Wellness Day July 11
2025-07-11 09:00 - 13:00 (America/New_York) | Town Park
Wellness Day features local healthcare providers and offers free health screenings and activities for the community and vendors. Community partners Tri-area Community Health, and Mount Rogers WIC services will join us this year. Wellness Day began in 2015 in partnership with the Virginia Department of Health.

Berry Festival July 18
2025-07-18 09:00 - 13:00 | Town Park
Join us for Berry Day on July 18. This year Berry Sorbet will be available by the scoop or frozen pint as a fundraiser for the Market. It’s also time for the Berry Dessert contest. Any dessert featuring berries is welcome! 1st place is $100! Entries are judged on appearance, taste, and the degree to which berries are the primary focus. Remaining desserts will be sold as a fundraiser for the Market. Please bring your entry by 9am and make sure to put your name on your container so we can be sure to return it to you.
The annual berry sorbet fundraiser will be smaller this year since our longtime sponsor, River Ridge Organics, was destroyed by Hurricane Helene. We’d like to thank them very much for sponsoring this event since 2017!

21 Yardsale July 25
2025-07-25 09:00 - 13:00 | Town Park
The Independence Farmers Market is a producer Market. This is the only day IFM vendors can sell things they didn’t raise or make. Join the giant yards ale that stretches from Elkin to Wytheville on HWY 21.

Tomato Festival August 1st
2025-08-01 09:00 - 13:00 | Town Park
Join us Friday August 1st for the Annual Tomato Day. Enjoy a free tomato tasting and the Salsa Contest! The Salsa contest is People’s Choice. Bring a quart of salsa to the Market by 9:30. We’ll put it in sample cups and everyone tastes and votes for their favorite. First place is $100, Second $30 and third $20. Winner announced at 12:30. The free tomato tasting is a great way to try all the varieties at the Market and discover your favorite. And if that wasn’t enough, we will also have Virginia Family Nutrition Healthy Kids Bucks! The first 30 kids to Ms Andrea’s tent will get $10 to spend on fresh fruits and vegetables and eggs. Don’t miss the fun and bring a friend. There is so much happening, we’ll skip Cooking Day this 1st Friday.

Christmas in August and Fiber Day August 15
2025-08-15 09:00 - 13:00 | Independence Town Park
The Christmas in August Craft Fair features our talented Fiber artisans. This is a great opportunity to purchase yarns, roving, raw fiber, baskets, and an array of knit, woven, and felted goods. Come and meet the artisans who often raise the animals providing fiber for the handmade items in their booths. Feel free to ask questions about farming with sheep, goats, and alpacas. Other artisans will join us with wooden items, jewelry, art and more.

First Friday Cooking day AND the NEW Garlic Festival
2025-09-05 09:30 - 12:30 | Independence Town Park
We’ll be featuring garlic in everything we cook today and we’ll have a garlic tasting and info on planting garlic. Free samples. Donations are appreciated and help to fund our cooking program.

Apple Festival September 12
2025-09-12 09:00 - 13:00 | Town Park
The Apple Festival will be held Friday September 12 from 9am to 1pm. The Market will be pressing apples and offering fresh cider as a fundraiser. Here’s your chance to support the market and enjoy delicious cider. The Festival also features an Apple Dessert Contest. IAs long as it features apples, any dessert is welcome. Please bring your entry to the Market by 9:30 am. Please be sure that your name is attached to the bottom of your dish so it can be returned to you. Judging will begin at 10:00 Winners will be announced once the judging is complete. First prize is $100, 2nd prize $30 and 3rd is $20. Remaining desserts will be sold by the slice as a fundraiser.

Pepper Day Friday September 26
2025-09-26 09:00 - 13:00 | Town Park
This Friday is Pepper Day! While the selection isn’t quite as extensive as our tomato tasting, it’s a great way to taste lots of sweet and hot peppers. Don’t worry, we’ll label the hot ones! We’ll have water, but if you plan to eat lots of hot ones, bring your own milk or cheese. Dairy quenches the heat, water can just spread it around.

