Fresh fruit and vegetable giveaways, free food samples, and complimentary wine tastings are among the festivities scheduled for 2022’s Santa Barbara County Farm Day celebration. This year marks the annual program’s fourth iteration and will take place in Santa Maria on Saturday, Sept. 17.
The multi-venue event is organized by the Students for Eco-Education and Agriculture (SEEAG) and includes a plethora of free programs hosted by more than a dozen different growers based in the Santa Maria Valley.
Mary Maranville, SEEAG founder and president, highlighted this year’s Farm Day participants and their global impact on the produce industry.
“So often, when we buy fresh fruits and vegetables, we don’t think how they’re grown. Hundreds of people are involved in growing, harvesting, and shipping citrus, berries, and vegetables to market,” Maranville said in press materials. “Santa Maria Valley farmers grow produce that is distributed all over the world. We’re very fortunate we have the opportunity to hear their stories and see firsthand how the growing process works.”
For those hoping to take advantage of the event’s various free offerings, here’s a quick rundown of the programs being hosted throughout Santa Maria.
Glasses and classes
Free wine tastings and vineyard tours await those who venture to Riverbench Vineyard and Winery (at 6020 Foxen Canyon Road) during Santa Barbara County Farm Day. Located on the bank of the Sisquoc River (also known as the Santa Maria Bench), this boutique winery uses sustainable farming practices to craft its small portfolio of wines.
Unlike most of the other venues included in the Farm Day lineup, Riverbench is requiring pre-registration from guests, although admission is still free. Tour attendees will get an inside look at Riverbench’s vineyard property and learn about the winery’s various methods of sustainability.
Sustainable and regenerative farming techniques will also be discussed during Allan Hancock College’s Farm Day festivities. Current students enrolled in agriculture, viticulture, and enology programs at the college (at 800 S. College Drive) will lead tours of the student vineyard on campus, as well as the school’s fruit orchard, greenhouse, vegetable garden, and field research plots.
Another ag education destination on Farm Day’s trail map is the Mark Richardson Career Technical Education Center and Agricultural Farm, located at 1280 Founders Ave. This unique facility enables students from each high school in the Santa Maria Joint Union High School District to enroll in career tech classes that focus on agriculture, culinary arts, and other subjects. Students from courses at the facility will be on-site during Farm Day to share their experiences with guests and offer tours of the location.
Fun and fancy-free
Babé Farms (at 1485 N. Blosser Road) will be hosting a variety of Farm Day events, including a pop-up farm stand with an assortment of free produce for guests to select from (each attendee can grab up to three vegetables). Kelly Barretto, owner of Arroyo Grande-based charcuterie company Amazing Grazing, will be available to demonstrate ways for guests to create crudités boards from the various veggies.
Attendees will have the chance to try food samples from Lompoc pizzeria LouBirds, which uses specialty vegetables sourced from Babé Farms in its menu. Team members from Bejo Seeds, a local vegetable seeds company, will host a special booth at the farm, where they’ll be handing out beet and kohlrabi transplants for Farm Day guests to take home.
Berry necessities
Family-owned and operated for more than a century, Driscoll’s will be offering free samples of its wide range of berries in celebration of Farm Day. The Driscoll’s program will be held at Reiter Affiliated Co. (1755 E. Stowell Road). Costumed characters Strawberry and Blackberry will be present during the event for guests to take selfies with.
Blueberries will take center stage at Rancho Laguna Farms (at Highway 1 and Solomon Road) during its Farm Day gathering, where guests will learn about the various stages of blueberry production (fertilization, pruning, irrigation, etc.) and enjoy blueberry samples. Like Riverbench’s program, this offering requires pre-registration.
Sign-ups are also required to take part in Primus Labs’ Farm Day program, which will offer attendees the chance to pick up a kid-friendly strawberry DNA test kit, with info on the process of preparing food samples for testing. Lab tours will also be offered at the company, located at 2810 Industrial Parkway.
The need for seeds
Guests at Bonipak Produce (at 1850 W. Stowell Road) during Farm Day will have the opportunity to learn all about the company’s seed-to-sale approach while exploring the Bonipak fields, and touring the company’s 150,000-square-foot cooling facility as well. Attendees will have complimentary produce to take home after their visit.
Free vegetable seedlings will be available at Plantel Nurseries, which will also be hosting tours of its greenhouse facilities on Farm Day. Located at 2890 Telephone Road, this Santa Maria company has been growing high-quality vegetable transplants for more than three decades.
Family-friendly activities and fun photo opportunities will be among the offerings at the Engel and Gray Regional Composting Facility, located at 745 W. Betteravia Road, Santa Maria. Free vegetable transplants will be offered to visitors, along with potting soil, which guests will be able to mix themselves on-site.
Mix things up with Arts Editor Caleb Wiseblood at [email protected].
