Sustainable Food Center runs two farmers’ markets weekly, our flagship Downtown and neighborhood market at Sunset Valley.

The New Normal

Every Saturday morning around 5:30 trucks begin to ramble into Austin weighed down with hill country peaches, grass-fed beef, and locally grown veggies. Farmers and ranchers start setting up their booths before the sun peaks through the valleys of towering office buildings downtown, carefully arranging their wares to catch the eye of market customers. Alex Mace, SFC’s food access manager, helps to stack our new WIC Produce Boxes near the entrance to market and draws chalk lines 6 feet apart in front, anticipating the lines of people who are coming to pick up their veggie haul.

The ritual of creating a market from nothing has been happening since 2003 at Republic Square and 2008 at the Toney Burger Stadium although things look different this year than last. During COVID we have had to adjust to ensure the safety of our customers, vendors, and staff. Gone are the densely packed market stalls that scream out in abundance, and in their place are expanses of vendors donning masks and buffer tables between piles of produce and patient customers.

In this season of pivots and pilot programs, perhaps the most innovative is this preorder option for food access programming. Historically clients must show up in person, shopping list and cards in hand for individual consultation to pick up WIC vouchers. Now clients can verify their eligibility online and schedule pick up times for pre-packed local food boxes from either market. This lessens the time folks must be in the market space and ensures quick moving, socially distanced encounters with staff. It also helps local farms, like Johnson’s Backyard Garden, who now have a guaranteed number of purchases through this program every week.

The Right to Healthy Food

Sustainable Food Center’s mission is to cultivate a just and regenerative food system so people and the environment can thrive. What this means is that we work closely with farmers in Central Texas to provide resources to help them preserve soil health, get business management training, and connect with buyers through our markets and connections with institutional purchasers. We work closely with policymakers to tell the stories of small farmers, advocating for programs that will help them strengthen their farms and communities. We work with the public to promote at home gardening and healthy eating with our nutrition classes (and new edition of our cookbook!) What really sets us apart is our belief that healthy food is for everyone.



Over 14% of Travis County Residents are food insecure and have had trouble meeting their food needs in the past year. Emergency hunger organizations across the country have been overwhelmed since the beginning of our current public health crisis, and while these organizations can help bridge the gap for many families, they do not work on systemic issues facing our food system. SFC is working to create a regenerative food system – where food is grown in our communities, the land is restored, and food is available to all people.

SFC has provided food access programming since 1995 through neighborhood farm stands and the launch of our Downtown market in 2003. SFC markets accept Lone Star/SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program - formerly known as food stamps), WIC (Women, Infants and Children) and FMNP (Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program) benefits at area Farmers’ Markets, Farm Stands, and partner sites throughout Austin helping people access local, fresh food for their families. These benefits are doubled through Double Up Food Bucks, matching up to $30 in SNAP, WIC, and FMNP benefits for the purchase of fruits and vegetables.

Every year in March we begin gearing up for the Farmers Market Nutrition Program. Clients love this seasonal benefit program that helps them take full advantage of the amazing array of spring and summer veggies available in Central Texas. However, this year was different. As markets faced potential shut downs, low attendance, vendors leaving the market and funding insecurity we chose to delay the beginning of FMNP season while we created a solution that mitigated long lines and availability of produce.

This is where the WIC boxes come in. Clients can now pre-order a $30 box of produce from farms like JBG, Lightsey Farm, and Urban Roots for pickup at either of our markets. WIC eligible clients can order a box online, or call to talk to one of our promotoras through our help desk to place an order. So far, we have distributed 220 boxes, or 3,300 lbs. of food!

Friendly Neighborhood Farmer

We are all shifting our lifestyles, our expectations, and the way we nourish ourselves. SFC is adapting and moving online, to preorders for low income families and everyone through our new Neighborhood Pop Up Grocery project, supporting Farmshare and their Fresh for Less produce delivery, and working at all costs to keep markets open and safe for all. Throughout this, JBG has been a stalwart partner and resource for the community.

Farmer Brenton in the early days of the Downtown Farmers' Market.