East Campus Discovery Days and Farmers Market is returning to the University of Nebraska–Lincoln on three Saturdays this summer.
This year’s events are 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. June 10, July 8 and Aug. 12 on the university’s East Campus, 33rd and Holdrege streets.
The event, now in its third year, will feature vendors selling meat, popcorn, coffee, baked goods and crafts, as well as food trucks, live music and free, hands-on, science-based activities for youth and adults alike offered by various university departments. The event is sponsored by the Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources at Nebraska.
The first event also falls on a special day — earlier this month, Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen designated June 10 as Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources Day, in honor of the institute’s 50th anniversary.
“Throughout its 50 years, IANR has connected with Nebraska food producers and processors in really meaningful ways that have helped advance agriculture both in Nebraska and around the country and world,” said Mike Boehm, NU vice president and Harlan Vice Chancellor for IANR. “But just as important are the ways in which IANR faculty, staff and students have been able to connect with Nebraskans throughout the state. This event offers another opportunity to connect, learn from one another and build new relationships.”
The event has grown each year since its beginning, said organizer Jessie Brophy. This year’s event will include more vendors, including several local farmers selling fresh produce. Other vendors will sell meat, baked goods, honey, popcorn, locally roasted coffee, handmade soaps and candles, plants, jewelry and apparel.
In addition, campus departments will offer a wide array of informational booths and activities. The Department of Plant Pathology, for example, will offer a plant diagnostic lab in which members of the public can get answers to questions about what ails their plants. The Department of Biological Systems Engineering will showcase a tractor and prototype farm robots. Other activities will include educational hands-on activities about insects, soil, plants and natural resources, as well as tours of the Backyard Farmer Garden.
“It’s been fun to see this event grow and evolve over the years,” Brophy said. “It’s almost more like a festival than a farmers market, and it’s become of one my favorite events of the year.”
East Campus Discovery Days and Farmers Market doesn’t charge vendors for booth space, which makes it an ideal place for businesses considering giving a farmers market a try, Brophy said. In addition to the event’s nearly 50 vendors and activity booths, a rotating cast of popular Lincoln food trucks will have food available for purchase, and bands will provide live entertainment at each event.
For more information, or to view participating vendors, campus entities, food trucks or musicians, click here.
