A recent community survey has shown strong community support for Golden Plains Shire Council’s award-winning Golden Plains Farmers’ Market.
The popular Farmers’ Market is held in Bannockburn every month to strengthen opportunities for local growers and makers, support the local economy and create a vibrant community meeting place where there is access to fresh, local food.
The Market has gone from strength to strength since its inception in 2009, having won multiple business awards, the most recent being the 2017 Tourism and Hospitality Award at the 2017 Geelong Business Excellence Awards.
The Market’s ability to attract customers, from both inside and outside the Shire, was made clear at its inaugural Twilight Market in December last year. A record number of visitors (3,000+) and around 50 stalls filled the market site in the heart of Bannockburn, transforming the space into a plaza of produce, people, crafts, cocktails, family fun and live tunes.
Cr Helena Kirby, Mayor is pleased community feedback is being used to drive the Market even further forward.
“Despite its intrinsic community value, we recognise the Market can still be improved upon, so earlier this year, we asked market-goers for their views and suggestions to help us shape the Market’s future direction,” she said.
124 community members responded to the Farmers’ Market survey, which indicated the top reasons for attending include to buy direct from farmers, to buy local, for fresh food shopping, and for social reasons. The majority of respondents also rated the Market highly for how well it supports local businesses and generates local spending. 80% of survey participants would like to see more stalls and a greater variety of stalls, and over 40% would like the inclusion of art and hand-made craft stalls.
“These results show there is strong community support for the Market, as well as room to grow and improve it in a way that better reflects the needs of our community. We look forward to developing our Market further with community aspirations at the forefront,” said Cr Kirby.
The survey results will help shape the strategic direction of the Golden Plains Farmers’ Market over the next five years.
To find out more, and view the results report, click here.
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Released by: Eric Braslis, CEO, Golden Plains Shire Council
Media contact: Ann Card, Senior Communications and Marketing Officer, Golden Plains Shire Council
P. 5220 7147 │ E. [email protected]
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