Tour de Farm coming soon

By Laurie Gordon
Since its inception seven years ago, starting with six vendors and a few hundred customers, the Sparta Farmers Market is now an all year round market hosting 30 local farmers and vendors and averaging approximately 800 customers each Saturday market day. The popularity of the market led to its co-founder, Mitch Morrison, starting the Tour de Farm five years ago. This year, mark your calendar for The Tour de Farm Sussex County, on September 3, with the Tour de Farm Warren County to be held on September 23.
Since beginning in 2013, over 3,000 participants from all over the metro New Jersey and New York region have enjoyed bicycling at their own pace from farm to farm to visit farms, meet the farmers and enjoy tastings.
“New Jersey residents are now demanding fresher, tastier, healthier and more nutritious food,” Morrison said. “They want to know how their food is produced, where it is produced and who is producing it. They are demanding a trusted, transparent and locally sourced food system.” He added, “Northern New Jersey has seen an explosion of interest in supporting our local farmers.”
Morrison said, “Our customers want to know exactly what they are ingesting into their bodies. They demand to know the who, what, where, when, why and how their food is produced.”
There are some things riders should know. First, it's a tour not a race. Take time to enjoy the wonderful views and roads and remember to pass on the left and be careful entering and exiting farm stops. The Tour directors have selected routes that avoid busy roads to make the event as safe as possible. While the routes are very scenic, these roads require riders full attention as they may be narrower and have tighter turns than what they are accustomed, and there may be some unfilled pot holes along the way. Helmets are mandatory, obey traffic laws, stay to the right and no I-pods, headphones or any sort of personal stereos please. The event is held rain or sine and the Tours do have a cut off of 3 pm. All registered cyclists must wear their official wristband and above all, everyone is encouraged to enjoy and have fun.
Morrison said, “We've partnered with local farmers to grow food specifically for our Farm-to-Fork Celebrations. The ingredients will be harvested right out of the ground and prepared in front of our guests. It doesn't get any fresher than that. Enjoy a gourmet meal with friends and family amidst the rolling hills of Northern New Jersey farm country. Taste the difference.”
The Tour de Farm New Jersey details and registration can be found at <URL destination="http://www.tourdefarmnj.com. ">www.tourdefarmnj.com.
</URL>The Tour de Farm NJ Facebook page: www.facebook.com/TourDeFarmNj. For further information,. Email mitchell.morrison5@mac.com.