UWEX -Wood County FoodWIse Nutrition Educator: Hannah Wendels Scott

Welcome, everybody, to Midday Magazine for this Monday, August 5th, 2024.

Have your host, James J. Mailoff here.

In part two, today at 430, we're going to speak with Wisconsin State Assembly 70,

second district representative, Scott Krueb, looking forward to that.

Right now, we have with us in studio, our good friend, Hannah Wendell Scott,

food wise nutrition educator, wood yet wood county university of Wisconsin,

Madison Division of Extension.

It is good to have you with us, Hannah.

Yes, you too. Good job getting through all that.

I've been practicing. Hannah, we appreciate not only you, but our friends over there

that put so much into this community and cover such great topics.

And oftentimes, I think cover gray area topics that we don't necessarily get a chance to

really dive into. And we are in, we, of course, are in full-blown

farmers market mode. We have been enjoying the farmers market this year.

And of course, we have our bike share programs and some of those things that

like river riders that we're going to touch on today.

I appreciate where we're going to go with the conversation.

If you don't mind, we can start off with it being Happy National Farmers Market Week.

Happy Farmers Market Week, so exciting.

It's fun, it's an exciting one.

It was exciting. Yeah, yeah.

So National Farmers Market Week, if you're not familiar, it actually began 25 years ago.

Proclamation, declared by the United States Department of Agriculture.

And since then, the farmers market community has really grown.

And we've kind of taken it on here locally.

And we're super excited to celebrate it at the Wisconsin Rapids Downtown Farmers Market.

But you could probably find it at any market across the state, across the country.

And our own one right here in Wisconsin Rapids is going strong.

Yes, we've been in full swing since June 13th.

And it's been a really amazing year.

I think it's our biggest year as far as vendors go.

How it's going to end?

It's a lot. We have over 60 vendors.

And that's for both Saturday and Thursday.

But it's really neat to see how many people have been learning about the market.

And wanting to come vent with us.

And it just keeps growing.

I mean, we constantly get messages coming in like, hey, do you have any open spots?

So it's really neat that people still want to come throughout the year, not just at the beginning of it.

Yeah, yeah. And it's so incredible to see how much it's grown.

Certainly with vendors in that.

And different things that are going on down there as well.

And different ideas that people have had.

It's just as incredible to see the amount of people that have been showing up too.

It's incredible how many people show up for it.

Oh, I know. It's so fun.

It gets so busy between 10 and 12.30.

So like right around those lunch times.

And it's just really fun.

We actually take attendance every 20 minutes on the hour.

And it's wild sometimes.

Like how much foot traffic our market is getting.

And it's fantastic.

You know, let's reach out to people that maybe haven't seen the market yet.

What can you expect to find at our farmers market?

Now that we almost now with almost two months into the season.

Right. Yeah.

So it's peak harvest season.

And you can find pretty much anything you can think of that girls in Wisconsin.

It's going to be at the market.

So you have an abundance of tomatoes.

You're starting to see more local corn, which is always exciting.

That's one of my favorites.

Peppers, all of the zucchini.

Lock your cars.

If you don't want zucchini, put it in your car.

I feel like everyone just has so much zucchini.

So as much produce fruits, vegetables, herbs, anything you can think of.

It's going to be at the market this time of year.

But we also have many vendors that offer a variety of stuff.

So we've got jarred goods, so solstice, pickled foods, jams, jellies.

We also have maple syrup and honey.

We've got a couple popcorn vendors, which are very good.

Lemonade.

And then we don't just have food.

We also have crafts.

So cutting boards, jewelry, other beautiful pieces.

So if you're looking for a gift or something for yourself, you can come to the market

and find it locally right there, which is really neat.

Yeah, it's nice to give people the idea or remind people of all the different variety

that is at a farmer's market.

For people like myself when I was a kid and in the city and you go to the farmer's market

or something, you had an idea of produce.

That's what you were going to.

You were getting produce.

And you're getting a lot of local produce that were made in states and in that area.

And it was always fantastic.

I was telling my mother because she used to want to took me to it as a kid.

I'm telling her about our local farmer's market and everything.

And she hasn't been there in about a year or two.

And she was just talking about how much it had blown up like a couple of years ago.

And I'm like, Mom, you got to see it now.

It's so cool to think of all the different things that have been going on down there.

And different organizations to get represented and get to be able to show up down there.

Non-profits and some of those.

Yeah, we try to bring in a variety of different businesses, organizations,

who, if you have something going on in the community, come on down and talk about it at the market.

You're going to reach a lot of people who are there to shop.

But then they can interact with you and learn about your business.

But we also try to make it family-friendly.

And so we'll have face painting on a certain day.

We'll have balloon twisting for animals and fun things.

We also sometimes get live music.

And one of the things that I'm going to talk about in a little bit is a performance from the Mung Dance Group.

