Mon, 07/07/2025 - 4:00am

ISABELLE CURTIS

Boothbay's Farmers' Market is busier than usual July 3 as locals and tourists prepare for the holiday weekend festivities. ISABELLE CURTIS/Boothbay Register

Pastries and breads were some of the most popular products. ISABELLE CURTIS/Boothbay Register

Pastries and breads are some of the day’s most popular products. ISABELLE CURTIS/Boothbay Register

Matt Burke, owner of Sweet Monkey Business, hands out free samples of his shortbread cookies. ISABELLE CURTIS/Boothbay Register

ISABELLE CURTIS/Boothbay Register

Boothbay's Farmers' Market is busier than usual July 3 as locals and tourists prepare for the holiday weekend festivities. ISABELLE CURTIS/Boothbay Register

Pastries and breads are some of the day’s most popular products. ISABELLE CURTIS/Boothbay Register

Matt Burke, owner of Sweet Monkey Business, hands out free samples of his shortbread cookies. ISABELLE CURTIS/Boothbay Register

ISABELLE CURTIS/Boothbay Register

Fresh flowers, ripe cherries, cured meats, buttered pastries and even beaded jewelry: These are only some of the wares that can be found at Boothbay's weekly Farmers' Market.

"It's a great community here. Plus, there's a lot of tourists that come through, so it's a very busy market," said vendor Matt Burke, owner of Sweet Monkey Business.

The Belfast-based shop has been attending the event the past four seasons, making Boothbay one of the seven stops a week he does during peak market season.

However, he said the holiday weekend had the July 3 pop-up more active than usual.

There were also some new faces at the market this year, including Sarah Byrd, Community Nourishment VISTA Contact for Healthy Lincoln County. Byrd was representating Maine Federation of Farmers' Markets, which the Boothbay market recently joined.

One of the benefits of this partnership isthe Federation makes it easier for people to use SNAP/EBT to shop for fresh, local foods, while also absorbing expenses on the farmers' end, she explained.

People who use SNAP also get their purchase amount matched with "Maine Harvest Buck" vouchers that can then be spent on fruits and veggies.

"It supports farmers and it gives people the opportunity to buy things that they might not normally be able to get."

The market is on Boothbay Common and runs every Thursday, from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. until early October.