Farmers market in Calais hits milestone

CALAIS – It began small a decade ago.

Today the Sunrise County Farmers Market is attracting lines of people eager to buy fresh potatoes or an array of veggies.

It is marking its 10th birthday, and this year it has expanded, opening a day a week in Eastport.

Jane Eaton of Robbinston has been at it from the beginning. A farmer, Eaton was at her portable stand Tuesday on Main Street.

“It is just very exciting to see so many people here,” she said. “We were down here for a number of years, just one or two of us. There are five and six vendors every time and we had long lines this morning.”

One farmer, Robin Follette of Waite, sells handmade soap. There are also freshly baked goods and eggs.

Eaton said some sellers are organic farmers, while others are not. “One of our founding members, Phil Stanhope [of Robbinston], was a farmer all of his life. Without him I don’t think we would have kept going,” she said. “So we had the old farmer and we have the new farmers.”

The market opened in Eastport earlier this year. “This year, because we have more farmers who are doing early cropping, things began in early June,” she said. In the past, the market has opened the week before July 4.

The market closes for the season in October. “We used to be here until the end of October, but it was pretty cold. It peters out … there will be fewer and fewer people by the middle of October,” she said.

The market is open in Calais 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Tuesdays. On Thursday, the market is open 11 a.m.-2 p.m. in Eastport.