OCCT creates temporary farmers market route

“I was first approached by a working group consisting of the Food Co-Op, the SUNY [Student Assembly] and the Student Culinary Council regarding the desire to add a permanent route to the farmers market,” Croce wrote in an email. “I loved the idea but understood that the constraints of the location of the market being outside of the regular servicing area for OCCT made that very difficult. That’s when we developed the idea of operating a special charter, [which] I authorized for the director of OCCT, and we moved forward with a ‘test run’ of a charter for the month of April.”

According to a timesheet provided by Croce, the farmers market shuttle will make four trips every halfhour from the University Union, starting at 11 a.m. and continuing until 12:30 p.m. The last departure from the market will be 1 p.m.

Located on Binghamton’s Upper Front Street, the market lists “[connecting] farmers with consumers on a personal level … to advance local agriculture in the Southern Tier’’ as a goal on its website. The market is associated with Cornell Cooperative Extension (CCE) — a program that partners with local, state and federal government agencies to connect local communities with Cornell University’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences and the College of Human Ecology.

Amanda Poodiack, the CCE’s market manager, explained the process behind its establishment.

“In February 2009, the Broome County

Government and its partners began to develop a concept plan and explore the feasibility of creating a regional farmers market in Broome County,” Poodiack wrote in an email.

“Because of Binghamton’s ideal location and vast interconnected highway network, it was the perfect place to establish a regional market that will benefit the region’s farmers, residents and neighboring communities. After a two-year period, the groundbreaking on the market building began in October 2015.”

The concept of OCCT service to the farmers market is not a new idea. A petition started online four years ago accrued over 500 signatures, demonstrating student interest, according to Victoria Barics, the general manager of the Food Co-Op and a senior doublemajoring in psychology and philosophy, politics and law. Barics further emphasized the need for collaboration between interested organizations.

“While some organizations had sponsored individual trips to the farmers market, they were expensive trips to fund, so we decided that working collaboratively would make for an easier and more effective effort,” Barics wrote in an email. “This initiative was very important [as it] gives students a chance to access locally sourced [and fresh] foods. As the Food Co-

Op is centered on being a sustainable option for students on campus, we are excited to extend our resources to allow the opportunity for these values to live even outside of [it].”

Sydney Licata, the president of Plant Based Binghamton — a club “dedicated to providing education and resources for vegans and students interested in plant-based lifestyles” — and a senior majoring in geological sciences, said she supported the initiative.

“The farmers market is a great resource that everyone should have access to, but many students don’t have their own cars and rely on the buses for transportation,” Licata wrote. “This will provide all students with the opportunity to purchase sustainable, locally grown food.”