Local farmers Dick and Bonnie Swank hold some of their fresh produce available for purchase Wednesdays at the farmers' market, held at the corner of Fourth and San Benito streets.
For Bonnie and Dick Swank, a Farmers' Market like the one starting in Hollister on Wednesday is more than a hobby or a way of getting a name out there - it's a big part of their business.
The Swank Farms owners have been participating in the Downtown Hollister Farmers' Market since the mid-1990s and visit up to 20 per week throughout the region in such other places as San Francisco, San Jose, Blossom Hill and Saratoga.
Swank said one of the best things about a farmers' market like Hollister's is being in direct contact with the customers, which helps build a broader clientele. Most visitors come for the simple reason that they know they can get the freshest produce in the area at the downtown market, she said.
Swank said their goal each year is to sell as much to the local customers as possible while sending less to a distributor.
"People (are) waiting for our cherries," said Swank, whose family also runs the famous corn maze around Halloween time each year.
They grow a wide variety of products such as lettuce, peppers, onions, tomatoes, cauliflower, super-sweet corn, sugar-snap peas and melons on their San Felipe Road property. The Swanks also make their own salsa, which also is available from their stand at the Downtown Hollister Farmers' Market.
Swank said another popular seller for them are the heirloom tomatoes and sugar snap peas, and people love the super-sweet corn.
"Dick grows a great heirloom tomato," Swank said.
Of particular note, Swank also said their pint of shelled peas for $6 is a hit - 40 pints usually sell out by day's end - because then people don't have to shell their own.
New for this year, she pointed out how they're trying a cherry pitter, which would eliminate the inconvenience of the fruit's hard center. She touted how people can walk around and eat cherries without worrying about disposal of the pits. Those cherries without pits should be available this year, but not likely during the first week, she said.
Their adaptation to the times, however, didn't come without some experience. The family business kicked off in the early 1990s when Dick Swank had sold produce from a stand before joining the tour of area farmers' markets. They had some problems when they tried to reopen it a couple of years ago because the property found itself in city limits, but they've resolved those permitting issues and now have a grand reopening scheduled for June 7.
The couple will soon sell their produce year-round from two buildings on the property at 2600 San Felipe Road. There, they will sell products they grow, potted plants, candy and salsa, she said.
"If you have a variety of produce, you have more customers," she said.
Kristen Tolleson Kristen Tolleson covers San Benito County and education for the Free Lance. Contact her at ktolleson@freelancenews.com or (831) 637-5566, ext. 335.
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