Join us as we explore the power of local food and the thriving spirit of Central Ohio’s farmers' markets!

Welcome back to Business Inspires, the podcast of the Tri-Village Chamber Partnership, where we shine a light on innovative businesses and the passionate people behind them.

Hosts Brett Johnson and Katie Ellis sit down with Abbe Turner, Executive Director of Common Greens, a nonprofit organization connecting Central Ohio communities with local farmers and food producers.

Abbe Turner shares her journey as an entrepreneur, farmer, and advocate for ethical land stewardship, while diving into the inspiring story behind Common Greens—a network managing five vibrant farmers' markets across Columbus. Discover how these markets generate significant economic impact, foster food access through programs like SNAP and Produce Perks, and serve as a launching pad for beginning entrepreneurs of all ages.

From preserving Ohio farmland to dreams of year-round markets and building strong community ties, this episode covers it all. Whether you’re a shopper, potential vendor, or someone passionate about supporting local food systems, you’ll find inspiration and practical ways to get involved.

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Moments

00:00 Common Greens Farmers' Market History

04:13 "Farmers' Market Impact Highlights"

09:52 Expanding Farmers' Markets Nationwide

10:54 "Building Community Weekly"

Three key takeaways:

1. Farmers earn more. By selling at farmers' markets, local producers make 40-70% more for their products compared to traditional grocery stores, keeping up to 80% of sales at the farm gate.
2. Community food access. Over $35,000 in SNAP dollars were processed last season, and acceptance of programs like Produce Perks and senior coupons means everyone can enjoy fresh, local food.
3. Building vibrant, sustainable economies. Supporting regional farmers helps preserve Ohio farmland, fosters sustainable practices, and creates safe, joyful community spaces for all.

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Welcome to Business Inspires where our goal is to inspire you to create the business you envision. I'm Brett Johnson, Tri Village Chamber Partnership Board Member and the owner of Circle 270 Media Podcast Consultants.

Thank you for following and subscribing to the podcast. With me is Katie Ellis, President and CEO of the Tri Village Chamber Partnership and co host of the podcast. Thanks for joining me Katie.

It's great to be here with you as always and we had the opportunity to speak with Abbe Turner. Abby is an entrepreneur, farmer and fundraiser dedicated to the craft of artisan food production and ethical land stewardship.

As a leader of Ohio Women in Agriculture, Abby creates social good and small businesses and nonprofit organizations as a business strategist and grant writing consultant. A professional fundraiser by trade, she has raised money for public broadcasting, arts organizations, academia, agriculture and national parks.

Currently, she proudly serves as Executive Director of Common Grains, a nonprofit that manages five Columbus area farmers markets, providing the community access to fresh local food.

Let's jump into the episode and just to share, Common Greens organizes and runs the farmers markets for Clintonville, Upper Arlington, Bexley, Ohio Health in downtown on Pearl Alley. And is that right?

Right.

So can you tell us how Common Greens got started and what was the driving motivation behind creating the organization?

Happily so.

Now your mission is to connect central Ohio communities with regional farmers and food producers in vibrant, inclusive marketplaces. Now, what does that look like in practice?

We had about 159 farmers last season, about 170 this season that were participating in our multiple markets. All told, the markets generated about $1.7 million in sales. So this is big for the local economy.

You know, they say that for every dollar that goes into local food, the multiplier is $3 that stays in the community. So that is a wonderful thing. In addition, we did process $35,000 of SNAP dollars at our farmer's market. So it's also a great place for food access.

So I had the privilege of seeing a full presentation of what Common Greens does. And one of the things that really blew my mind was some of the statistics.

Can you share the stats of, let's say, just the profits that go to farmers at the farmers markets versus what we would buy in the grocery store?

Sure.

One extension bulletin I believe it's University of Maryland Extension shows that farmers receive between 40 and 70% more for their products if they sell through the farmers market.

They selling at the farmer's market helps the farmers skip the middleman, which allows them to keep potentially up to 80% more funds back to the farm gate. So that's, that's really wonderful. It's also a fantastic place for beginning entrepreneurs to get their start.

