Our largest and oldest market is situated in the heart of Downtown Santa Cruz, one block off of Pacific Avenue. In addition to a substantial variety of farm products, this market offers a great selection of local artisan foodstuffs, delicious baked goods, and currently many unique, high quality options for grab-and-go lunch and dinner. Shopping at the Wednesday market is a wonderful way to support local farms and bring home the best produce available.

COVID-19 Response

While the COVID-19 pandemic requires physical distancing and other public health precautions we have made substantial changes to the structure of the market with community safety in mind. Read the details HERE.

Artisan Foods and Cafe Seating

Food trucks, ethnic culinary creations and pickled preserves draw people to market for more than grocery shopping. An artisanal meal and prepared food section features talented chefs creating farm-to market menus each week based on the seasonal bounty they source from the farms at market.Our seating area is currently suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Market Match

ANNOUNCEMENT! The Downtown Santa Cruz Farmers’ Market has received funding to offer the MARKET MATCH DOUBLE-UP SPECIAL ONGOING in 2020 until funds are exhausted! A big thank you to the City of Santa Cruz for this support. CalFresh/EBT participants receive two Market Match tokens for every EBT token for the first $10 of EBT swiped at market. Ten dollars of EBT becomes $30 in June at this market ($10 EBT/$20 Match), $7 of EBT becomes $21 ($7 EBT/$14 Match), $20 of EBT becomes $40 ($20 EBT/$20 Match). The matching tokens must be used for fresh fruits and vegetables.

The goal of this program is to encourage CalFresh/EBT recipients to take advantage of fresh, locally-grown fruits and vegetables at farmers’ markets. By offering an incentive that lowers the price of fresh produce, we are helping shoppers stretch their food dollars while keeping their families healthy.

Veggie Valet

The veggie valet is currently suspended due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Veggie Valet is a free service that allows you to drop off your farmers market purchases and either continue shopping or grab your car for curbside pickup. This service is exclusive to the Downtown Santa Cruz Farmers’ Market.  The Veggie Valet booth is located at the Information Booth at the corner of Cedar St and Lincoln.

The Foodshed Project – Postponed until 2021 due to COVID-19

The Foodshed Project (FSP) is an education and outreach program of SCCFM which highlights the significant work being rolled out by SCCFM farmers, food artisans and community partners in the nearest regions of our foodshed. This series is postponed until 2021 due to COVID-19. Find the details regarding the series here.

Music – Suspended due to COVID-19

If you would like to play at the Downtown market, we ask you check in at the Information booth. Due to the limited space we do not currently schedule bands but have designated spots in the market, where musicians can play for no more than 30 minutes. We ask that you keep track of your time and then move to a different spot.  Music style must work with the market and neighboring vendors ability to work. We ask that you do not use any percussion or amplification. We also do not allow performances in the market unless approved by SCCFM.

Non-Profits & Political Action Tables – Suspended due to COVID-19

We provide space on the back wall of the Downtown market to non-profit groups and local organizations wanting to distribute information. We do not charge for the space and we do not provide any equipment. No commerce is allowed. Scheduling is not required. If you are interested in tabling at our other markets, please contact us for scheduling at info@santacruzfarmersmarket.org.

Arts & Crafts

We have a rotating, monthly booth that profiles local crafts that support the home and a focus on food and the kitchen. If you are interested in learning more, please email our organizer Garimo at Garimo@GreatBarsofSoap.com.