2024 BIPOC Incubator Initiative

BIPOC Incubator Initiative Launches at the Central Square Farmers Market

Mass Farmers Markets is proud to be working with Cambridge Community Foundation to launch our BIPOC Incubator Initiative at the Central Square Farmers Market beginning this May 2024. We believe that sustainable food systems come from strong and diverse communities. Farmers markets support businesses in a variety of ways- in building a customer base, getting direct feedback on products, expanding business ideas, and interacting with other businesses-  but it can be cost-prohibitive, especially for new business owners and farmers to participate. 

“With nearly 61% of Cambridge residents identifying as BIPOC individuals and/or families, it is vital we increase the availability of cultural ingredients and support the ability of culturally diverse farmers to participate in Farmers Markets through incubation spaces and expanded affordability through these spaces,” said Edith Murnane, Executive Director of Mass Farmers Markets. Of the four markets we run, Central Square sees our most diverse array of shoppers. It is a priority for us to ensure we have culturally specific crops and foods available. With the strong support of our partners at the Cambridge Community Foundation and the Central Square BID, this program combines mutual goals of building successful businesses and maintaining a flourishing local farmers market. 

The BIPOC Incubator Initiative has several components. The main focus is helping folks vend at the market by paying vendor fees and providing necessary materials day of such as tents, tables and seating. We can also assist with permitting and provide participants with signage to keep beyond vending days at our market. We can connect our program participants to an array of resources for building business skills, networking and finding out about other opportunities. Finally, we will use our existing platform to provide marketing assistance around vending dates. 

We are looking for up to 18 emerging Massachusetts BIPOC farmers and local food entrepreneurs from the greater Boston area interested in vending at the Central Square Farmers Market. We provide a flexible time commitment, where participants can vend between 3-6 times at the market during the 28 week season, spanning from May 20- November 25. This program has a wide scope, and we hope to take a collaborative approach. We expect our goals to shift as we get acquainted with participants and we are open to hearing more ideas about how we can serve the community and support our local business owners and farmers.

For more information please contact markets@massfarmersmarkets.org or fill out our application form.