It's nothing more exciting than to actually see a vendor that has never sold anything before. You know, they had, they get their first dollar and it's a really wonderful thing. So it's a great point of entry for young entrepreneurs.

I shouldn't say young.

Let me say beginning entrepreneurs because, you know, we have many retirees that have worked corporate their entire life, and they really want to just sell honey or, or make jams and jellies or, you know, Smoked sausage, whatever it may be. So farmers markets are a great gateway to commerce for Ohio farmers.

Yeah, that's a really good point of thinking of that second or third career that it's very specific on, on the honey. I hadn't thought about that piece of it, that it'. It can be that specialized, but it could be at any, any age.

That's, that's a really good point you'd mentioned earlier about it helps with snap. But can you talk about other, you know, nutritional incentive programs?

I mean, there's senior coupons, produce perks as well that work in the markets then and maybe kind of an unknown entity that it's a possibility to use those there.

Yes, the farmers markets are a very important place for food access for people to be able to, to enjoy nutritious local foods.

So yes, we take many different, many different food access programs, whether that be produce perks, snap, senior nutrition coupons, and then some communities have set up their own food assistance networks to be able to support people of all socioeconomic levels with their nutrition needs and their desire to have fresh, tasty, local food.

Yeah, yeah, that makes a difference. When you finally get to really taste a fresh strawberry compared to what you got from the grocery store, it's. It's mind boggling. It truly is.

It's like, wow, these red things actually have flavor.

Yeah, yeah, I try to. I don't buy tomatoes off season because it makes that first July tomato just that taste that.

So.

I like that game plan. Something to definitely look forward to.

Right, right. So people, people, you know, they think that local food is this new thing and it's not. People have been eating local since the beginning of time.

We just moved away from it in the past few generations. So. And we are here to be able to support our farmers year round with whatever year round products they have.

So one of your goals is farmland sustainability? I think that's kind of a natural thing.

If we, if you really think about these markets, how does supporting local producers at common greens contribute to preserving Ohio farmland?

When you look at the variety of vendors that we have across all markets, you'll see so many different methods of agricultural production. But the common thread usually is that our farmers are dedicated to protecting soil and water and building vibrant local economies.

So that could be organic agriculture, that could be certified naturally grown, that could be biodynamic. The common thread is that the farmers more than not, have a love for the land and the water and the soil itself.

So they really want to protect that and, you know, to be stewards of the land in the true sense of that word.

So. And when you're looking ahead as executive director, do you have bold goals or any dreams in the next steps for Common Greens?

We at some point would like to expand to a year round market, but we're trying to find the right location for that. I'd also like to come up with some kind of an online platform that would allow us to sell year round.

So those would be elements of infrastructure that I'd love to put in.

I also would like to potentially be able to serve other markets as well where there aren't farmers markets or maybe there isn't Thursday market, you know, in a, you know, 100 miles outside of Columbus.

But so being able to serve more communities, the farmers markets are really a special place because when you think about it, there's not many places that you can take the family. It's safe, it's fun. You can talk about nutrition and math and eat and, and develop a relationship with the people that produce your food.

It's a wonderful thing to witness and, and I'm proud to be able to continue to host those spaces across the country. Columbus area.

Yeah, it's pretty important. You bet. And it's, it, it's building community as well too. Get to see people in your community.

Maybe you don't get to see otherwise or just it's a, it's an, a weekly thing. You get to see the same people over and over and over again. That, that, that's fantastic. Yes, you're right.

For listeners interested in supporting your work, whether as a vendor or a shopper, donor or volunteer, what are the best ways to get involved?

Sure, we have a nice website. It's commongreensohio.org and then on Instagram@ohio.com or Common Greens Ohio.

Super. Well, listeners, thank you for joining us. And don't forget to check out our podcast page on the Tri Village Chamber website.

Look for the podcast tab at the top of the homepage and tell us what you think about this or any of our other episodes@infohamberpartnership.org Business Inspires is.

A production of the Tri Village Chamber Partnership and Circle 270 Media Podcast Consultants.