2.4 Farmers Market and Phipps Conservatory
Farm to the table….
The Farmers’ Market Cooperative of East Liberty is a permanent, indoor farmers’ market that is open every Saturday, year-round, from 5 am to 12 noon. It is the only year-round market operation in Pittsburgh. It is one of the only sources of locally grown meat and fresh produce during Pittsburgh’s winter months.
The ownership group includes 4 active farming families. They are:
- The Kennedy Family — John and Val and their 3 children operate the J. L. Kennedy Meat Stand
- Rick Zang — owner of Zang’s Greenhouse
- Tim and Suzanne Hileman — owners of Kistaco Farm
- Ina and John Greenawalt and children Bryan and Melanie operate Greenawalt Farms
We were lucky to talk to Ina Greenawalt about her farms and farming practices in general. The highlight of the talk was when she showed us a story + coloring book for children that was made to teach children about farming while on a farm tour. This local educational guide was an eye-opener, and an example of the vast opportunity this area holds.
There were also other farmers selling their fresh, organic produce.
We then visited Cafe Phipps at the Phipps Conservatory.
Café Phipps is a 3-star Green Restaurant Certified® eating establishment, a Platinum designated Sustainable Pittsburgh Restaurant, a Live Well Allegheny Restaurant and a Hobart Center for Foodservice Sustainability award winner with the following sustainable features:
• Organic, local and sustainable foods
• Vegan, vegetarian and Meatless Monday options
• Real serviceware and china as alternatives to disposables
• 100% compostable cups and paper products
• no soda or junk food
• 96% of food and material waste is recycled or composted
• Cleaning products are biodegradable and GreenSeal™ certified
• Low and no VOC interior sealants, paints and materials
• Filtered rather than bottled water eliminates demand for plastic
After a heavy meal, we took a special tour of the administration building at the conservatory which is known top be in the world’s top 5 sustainable buildings and is captioned a ‘living building’. Everything including electricity, water and heat required in the building is produced on site.
The conservatory’s gallery room had an educational + experiential setup for children, where they could ‘shop’ for fake fruits, vegetables, meat and bread. This is done to increase awareness about buying food among children.
It was a healthy day indeed!
