From left: Elizabeth Bowman, Altadena Heritage president Mark Goldschmidt, Altadena Farmers Market manager Joseph Shuldiner, and Al Evans of County Parks and Recreation announce the opening of the market at the Altadena Town Council meeting April 17.
by TImothy Rutt
“Altadena is the new Brooklyn.”
That was the confident message brought by Joseph Shuldiner, manager of the Altadena Farmers Market, scheduled to open May 30.
Shuldiner, along with Al Evans of the county Parks and Recreation Department and Mark Goldschmidt, president of Altadena Heritage, formally announced the opening of the certified market at Tuesday night’s Town Council meeting.
Other than both being feisty communities with a strong sense of identity, what does the New York City borough have in common with a SoCal foothill town?
They both have a burgeoning local food movement of small artisan producers (see this NY Times story on Brooklyn’s food culture).
“Altadena has become an epicenter for urban farming and food politics,” Shuldiner said. He said he’s been interviewed by press all over Los Angeles, and even expects some national exposure to the market.
Shuldiner said that the market intially will have 30 vendors, with 20 booths allocated to farmers from as far away as Ventura and Santa Barbara counties, as well as some local “urban farmers.”
The remaining booths are earmarked for prepared and packaged food vendors. Shuldiner also introduced Elizabeth Bowman, who is a graduate student in urban sustainability, who will be working on including urban farms in the market mix.
