8 New Vendors at Ferry Plaza Farmers Market for April 2022

San Francisco has 8 new vendors at Foodwise’s Ferry Plaza Farmers Market for April.

From tender, tiny microgreens to pillowy ube-filled donuts, this April brings a bounty of new farms and food makers to the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market, with a focus on sustainability-minded local businesses owned and led by women, immigrants, and people of color. With spring blooming and workers returning to offices in San Francisco, Foodwise (formerly CUESA) is excited to welcome eight innovative food entrepreneurs to our weekday and Saturday markets. Meet them at the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market on Tuesdays and Thursdays (10 am to 2 pm) and Saturdays (8 am to 2 pm).

Everything Green Organics (Tuesdays starting April 5)
On Tuesdays, get your organic microgreen fix from Everything Green Organics, based in Sonoma County. Mother-and-son farming duo Paula and Mitchell Bruning use biodynamic and no-till regenerative farming practices, minimizing their environmental footprint through use of their bare hands, shovels, rakes, and wheelbarrows. Stop by their stand on Tuesdays for carefully grown and harvested microgreens such as pea shoots, wheatgrass, and broccoli, red cabbage, arugula, and purple radish sprouts.

Rodriguez Brothers Farm (Thursdays starting April 7)
The Rodriguez brothers bring berries and vegetables from Watsonville to the Thursday market. Roberto Rodriguez says, “We’ve been farmers for over 30 years. Our story begins in the late 1980s at our grandfather’s farm in Michoacán, Mexico. There we developed a strong appreciation for farming. When we migrated to the U.S in the 1990s, we worked around the Watsonville, California, area picking strawberries. After many years of hard work and a strong passion for farming, we were able to start our own company in 2001.”

Ventana Organic Farm (Thursdays starting April 7)
Another addition to the Thursday lineup, Ventana Organic Produce is a family-owned and operated farm located in Hollister, California, where they’ve farmed a variety of organic vegetables for more than a decade. Farmer Jesus Chavez says, “We are committed from seed to market to be certified organic. Every process is handled with love by a community with multiple ethnic backgrounds, not just from our borders but beyond. We are also committed to fair wages for every worker no matter their gender, age, race, creed, and physical activity.”

La Vie Wellness (Thursdays starting April 7, and Saturdays)
A familiar stand at the Saturday Ferry Plaza Farmers Market, La Vie Wellness is now bringing their probiotic juices to our Thursday market, too. Founder Yeyen Gunawan left the fast-paced world of Bay Area real estate to focus on her health, which led her to start her own raw food, juicing, and probiotics business, La Vie Wellness. Since 2005, she has been sharing what she discovered through her line of juices, kvasses, kefirs, smoothies, coconut waters, yogurts, and broths at farmers markets and local grocery stores.

LoJo’s Tacos (Thursdays starting April 7; pictured above)
Satisfy your Thursday breakfast taco fix with LoJo’s Tacos. Chef Loren Johnson creates fresh, tasty tacos using sustainable produce from local farms, and meats from Avedano’s Meats. A business born out of the pandemic, LoJo’s first came to the Ferry Plaza through Foodwise’s partnership with Mandela Partners’ Entrepreneur Program, popping up on Saturdays. Back by popular demand, LoJo’s is joining us again this April through June. Stop by on Thursdays for her carefully crafted bacon, chorizo, braised beef, steak, mushroom, and vegetarian breakfast tacos.

Pop-Ups from En2action’s Ujaama Kitchen (rotating vendors on Thursdays starting April 7)
Foodwise is partnering with En2action’s Ujaama Kitchen culinary program to highlight a rotating roster of food makers starting this spring, with a focus on Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) chefs and small business owners. Ujamaa Kitchen is a collaborative commercial kitchen space providing entrepreneurship and workforce development opportunities in Bayview-Hunters Point. Chef Dontaye Ball of Gumbo Social is kicking off this series of pop-ups on Thursday, April 7, with delicious offerings like chicken and sausage gumbo, California greens, and grilled shrimp po’boys. You can look forward to more Ujaama Kitchen vendors to be announced.

D.R.E.A.M Doughnuts (Saturdays starting April 9)
Baker Pamela Augustin launched D.R.E.A.M. Doughnuts in September 2020 in the midst of the pandemic. Describing D.R.E.A.M. as “A proudly immigrant and female-owned business that focuses on making the best small-batch doughnuts using high quality and seasonal ingredients,” Augustin draws inspiration from her childhood and travels, using a recipe she developed at the Culinary Institute of America. Treat yourself to signature donuts like The O.G. (Madagascar vanilla bean glaze on milk bread), Ooh Baby (ube filled), and Napa Creme (Belgian chocolate with vanilla cream), and savory Green Garlic Buns and Adobo Danish (inspired by the national dish of the Philippines).

Alicia’s Tamales Los Mayas (Saturdays, April 2 through May 7)
Through a longstanding partnership between Foodwise and La Cocina, Alicia’s Tamales Los Mayas is popping up on Saturdays this April to sell her take-and-eat tamales and salsas. Born in Mazatlán, Mexico, Alicia Villanueva “has been stuffing tamales since she was a kid, with her mami and her abuelita.” Be sure to try her 2022 Good Food Awards winning Tomatillo Salsa. This spring and summer, you can look forward to more La Cocina alumna popping up at the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market, including The Baking Endeavor (baked goods) and Peaches Patties (Jamaican patties).