Big Bear Farmers Market

The High Desert Farmers Market was started July 1992. As an agricultural student at Victor Valley College, Kerri Santoro had top grades. Her instructor, Bob Adams, appointed her president of the College ‘s Ornamental Horticulture Club. The first order of business was to start a State Certified Farmers Market to help bring recognition to the Agricultural Department and to demonstrate that agriculture is a viable industry. Adequate food supply is essential to survival, and bringing a reliable source of farm-direct produce to the High Desert was important to Santoro. For the first couple of years, club members volunteered, but by the third year Santoro was pretty much running the market herself. The following year, she became the sole owner, as she had been nurturing its growth and had a vision of where it needed grow. Santoro’s mission over the years has been to educate the local community on the importance of eating fresh, locally-grown produce. Every community needs local fresh, healthy, sustainable food from a farmers market, and it helps supports farmers within our region of southern California.’ Connecting local farms and local communities offers many benefits, like cutting waste and lowering the use of fossil fuels. Many people aren’t even aware of where their produce is coming from these days