First Friday Cooking Day and Squashtober October 3
2025-10-03 09:30 - 12:30 | Town Park
It’s our last Cooking Day of the season. The first Friday of the month is Cooking Day. Guest Chefs cook several recipes featuring products available at the Market that day. To celebrate Squashtober, we will cook all the different squash available at the Market. Enjoy free samples and learn fast, fresh recipes. Donations are gratefully accepted to help fund our cooking program. Recipes are posted on the website, independencefarmersmarket.org., click “recipes”.

Closing Day! October 10
2025-10-10 09:00 - 13:00 | Town Park
Our final regular Market of the 2024 season. Stay tuned for details.

Thanksgiving Market Friday Nov 21
2025-11-21 11:00 - 14:00 | Independence Town Park
Despite the bitter cold last year, we will try the Thanksgiving Market again this year. It will be a regular market with IFM kids bucks for the 1st 20 kids to the Managers tent. Pick up everything you need to make your Thanksgiving dinner special. Just a reminder to pre-order your turkey online if you haven’t already done so.

1st Winter Market Friday Nov. 28
2025-11-28 11:00 - 14:00 | Town Park
The 1st Winter Market returns to Town Park Friday November 28 from 11am-2pm. We call it Green Friday. Miss the Black Friday mobs and head to the IFM! This Market features the Annual Chili Cookoff with a first prize of $100. Please bring your entry to the Market between 9:30- 10:30, preferably already warm, in a crockpot. The contest is free to enter, $5 allows you to taste all the chili and vote for the People’s Choice winner. IFM KIDS BUCKS are back. The first 20 kids to the Market tent get $5 of Kids Bucks to spend on ANYTHING at the Market. Shop for delicious local products and beautiful crafts, say hi to your favorite vendors and support the local economy.

2nd Winter Market-Dec 6
2025-12-06 11:00 - 14:00 | Town Park
IFM KIDS BUCKS are back! $5 of Kids Bucks for the first 20 kids to the Market tent. Enjoy FREE Kids Activities; make bird feeders and other crafts. Join your favorite Farmers Market vendors and shop locally for the holidays.
Be sure to visit the Free Market Christmas Shop in the Gate Center. 11-1 is just for kids 14 and under-“elves” will assist kids to pick out a gift for family members. 1-3 Is open to everyone. It’s all free! And be sure to stay for the parade and enjoy a visit with Santa and other Town festivities.

Grand Opening, Mother's Day Craft Fair and Cooking Day May 1st
2026-05-01 09:00 - 13:00 | Independence Town Park
Join us as we start the 2026 season with our Grand Opening featuring the Mother’s Day Craft Fair and our first “First Friday Cooking Day”! Guest Chefs Dean McRae, Niki Weir, and Loren Webster, who cooked 2 times last year, will be cooking with herbs. Many of our vendors will be selling herb plants and some will have some fresh cut herbs as well. Cooking demonstrations generally run from 9:30 to noon. Free samples and recipes will be available. Donations are always appreciated to help fund our cooking program.
We’ll also have a full range of vendors and IFM Kids bucks for the first 20 kids to the Market booth. We continue to accept SNAP/EBT and offer the $30 Match. In addition, we are excited to continue a new program-Fresh Match Plus- that we started late last season. Virginia Fresh Match(VFM) has received a HOPE grant from Wellspring Foundation of Southwest Virginia to support the program. It allows us to offer vouchers for fresh fruits and vegetables for Medicaid, WIC, and Farm Market Fresh users.

4th Friday Evening Market, May 22 ,3-7pm
2026-05-22 15:00 - 19:00 | Independence Town Park
REMINDER: there is NO market from 9 to 1 today! Join us for the first of 5 4th Friday Evening Markets. We hope folks who haven’t been able to attend the regular 9am – 1pm market can come to these Markets. Once a month, on the 4th Friday, the regular 9am-1pm market will be replaced by an evening market at Town Park from 3-7pm. Enjoy all the regular vendors, music and BBQ by Safe and Sound, and IFM Kids Bucks too.