So we also try to get, like, if you are a group, the YMCA has come down

and perform some of their gymnastics events.

We try to make it kind of a place that you want to come and shop and get your produce

and all of your baked goods and all that fun stuff.

But also spend some time at, bring the family, like, take a little time and make it like part of your day.

Traditionally, when I talk about the farmer's market,

one of the first things I like to hit on is the opportunity to help our ag industry,

help some of our vendors out there that don't always have a chance to be a shop that's open 24-7 or 9-5 or something like that.

And any time we can help local support local, that's our game here, that's what we like to do.

It's also been really cool to see the opportunities, like you mentioned among dance and everything.

For those that may not experience some of that culture or anything, getting an experience of that,

the kids that are down there, their brains are sponges.

And not only maybe seeing a dance like that and being, oh, I've never seen this before,

I'm all of a sudden learning about another culture.

It's also just as important when they see adults going out of their way to support local vendors and the local ag industry.

It's one thing to go to the supermarket and get your produce, that's fine, that's okay.

But it goes so far for when kids see these things as one of those kids,

it's part of the reason I go to farmer's markets because my mom took me to one and I watched her do it and everything.

So the added bonus of that too for kids.

Along with all these other different things that are going on down there, it really is a family hub.

Yes, it's super impactful. I love that.

That you remember that from being a kid and now you're carrying it over into your today life, it's amazing.

And it is, it's true. You make a big impact and kids are always watching.

They see what we're doing.

Yeah, and it's a great opportunity to bring the kids on down for not only some of the fun things for kids that they have down there,

but also to be able to pick that up and experience some of that.

What are the hours and dates for the location for the market, Hannah?

Yes, so if you've never been to our market, we actually are lucky.

We have two days, so you can come on a Thursday and a Saturday.

You're usually going to find about the same vendors.

Some of them will be different depending on the day, so go to both if you can.

But it's nice if you work during the week and you can only get there on the weekends or vice versa.

I really appreciate and didn't know how much I appreciate that until I would hear from other people who only have a weekday farmer's market.

And they're like, well, I can never go.

Well, sweet. We're lucky because we have two.

But it's Thursday, Saturdays, 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., so a good chunk of time there that you can come visit us.

And then it's located on first Avenue South right along the Wisconsin River.

So you go over the bridge and you'll find this right there.

Yeah, you literally can't miss it.

Especially if you're going through that part of town and everything.

You'll run right into it.

Yes.

I'm curious, Hannah.

Does the market only accept cash or are there other types of payment accepted?

Yes, so we're super fortunate here in Wisconsin Rapids.

We can accept more than just cash.

So if you forget your cash or you use it all up because that's more like what I do.

Yes.

You can actually use your credit or debit card.

You can use your food share, EBT card, so your quest card.

Wicked checks, Senior Farmers Market Nutrition Program vouchers.

And then Aspirus Fruit and Vegetable Prescription.

So we try to reach everyone.

So everyone can feel like they can shop at the market no matter what their income level is or anything like that.

Yeah, and this wasn't always the case.

This is something that's come about in recent years.

Yes.

Yeah, it's a big push.

Everyone across the state, honestly, this is a lot of work that a lot of markets are trying to do is to get EBT accepted at their farmers market.

It's hard, but it's important work.

Yeah.

Yeah.

It's taking things to the next level, to the next step when it comes to wanting all of our families to eat as healthy as possible to be able to support local as best as possible.

It's a true win-win kind of situation.

Exactly.

So how do you use your credit or debit card or EBT food share card?

Yeah, so it's super simple.

If you, I'll start with credit debit.

So if you want to use your credit or debit card, you're going to come over to the market manager tent where the orange tent, like right in the middle, it's hard to miss us.

And so you're just going to tell them, hey, I want to use my debit card to swipe and get some tokens.

How does this work?

And so we'll say, great, how much do you want?

Say you want $10.

We're going to say there's a dollar service fee, and that's just for credit or debit.

So dollar service fee, swipe your card, and then you're going to get 10 individual wooden tokens that are basically just cash.

And you can use them at any vendor, the credit or debit cards.

Any vendor can accept them.

So it's super simple.

We walk you through the whole thing.

And then you can just keep coming back for more.

Perfect.

Yes, yeah.

And if you, if this is your first time at the farmer's market and you're unsure of how to use these things or maybe want to ask some more questions or anything, again, just find Hannah or her team or somebody over there.

And they'd love to help you walk through this.

Oh, yeah, yeah.

We'll walk you through it all.

And we try to make it easy too.

So if you wanted to use your food share card, same kind of process.

There just won't be a service fee.

And then you can use your EBT tokens on your typical food share eligible items.

So fruits, vegetables, herbs, honeys, all those fun things.

But we try to put signs up at each vendor station that say what types of payment they accept.

