By Libby Hopkins
Farmers’ markets are becoming increasingly popular as consumers want to know where their food is coming from and who is producing it. Eric and Jennifer Gonyon of Plant City wanted to give their children, Elliot and Emily, a place where they could grow up and learn how to grow their own food.
“We have our own property and we named our farm, A Land of Delight Natural Farm,” Eric said. “We had the desire to grow healthy food for our family. We also wanted our kids to grow up with chickens and to learn that food does not originate in a grocery store but to experience the power of seedtime and harvest.”
The Gonyons originally intended for the farm to be just for their family, but once their friends started seeing all the fresh produce and eggs, they wanted to learn how to grow their own food too.
“We decided to open up our farm to others who wanted to learn,” Eric said. “We have over 100 free-range chickens that roam on acres of grass and are also supplemented with non-GMO, non-soy, organic chicken feed and they produce beautiful, healthy brown eggs with dark yellow yokes.”
They use aquaponics in their greenhouse, which enables them to have fish and plants working together.
Since their organic produce and fresh eggs were becoming popular with their friends, they decided to host a monthly farmers’ market at their farm twice a month to share their harvest with the general public. The farmers’ market takes place the first and third Saturday of every month from 8 a.m.–4 p.m.
“We have fun for the entire family,” Eric said. “We have USDA certified organic produce and fruit available at each market.”
The Gonyons favorite part of hosting the monthly market is that they get to meet so many people from the community.
“We like meeting so many friendly people who are interested in local, farm-raised foods,” Eric said. “We believe people need to support and buy from local farmers and businesses to help our community.”
To learn more about the products offered, visit www.alandofdelight.com or call 941-681-8485. The monthly farmers’ market is located at 2514 Leaning Pine Ln. in Plant City.
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