Farmers market to be offered for the first time in Green Oaks this summer

Another stop will be added this spring to the list of farmers markets that have become popular destinations in many Lake County communities.

As of Friday, June 22, Green Oaks will be among them in a first for the tiny village that celebrated its 50th anniversary two years ago.

“It just took so much work — we’re just a small community,” Assistant Village Administrator Denise Kafkis said. “Libertyville really helped us out a lot (with logistics).”

Going on its 32nd year in downtown Libertyville and hosting more than two dozen vendors, that Thursday tradition is the granddaddy of farmers markets.

“Every time I would come in, I would drive through Libertyville’s farmers market and say, `We can do it,’” Kafkis said.

Green Oaks village officials in the community of about 3,900 have considered the idea awhile but had to add definitions and basic oversight to the village code to cover rules of operation and product display, for example.

The market will be from 1 to 6 p.m. each Friday from June 22 to Oct. 5 at Lambs Farm on Route 176 and I-94. Lambs, which serves individuals with disabilities, is a partner in the market and will have a booth to sell goods made at the facility.

Kafkis said about 10 vendors are committed, but the spacious setting has ample room for growth.

“We can fit a couple of hundred if needed,” she said. “It potentially could be big but we have to start small.”

The market will include the traditional fare of fruits and vegetable, as well as homemade baked goods, artisan breads and sweets, pastries and pies, spreads, perennials and shrubs and handcrafted jewelry.

The Lake County Health Department does not register farmers markets but treats them as a temporary food event, similar to a fair or festival.

Markets with vendors who prepare, handle and serve food to the public are inspected a minimum of twice a year through the market season for proper hand-washing, food temperature and other conditions.

Seventeen markets with vendors that require a permit to operate have operated in Lake County during the past two years. The number fluctuates, according to the health department, and it would not be aware of markets that do not include such vendors.