From the farm to the … food court?

Tony Lee hopes to plant his Fresh Nation farmers markets on the Macerich mall map.

Even as he haggles with unexpected regulatory hurdles with the city of Danbury, Tony Lee hopes a summer farmers market in the city will prove the seed for a national chain.

From his fledgling Fresh Nation farmers market this summer on Danbury Fair Mall”™s grounds, Lee is aiming to create a coast-to-coast brand in an industry that to date remains fragmented, despite the efforts of myriad associations such as the Farmers Market Coalition and efforts by state and local agencies to promote the concept.

In Danbury Fair Mall owner Macerich Co., Lee thinks he has a partner that can provide the necessary acreage for a national expansion ”“ and one that perhaps could benefit from any additional patrons that might knock off some shopping after bagging up some produce.

For Lee, it comes with no small bit of irony that he set up a farmers market at the site of the former state fair grounds for which the mall is named.

“I had it in the back of my mind that there was no chain of farmers markets,” Lee said. “People love farmers markets, but there”™s no unified brand.”

If that is the case, there is swiftly coalescing momentum to include farmers markets as a recognized, mainstream source for groceries. In September, U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-NY, introduced the Expanding Access to Farmers Market Act, which would authorize markets to have electronic terminals that accept payments from the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, with 45 million Americans entitled to SNAP food stamps.

Connecticut had more than 140 farmers markets operating in 2011, according to the U.S Department of Agriculture, with Fairfield County home to more than 20. As of mid-summer, there was a 17 percent increase in the number of farmers markets nationally compared with a year earlier ”“ or an additional 1,000 markets, according to the USDA.

For its own inspiration, Fresh Nation draws on venues like New York”™s Greenmarket, which has grown to more than 50 markets sourcing products from some 230 farms, including Salento Farm in Shelton which supplies garlic and pesto; and honey producer Silvermine Apiary in Norwalk.

Greenmarket runs year-round at more than 20 locations, and that trend has spilled over to the suburbs. The Shelton Farmers Market Association is attempting a winter season, according to the Connecticut Post, after bad December weather forced the group to abandon a year-round model three years ago. The Connecticut Department of Agriculture lists more than 15 winter farmers markets operating in Connecticut this season, with no others in Fairfield County.

Fresh Nation hoped to set up weekends through next April on the lower level of the Danbury Fair Mall adjacent to Lord & Taylor, focusing on gift items as well as food products like cheese, pies, sauces, jams, bread and syrup, among others. However, as December approached Lee found himself in negotiations with city officials over additional permitting requirements and shops to resolve the dispute soon and get the market operating inside Danbury Fair Mall.

 

Editor”™s note: the story was altered from an earlier version that ran online and in print to reflect permitting discussions Fresh Nation is having with the city of Danbury.