The East End Food Market in Riverhead will be operated outdoors during the summer months this year, beginning Saturday, May 27, while market operator East End Food Institute begins the first phase of construction on its new East End Food Hub campus.
The market, located at 139 Main Road in Riverhead, will run every Saturday through October, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. each week.
The initial phase of construction of the East End Food Hub includes renovations of the existing 5,000-square-foot market building and the addition of a kitchen inside the building.
Later phases include the construction of two new buildings, which will provide a food processing area, a warehouse and cold storage for aggregation and distribution of locally grown and made goods, more retail market space and demonstration and education areas, according to the institute’s plans.
Phase one of the construction plan will cost an anticipated $1.5 million, with the full development carrying en estimated price tag in the $15 million to $20 million range. East End Food Institute, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, has a fundraising campaign underway to help fund the project.
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East End Food Institute took over operation of the Riverhead Indoor Farmers Market — an initiative of the Riverhead Business Improvement District Management Association — in 2019. The organization in 2021 moved the market to the four-acre former Homeside Florist & Greenhouses site on the southwest corner of Main Road and Cross River Drive. East End Food Institute Executive Director Kate Fullam said the group was attracted to the site because of its size, easy access to both forks, and its potential for expansion, including the relocation of its operation on the Stony Brook Southampton campus.
The summer market this year will feature more than 40 food, farm and craft vendors offering local produce, baked goods, wine, craft beer and more, East End Food Institute, which operates the market, said in a press release.
“We are excited to bring back the summer farmers market and provide a platform for local farmers and artisans to showcase their products,” East End Food Market Manager Kristina Tomony, Market Manager. “The market is not only a place to shop for fresh, local food and local goods, but also an opportunity to connect with the people who grow and produce it.”
Vendors interested in participating this summer can still sign up online at riverheadmarket.org https://www.eastendfood.org/what-we-do/market.
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