by Robin Hoy, BCFA co-founder
What an exciting journey this has been, and still is!
Back in 2006 members of the new Anchor Run Farm CSA in Wrightstown were so impressed with the flavor and quality of the vegetables they were receiving from the CSA that they wanted to be able to get fresh meat, dairy and eggs produced locally without harmful inputs as well. With the help of local community leaders, they reached out to new, small local farmers who were growing using organic practices or with animals on pasture.
Dozens of farmers, CSA members and community leaders gathered to discuss ways to work together to promote local, sustainable agriculture and to facilitate connections between them. The farmers were renting land in off-the-beaten-path locations and needed more access to markets. The group concluded that a farmers’ market was needed — one geared to locally grown agricultural products which would give priority to those products grown without fossil fuel-dependent chemical fertilizers, herbicides and pesticides and to farm animals grown in fresh air, sunlight and on rich pastures. It would be a “producer-only” market so that shoppers could talk to the producers to learn how the food was grown.
Many of the participants in the meetings already understood the damage that is done to our health, air, water and climate by agricultural systems that rely heavily on irrigation, extensive packaging, processing, long distance shipping, concentrated animal feeding operations and limited and polluting fossil fuel resources. Others recognized the many benefits of supporting local farms, which are still being lost at an alarming rate. We realized that we would need a non-profit to raise funds to start a market and to provide community education about how our foods are grown and why these farm products are so special. The idea for a Bucks County Foodshed Alliance was born. We incorporated in July 2006 and together set about building an alternative, local, healthy, sustainable food system that would support healthy farms, communities and local economies and increase local resiliency and food security while reducing greenhouse gas production and toxins.
That September we launched the Wrightstown Farmers Market with a kickoff harvest festival and only a dozen vendors. But its resounding success led farmers to eagerly rejoin the coming year. It has now grown to more than 45 participating vendors each year. In 2017 the Foodshed Alliance began sponsoring the Doylestown Farmers Market, which just celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2025! It has been a steady source of locally grown fresh farm products throughout that time. Both markets now operate under the auspices of the Bucks County Foodshed Alliance and are beloved Saturday morning shopping ventures in their communities, visited by 10’s of thousands of community members each year!
Every year film showings and presentations on healthy food, our food system and gardening are held by the Foodshed Alliance, helping develop the well-informed farmers market shoppers we have in Bucks County. Farm potlucks and tours every summer have further helped us know and appreciate our farmers. We were soon able to begin providing small farm grants to help new farmers get started. To date more than 23 local farms have received a total of more than $60,000.
For this celebratory year, in addition to the special events and always wonderful food at our farmers markets, we have:
hosted a donor and volunteer social- held a Farmer Forum on grant opportunities,
- hosted a renowned speaker Anne Bikle presenting “What Your Food Ate and Why It Matters” with community partners at Delaware Valley University
- held a showing & panel discussion of Tallamy’s 2025 presentation “Nature’s Best Hope,”
hosted a donor and volunteer socialand we are
- hosting farm tours featuring our founding farms as well as our newest farms,
- receiving and welcoming applications for new small farm grants
- continuing to provide local farm products to our food insecure neighbors
- and hosting a 20th Anniversary Harvest Festival on September 26th at the Wrightstown Farmers Market!
Find details about these events in our BCFA, Doylestown and Wrightstown Farmers Market newsletters and social media and join the fun!
Looking into the future thriving and resilient foodshed here, our support for our new farmers and farmers facing climate challenges is growing, our support for our food insecure neighbors is continuing, along with our educational programs, and our farmers markets are looking to expand into more permanent, larger spaces to accommodate our growing farm community and shoppers.
The Bucks County Foodshed Alliance is grateful for the community embrace we have all experienced throughout this endeavor. Thank you for your steadfast support of local food!
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