With restaurants and schools closing around the state and the fate of summer farmers markets still in the air, the North Alabama Agriplex has debuted a new program to let local farmers sell their produce to people at a distance. 

The Cullman Grown Drive Up Market lets local residents go online to purchase produce from Cullman County farmers. Everyone pays for their order online, and when they go to the Agriplex to pick it up, it will be loaded into their vehicles without requiring any close personal contact, said Agriplex Executive Director Rachel Dawsey. 

Many local farmers sell their produce to restaurants or have contracts with local schools to provide fresh fruits and vegetables, and with the closures due to the COVID-19 outbreak, they are now having to look for other places to sell, she said. 

“When something like this happens, those markets dry up,” she said.

Dawsey said the store will definitely return next week, and depending on the city’s plans for the Festhalle Farmers Market, could continue in later weeks. 

She said a link to the store can be found at the Agriplex’s website, agriplex.org, and it will be updated each Monday morning as farmers report in with the produce that they will have available to sell that week. 

The store will be open from noon on Monday to noon on Tuesday, and pickup at the Agriplex will be from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Wednesday, she said.

She said this week’s online market had offerings of sweet potatoes, onions and lettuces from Kress Farms, Boyd Harvest Farm and Gratitude Farms, and next week should also bring strawberries from J. Calvert Farms. 

As the season continues, the selection of produce should get larger as more fruits and vegetables are harvested, Dawsey said.

“It should expand as growing season continues.” 

Dawsey said part of the Agriplex’s mission is to support Cullman County’s farmers, and staff members have worked with local farmers, Cullman County Cooperative Extension Coordinator Tony Glover and Wallace State Small Farm Training Program leader Travis Kress to provide this opportunity for local growers to sell their wares and local residents to have access to fresh produce.

“Hopefully this will give us another way for farmers to market,” she said. 

Anyone who wants to learn more about the Cullman Grown Drive Up Market — or is a farmer who wants to participate in the program — can email the Agriplex at cullmanag@gmail.com.