VANCOUVER – The BC Association of Farmers’ Markets (BCAFM) invites British Columbians to show their appreciation for local farmers in the form of a poem – a haiku, a ballad, an ode or a limerick, the style is up to you. Writers alike are invited to submit their best agriculture-inspired poems to the second annual Ode To A Farmer Poetry Contest, in honour of Farmers Appreciation Week, Sept. 8-15.
The grand prize winner will receive a $150 gift certificate to the BC farmers’ market of their choice. To celebrate the diversity of BC’s agriculture, contest judges will select a grand prize winner, plus one winning poem in each region of BC: Cariboo Chilcotin Coast, Kootenay Rockies, Northern British Columbia, Thompson Okanagan, Vancouver, Coast and Mountains, and Vancouver Island. Winning regional authors will receive a $50 gift certificate to the BC farmers’ market of their choice. The contest is open to all British Columbia residents. Submissions will be accepted online or by mail until Sunday, Sept. 7 at 11:59 p.m.
“BC farmers are our best source for fresh, healthy, local food,” says Jon Bell, BCAFM president, “and the poetry contest is a means to express our gratitude for B.C. farmers and all the ways they contribute to our health, communities and economy.”
This is the fifth annual Farmers Appreciation Week, an annual event highlighting the important contribution that local food and farmers make to our lives. Farmers Appreciation Week will be celebrated at farmers’ markets across BC from September 8 – 15, 2014. For more information on how to participate, see the Farmers Appreciation Week website.
The BCAFM is a not-for-profit association that represents 125 farmers’ markets across the province and works to support, develop and promote farmers’ markets in all regions of BC. For more information on the BCAFM or to find a farmers’ market near you, visit www.bcfarmersmarket.org.