WEST PALM BEACH, FLA. (September 10, 2020) – Promoting “Lettuce Shop Safely,” the City of West Palm Beach wants people to enjoy weekly, wide-open, outdoor grocery shopping throughout the 2020 – 2021 West Palm Beach GreenMarket season. The City has announced the popular market is moving forward on schedule, with a Saturday, October 3, 2020 start date. The GreenMarket will feature more than 90 quality vendors and will operate along the Waterfront, like in years past. This season vendors will be more spread out and the emphasis is on shopping versus socializing, among other updates.

“In addition to offering quality products and supporting local businesses and agriculture, the City of West Palm Beach GreenMarket is a time-honored tradition that truly unites our city,” said West Palm Beach Mayor Keith A. James. “Given the challenges faced this year due to COVID-19, this season’s GreenMarket will be particularly meaningful. In many ways, it will be the first time we can connect again as a community, of course, with extra safety measures in place. I look forward to the start of GreenMarket again, and I tip my cap to the City’s Community Events Division and the vendors who are working hard to produce what I expect will be another terrific GreenMarket season.”

There will be several initial changes this year for the safety of GreenMarket customers, vendors, and staff, who are expected to comply with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Florida Department of Health, State of Florida, and Palm Beach County COVID recommendations and directives. Included in the changes are the suspension of activities for kids, additional café seating, live music, food samples, and bottomless mimosas. Single mimosas will be available for purchase for $4 at the entrance. Merchant tents will be placed 10 feet apart. Attendees must wear masks to enter, will need to follow a path, and are encouraged to shop quickly. Hand sanitizing and hand washing stations will be placed throughout. Pre- and post-shopping, attendees are encouraged to patronize the multiple downtown restaurants’ Dining on the Spot locations. Dining on the Spot Dining on the Spot is a collaborative program between the West Palm Beach Downtown Development Authority, the West Palm Beach Community Redevelopment Agency and the City of West Palm Beach. The program allows the service areas for downtown restaurants to extend beyond traditional café seating onto downtown streets, into parking lots, and into alleyways for pedestrians and patrons to enjoy. The City will amend West Palm Beach GreenMarket COVID policies as local restrictions are lifted.

The City of West Palm Beach’s Community Events Division is spreading its safety message the only way it knows how – with “punny” vegetable jokes. The branding for the 2020 – 2021 season includes cartoon images delivering serious messages, including “lettuce shop safely,” “peas remember masks are a must,” “shop for lunch, but do not bunch,” and “keep 6 beets apart.” The grand finale of the campaign is to “squash 2020.”

“The return of the West Palm Beach GreenMarket is a signal of fall, which means a new season, cooler temperatures, and the holidays are ahead,” said Mary Pinak, Community Events Manager for the City of West Palm Beach Department of Parks and Recreation. “There is much to look forward to. The GreenMarket is a community, and we are excited that farmers markets are considered essential by the county and state, so that we may safely shop and support each other.”

There are more than 10 new vendors joining the 26th annual GreenMarket, which was one of the first farmer’s markets in Palm Beach County. New vendors include Annie's Pastry Shop, Coco Fine Foods, Daniela's Kitchen, Devil’s Breath Hot Sauce/Angel Wings Dressings, Dogs Dinner Palm Beach - Delicious Baked Dog Treats, European Chimney Cake, Freezie Foodz, GilbertribkingBBQ, Hooked On Ponics, LLC, L & M Bakery, Meraki Juice Kitchen, Panacea Pearls - Gulf of Florida Oysters, Pure Gold Kombucha, and Zipitios. The full vendor list is available on the City’s website, wpb.org/events.

The West Palm Beach GreenMarket is produced by the City of West Palm Beach Department of Parks and Recreation, Division of Community Events. It will run weekly through Saturday, April 17, 2021, except for certain date(s) due to the Palm Beach International Boat Show. The GreenMarket is friendly to dogs on short leashes and always free. Parking is available in City of West Palm Beach garages and will be free for the first two hours. City garages are Clematis, Banyan, City Center, Sapodilla, and Evernia. The two hours of free parking will be honored for anyone who enters before 1 p.m. Those interested in arriving by boat can also take advantage of the City's free public docks. The Clematis Street Dock is the closest dock to the market.

The mission of the West Palm Beach GreenMarket is to provide the community with seasonal access to locally grown fresh fruits, fresh vegetables, plants, and agricultural products. The market supports the southeast Florida agricultural community and stimulates agricultural development, particularly in Palm Beach County, by providing an outlet for locally grown crops and specialty products. The GreenMarket has been featured in The Boston Globe and named the number one green market in Florida by Cooking Light magazine. 

GreenMarket sponsors-to-date include 97.9 WRMF, SUNNY 107.9, X 102.3, New Country 103.1, PARTY 96.3, Fox Sports 640 South Florida, News Talk 850 WFTL, WPB Magazine, WPB Downtown Development Authority, WPB Community Redevelopment Agency, The Palm Beach Post, Palm Beach Daily News, and NextHome Realty Experts.

The City of West Palm Beach reserves the right to cancel the event or change protocols as needed. For more information about the GreenMarket and other City events, visit www.wpb.org/events, call (561) 822-1515 (TTY: 800-955-8771) or follow the City of West Palm Beach on Facebook @CityofWPB and on Twitter and Instagram @westpalmbch. Follow the West Palm Beach GreenMarket on Facebook and Instagram @WPBGreenMarket.

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