established in 1998

Now celebrating its 25th season, the Hastings Farmers’ Market opened modestly in the summer of 1998 with a mere six vendors. Organized by a small, visionary committee of volunteers from the village, its mission in part was to invigorate the downtown business district with an increase in foot traffic and out-of-town shoppers.

The fledgling market was initially located on a small, closed-off section of Maple Avenue, alongside the Municipal Building. It proved to be a less-than- perfect location, and the following year it moved into its current site in the library parking lot, with cooling breezes and sweeping views of the Hudson River and the Palisades. At the vanguard of the movement to support locally grown food and farm markets in the Lower Hudson Valley, the Hastings Farmers’ Market gradually grew from its original six vendors (including Morgiewicz and Meredith’s Bread, who continue to thrive at the market today) to more than twice its size. By 2007, the market was ready to expand even further.

Originally managed by Miriam Haas as part of the aptly named Community Markets (based in Ossining), the Market
organizers decided to strike out on their own, hiring village resident Pascale Le Draoulec as Director. Pascale, originally from California, is a committed foodie (French parents, the famed Santa Monica Farmers’ Market nearby). While the Hastings Farmers’ Market was a new direction for her, she came to it naturally as a food writer whose credits include the book "American Pie: Slices of Life (and Pie) from America’s Back Roads," as well as a former restaurant critic for New York’s Daily News. The change was an instantaneous and huge success and secured the market’s role as the village’s premier gathering spot. With Pascale at the helm, the market doubled again in size, from about 15 to nearly 30 vendors. In addition to produce and fruit, flowers and plants, cheeses, pickles, baked goods, meat, fresh fish, a knife-sharpener, and bi-weekly or monthly vendors selling a range of items from wine to pesto to nuts, the market provides locally made ready-to-eat foods to take home or enjoy at the picnic tables overlooking the Hudson. Weekly events include live music and—new in 2018— food scrap recycling for composting.

Today the market is a non-profit organization, and remains guided by its original mission: to support regional agriculture by bringing farm-fresh produce and goods from the Hudson Valley to our village, as well as educating and inspiring the market community about the benefits of local farming and sustainable practices. Not only does the market bolster the village’s economy with a large influx of shoppers, but it also provides job opportunities for many local youths. The market welcomes other local non-profits and organizations to participate, such as the Hastings Girl Scouts, Project SHARE, and the volunteer fire department.

The weekly outdoor market runs from June through November, 8:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., in the Commuter Lot. A slightly smaller twice-a-month indoor winter market runs from December through May, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., at the James Harmon Community Center on Main Street.