So you're not out there trying to be like, well, who takes tokens?

Who doesn't take tokens?

What am I supposed to do with these?

Look for a nice little, it's a small little sign that each vendor has and they list everything that they can accept.

We're speaking with Hannah Wendell Scott, a food wise nutrition educator with UW Extension.

And Hannah, getting back to National Farmers Market Week celebrations.

Anything special that our market is doing this week?

Yes, we've got quite a few things happening this week.

I'm super excited for it.

So the first one that I alluded to earlier is the performance from the Meng Dance Group.

If you look them up on Facebook, they're abbreviated to CWNN.

And they performed at our Farmers Market before.

And they also perform at many different community events all across Central Wisconsin.

They perform a lot up in Marathon County.

They're kind of all over.

So if you start looking for them, you're going to start noticing them popping up.

But they're amazing.

They're one of my favorite groups.

The way that they honor culture just from their uniforms, the dance that they do.

And they all just come together.

There's a variety of ages in this group, too.

So you've got real little up to teenagers.

It's super neat to watch them perform.

If you'd like a preview, go ahead and look them up online.

It really is a wonderful thing to watch.

They're so talented.

I know.

They really do enjoy what they're doing, too.

And that's infectious.

You really are going to enjoy it.

You might even dance a little bit yourself.

You might even get out of it.

Oh, yeah.

Oh, yeah.

It's a really fun one.

And a great addition to this, the Farmers Market.

Yeah.

What time are they performing at the market?

Yeah.

So you have to come on Thursday.

They will be there on Thursday from 10 to noon.

So you can find them anytime during that slot.

Come to the Orange Market Manager tent and just kind of look around.

We have a couple grassy areas.

We're not sure which one we're going to fit them at.

But they're really hard to miss.

You're going to notice a group that's going to get ready to perform.

So come between 10 and noon on Thursday.

And Hannah, you and I are friends.

I enjoy the time that you're on here.

I don't mean to press the situation, but I am a journalist.

And I have to follow up.

You mentioned giveaways.

I didn't giveaways ever.

Right.

Yes, yes.

We have giveaways.

So we're super thankful to all of our vendors.

But we're also really thankful to the community.

The shoppers, you and me, who come out and shop every week

at the Farmers Market.

So we're offering a couple of giveaways.

First, we're going to have two $20 gift certificates.

We might throw a little honey and maple syrup

and some other goodies in there, too.

But two $20 gift certificates.

You can enter to win one of those two on Thursday and Saturday.

So you can go both days.

Just go to that orange market manager tent.

Fill out a paper slip.

And then we're going to draw the winners on the following Monday.

Okay, perfect, perfect.

I encourage you to go to there.

And you'll be announcing those winners on Facebook as well.

Yes, we'll do them on Facebook.

And then we'll ask for a phone number.

So if you're not on Facebook, don't worry.

We will be able to call you so you can get your prize.

It does give me a chance to shout out.

The Wisconsin Rapids Downtown Farmers Market on Facebook.

Be sure to subscribe to that page.

Like that page.

It's a great one.

They do a great job on it.

And it's a great way to keep up the date on things over there.

Yes, yeah.

And one other thing that I thought was noteworthy

about the Facebook page.

If there are any issues or if there are vendors that are going to be there

that aren't going to be there,

some of that kind of information.

Can you find it at the Facebook page?

Absolutely. Yeah.

We do a really nice job.

The market managers who are down there.

It's really never me.

It's all them.

They're down there taking photos every morning that they get set up.

All of our vendors.

So if you're curious, what's at the market?

What kind of flowers?

I need an arrangement or I need this for my recipe that I'm making this weekend.

You can check our Facebook page and probably see everything that's at the market

just through the photos that we post.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Great. Again, just go to your Facebook page and type in your search bar.

Wisconsin Rapids Downtown Farmers Market.

Yeah.

Can you recap everything someone can expect for National Farmers Market weekend?

Yes.

Yes, I can.

So Thursday from 10 to noon, we have the Mung Dance Group.

So come on down to watch their amazing performance.

We also have two $20 gift certificates that we're giving away.

You can enter to win at our market manager tent on Thursday and Saturday.

And we'll draw on the following Monday.

And then we also have one more little fun family-friendly kind of giveaway

that we're doing.

You can come to our manager booth, pick up a bingo card.

So we have a Wisconsin Farmers Market bingo card.

And it's just encouraging you to go out with your littles or just with yourself.

You don't need kids to go shop around and try to find one of the items that are on the bingo card

and make a bingo.

And then once you finish and complete a bingo, bring it back to the tent.

And we have like other little summer giveaway prizes as well.

So we got something for everyone.

It's nice little added bonuses that you've put around throughout this whole entire day

and the event.

That's a really fun part of this.

I enjoy that.

The times of the market one more time.

