an online Food Safe or Market Safe Course: Food Safe Level 1 and Refresher courses can be taken online, as well as the Market Safe course. If you are a vendor at the Market selling food products, we require you to have Food Safe Level 1 or Market Safe. If you already have Food Safe but want to recertify or refresh your memory, take the Refresher course. They must be renewed every five years. To sign up for an online course, click here.
Island Health requires high risk food vendors (ie eggs, meat) to complete an application for Sale of Higher Risk Food at Temporary Markets and submit it to the local Health Protection and Environmental Services Office 14 days before your first market. https://www.islandhealth.ca/sites/default/files/2018-05/temporary-food-market-higher-risk-application.pdf
To order a new copy of your Food Safe certificate: New copies of the Food Safe certificate can be ordered and sent to you by mail through the Vancouver Island Health Authority's office in Duncan for a minimal fee. Please call (250) 737-2010
BC CDC Guidelines for the Sale of Foods at Temporary Markets: We require all Farmers' Market vendors to read and adhere to these guidelines. They can be found here.