1st Friday Cooking Day with Chef Jen, June 5,
2026-06-05 09:00 - 13:00 | Independence Town Park
Join us Friday June 5th for our “First Friday Cooking Day” with Chef Jen. We are thrilled to have Jen back at the Market. She’ll be focusing on greens and dressings and probably other delicious foods from our vendors. Thanks to a grant from the Twin County Community Foundation, we’ll be combining our June, July and August Cooking Days with Healthy Kids Bucks and educational information from our partners at WIC. The first 50 kids to visit the WIC tent will receive $10 of Healthy Kids Bucks to spend ONLY on fresh fruits and vegetables, eggs, and plants and seeds that produce food. Cooking demonstrations generally run from 9:30 to noon. Free samples and recipes will be available. Donations are always appreciated to help with funding our cooking program.

Kids Day June 19
2026-06-19 09:00 - 13:00 | Independence Town Park
Join us June 19 for our longest running event and one of the most popular! Free fun for kids of all ages. Cowboy Don will be back teaching roping, BRDC, and the Kids Program at the library will be joining us. We’ll have IFM Kids Bucks for the first 50 Kids to the Market booth. Stay tuned for more details!

4th Friday Evening Market, June 26, 3-7pm
2026-06-26 15:00 - 19:00
Join us for the second of 5 4th Friday Evening Markets. We hope folks who haven’t been able to attend the regular 9am – 1pm market can come to these Markets. Once a month, on the 4th Friday, the regular 9am-1pm market will be replaced by an evening market at Town Park from 3-7pm. Enjoy all the regular vendors and a food truck and IFM Kids Bucks too.

Potato Festival AND First Friday Cooking Day with Chef Jen, July 3
2026-07-03 09:00 - 13:00 | Independence Town Park
Join us Friday July 3rd for our “First Friday Cooking Day” with Chef Jen. This will also be our 1st Potato Festival. Vendors will have potatoes for sale and we’ll have information on growing potatoes. They are easy to grow and are on the “dirty dozen” of crops most likely to contain pesticide residue. Jen will focus on potatoes and probably other delicious foods from our vendors. Thanks to a grant from the Twin County Community Foundation, we’ll be combining our June, July and August Cooking Days with Healthy Kids Bucks and educational information from our partners at WIC. The first 50 kids to visit the WIC tent will receive $10 of Healthy Kids Bucks to spend ONLY on fresh fruits and vegetables, eggs, and plants and seeds that produce food. Cooking demonstrations generally run from 9:30 to noon. Free samples and recipes will be available. Donations are always appreciated to help with funding our cooking program.

4th Friday Evening Market, July 24, 3-7pm
2026-07-24 15:00 - 19:00 | Independence Town Park
Join us for the third of 5 4th Friday Evening Markets. We hope folks who haven’t been able to attend the regular 9am – 1pm market can come to these Markets. Once a month, on the 4th Friday, the regular 9am-1pm market will be replaced by an evening market at Town Park from 3-7pm. Enjoy all the regular vendors and a food truck and IFM Kids Bucks too.

Tomato Festival AND First Friday Cooking Day with Chef Jen, August 7
2026-08-07 09:30 - 12:00 | Independence Town Park
Join us Friday August 7 for The Tomato Festival AND our “First Friday Cooking Day” with Chef Jen. She’ll be focusing on tomatoes and probably other delicious foods from our vendors. Thanks to a grant from the Twin County Community Foundation, we’ll be combining our June, July and August Cooking Days with Healthy Kids Bucks and educational information from our partners at WIC. The first 50 kids to visit the WIC tent will receive $10 of Healthy Kids Bucks to spend ONLY on fresh fruits and vegetables, eggs, and plants and seeds that produce food. Cooking demonstrations generally run from 9:30 to noon. Free samples and recipes will be available. Donations are always appreciated to help with funding our cooking program. The Market is open from 9am to 1pm as usual.
Since Jen is Cooking this year, we’ll drop the salsa contest but we’ll still have the tomato tasting. It’s a great way to try ALL the great varieties of tomatoes at the Market and discover your favorite.