Yep, so Thursdays and Saturdays, 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., right there on First Avenue South.

And Hannah, if you don't mind, we got a couple of minutes here.

I did want to talk about something you touched on earlier when we were talking about the food share program

and EBT in some of this.

You know, for years, these things were not accepted down at the Farmers Market.

But you, the team, a lot of people have put a real push to this, a real, a really working to make this happen.

We don't have to get into too many of the details.

But is it yourself or are there other people in as part of the UW program or anything really pushing this forward?

I'd love to know a little behind the scenes of that.

Because if I'm being honest, I didn't know that day would come.

Oh, yeah.

I really didn't think as a kid who grew up like that.

Sure.

I wasn't going to bring this up before, but a lot of the times at the Farmers Market, we would go to in the city, was browsing.

We couldn't buy items there.

We couldn't afford or we couldn't, you know, just didn't have the funds or what else.

It is, though.

Yeah, exactly.

Those things weren't available to a lot of our younger generations.

Right.

So I'm curious, you know, it's just, it's so cool to be able to see this happening in this day and age.

Yeah, I know.

I appreciate you sharing that.

And when I was doing a little bit of research, I think it was when we switched from food stamps and we went to the card.

That's where the barrier came into play that you couldn't use a debit card, a credit card.

And now you can't use your EBT food share card at a Farmers Market.

They didn't have the technology in place for that.

So a lot of work went into getting a machine that can work at your market and then you need Wi-Fi, right?

You need all these things to fall just in place and the cost of that, too.

So the way that we kind of got it started was applying for a grant that came out a couple years ago to have like a year, sort of a year-free trial.

To see how this works, you get all the machinery, all the equipment, you get the support to start it at your market locally.

Keep it going and then hopefully the thought is you will find funding to keep it going after that or your market generates that money through vendor fees and all that stuff.

It all pours right back into the market and a big thing is to support having EBT at our Farmers Market.

And for a lot of markets across the state, they don't have this ability to do that.

And so there are larger grants that actually folks from my team at extension on a higher level are working on applying for.

And we've received a really nice grant for Central Wisconsin to push this a couple years ago.

And now that grants kind of coming to an end and we're applying for the next phase to implement this.

It was the planning grant and now we're trying to implement it at other markets across Central Wisconsin and they're doing it all over.

Can not tell you how much I appreciate the breakdown and the behind the scenes there and the work that has been put into this by you, by everybody, a big thank you to that.

And please let us know, keep us up to date on it.

If there's any way we can help bring attention, anything, please let us know.

We love our Farmers Market, want to keep it going strong and not only that, but keep our community being able to use our Farmers Market often.

And that's something in insight that I don't think everybody has. I appreciate that you guys did.

It goes a long way.

Yes.

And I'm curious as you guys, and I'll be honest, I know a little bit of the answer to this one I feel like.

But as you're looking at even next year and the year before and going forward, the Winters Farmers Market, some of that.

Are you still kind of tinkering and looking at different ways you can add to this and add do something here?

Yeah, there's a lot of cool conversations that are happening about that.

I think the dream, the really big lofty goal that we want, but we're pretty good at getting our goals, I will say.

We would love to be able to link up and have, if you get tokens at the summer Farmers Market right now, could you use them at the Winter Market?

And our Winter Market friends, they are amazing. They're super collaborative.

We share our vendors and we kind of send them over when they are getting started.

Because why wouldn't you, right?

Oh, yeah.

It's not a competition.

We would love to be able to kind of link up together and offer one big EBT program that could be used throughout the entire year.

It's a fantastic idea.

I look forward to hearing what develops with that.

That's fantastic.

And looking forward to talk with you again real soon.

If people have follow-up questions, want to know what we talked about today?

How can they reach you?

Yeah, so you can give me a phone call.

My office number is 715-421-8530.

And we frequently check that Facebook page.

So if you are on Facebook and you have a question, Wisconsin Rapids, downtown Farmers Market, send us a message.

I did have one last thing Hannah almost forgot.

If you are ever looking for volunteers or anything like that, if people would like to be able to help out in that way, same the phone number reach out to you?

Yeah, same phone number reach out to me.

We actually are always looking for friends to help volunteer for Saturday market managers.

If you are a high school student or you know a high school student, it's a great way to get volunteer hours.

Or if you're retired and you're looking for something to do, who wouldn't want to spend it at the market?

Oh, yeah, it's a great place.

A great idea, a very good idea.

Again, help us celebrate National Farmers Market week going on this week until the 10th.

You can do that every Thursday and Saturday at our Wisconsin Rapids downtown Farmers Market.

From 8 to 2, go ahead and we'll meet you there.

Everybody, Hannah, thank you again for the time.

Thank you so much.

We'll have more Midday Magazine coming up for you right here at 97-5 FM 13-20AM WFHR.

We are locally grown radio.