Santa Cruz Farmers Market came together in the Fall of 1990 after the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake. Most of the Downtown corridor was damaged and the area residents were very reluctant to return. Many of the businesses that lost their storefronts either went out of business or relocated. The markets presence attracted people back to the downtown area and is created as breathing life back into the epicenter of damage from the quake. In 1995, the Santa Cruz Farmers’ Market reorganized and became a non-profit under the name Santa Cruz Community Farmers’ Market (SCCFM). The market has grown from a small venue that showcased the best in local growers to a nationally recognized market, offering one of the largest selections of certified organic produce in California.
Our Sunday Live Oak/Eastside market got its start in 2000 and became a year round market in 2009. In 2004, our Westside Farmers Market debuted in the parking lot of the Old Wrigley Building, located on the far west end of town and has become a favorite of foodies and travelers coming down from San Francisco. In the Winter of 2008, SCCFM entered in to talks with the Felton Certified Farmers Market about merging and in the spring of 2009, SCCFM became the organizer of the market, which had been operating independently since 1987. The Scotts Valley Farmers Market was our fifth and last market and was developed with the City of Scotts Valley in the summer 2009.