Grayson County Fair
2026-08-07 10:00 - 20:00 | 10278 Elk Creek Parkway Elk Creek, VA 24326, United States
The Grayson County Fair opens today. Fair is open 10am – 8pm on Friday and 10am – 6pm on Saturday. Free fun for the whole family! Find full details here https://www.graysoncountyvafair.com/

Grayson County Fair
2026-08-08 10:00 - 18:00 | 10278 Elk Creek Parkway Elk Creek, VA 24326, United States
The Grayson County Fair is open today from 10am – 6pm. Free fun for the whole family! Find full details here https://www.graysoncountyvafair.com/

4th Friday Evening Market, August 28, 3-7pm
2026-08-28 15:00 - 19:00 | Independence Town Park
Join us for the forth of 5 4th Friday Evening Markets. We hope folks who haven’t been able to attend the regular 9am – 1pm market can come to these Markets. Once a month, on the 4th Friday, the regular 9am-1pm market will be replaced by an evening market at Town Park from 3-7pm. Enjoy all the regular vendors and a food truck and IFM Kids Bucks too.

Cooking Day with Chef Jen September 4
2026-09-04 09:00 - 13:00 | Independence Town Park
Join us Friday September 4 for “Cooking Day” with Chef Jen. She’ll be focusing on the bounty of the harvest-translation: anything and everything tasty at the Market today!. Cooking demonstrations generally run from 9:30 to noon. Free samples and recipes will be available. Donations are always appreciated to help with funding our cooking program. The Market will be open from 9am to 1 pm as usual. We’ll also be offering IFM KIds Bucks to the first 20 Kids to the Managers booth.

Apple Festival September 11
2026-09-11 09:00 - 13:00 | Independence Town Park
The Apple Festival will be held Friday September 11 from 9am to 1pm. The Market will be pressing apples and offering fresh cider as a fundraiser. Here’s your chance to support the market and enjoy delicious cider. The Festival also features an Apple Dessert Contest. IAs long as it features apples, any dessert is welcome. Please bring your entry to the Market by 9:30 am. Please be sure that your name is attached to the bottom of your dish so it can be returned to you. Judging will begin at 10:00 Winners will be announced once the judging is complete. First prize is $100, 2nd prize $30 and 3rd is $20. Remaining desserts will be sold by the slice as a fundraiser.

Pepper Day September 18
2026-09-18 09:00 - 13:00 | Independence Town Park

Last 4th Friday Evening Market, September 25, 3-7 pm
2026-09-25 15:00 - 19:00 | Independence Town Park
Join us for the last 4th Friday Evening Markets. We hope folks who haven’t been able to attend the regular 9am – 1pm market can come to these Markets. Once a month, on the 4th Friday, the regular 9am-1pm market will be replaced by an evening market at Town Park from 3-7pm. Enjoy all the regular vendors and a food truck and IFM Kids Bucks too.

Squashtober Cooking Day!
2026-10-02 09:00 - 13:00 | Independence Town Park
Join us Friday October 2 for our last “Cooking Day” with Chef Jen. She’ll be focusing on summer and winter squash for Squashtober. Cooking demonstrations generally run from 9:30 to noon. Free samples and recipes will be available. Donations are always appreciated to help with funding our cooking program. The Market will be open from 9am to 1 pm as usual. We’ll also be offering IFM Kids Bucks to the first 20 Kids to the Managers booth.

Last Market of the Regular season
2026-10-09 09:00 - 13:00 | Independence Town Park
Join us Friday October 9 for the last market of the regular season. We’ll have IFM Kids Bucks and stay tuned for more.
Don’t worry, you can shop Online all year. Here’s the link: https://independencefarmersmarket.locallygrown.net/
AND we’ll be back in Town Park for our 3 Winter Markets on November 20, 27, and December 5 from 11 am to 2pm.
