New Farmers Market Set To Open In Downtown Raleigh

The Downtown Raleigh Alliance will open the

Moore Square Farmers Market

this Wednesday to tap into the downtown consumer market.

"It'll give us some extra space to sell," said Odis Johnson, a Johnston County Farmer who has staked his place at the

State Farmers Market

for more than 25 years.

The new market will be open from 11 a.m. until 2 p.m. So far, about 12 vendors have registered to sell at the Moore Square market.

"I think it can only encourage people to shop at markets as opposed to stopping on their way home at a grocery store," said Sherri Harris, marketing manager for the new market.

Growers must meet two requirements: be from within a 90-mile radius of Raleigh and the seller has to work on the farm at least one day a week. That means there can be no secondhand selling -- something the State Farmers Market does not require.

"We really want the vendors to be knowledgeable about the products they're selling," Harris said.

There are some exceptions, however. For example, North Carolina apples are grown only in the mountains, so those vendors will have a place at the market.