UPDATED April 10, 2020: Understanding, supporting, and encouraging the vitality of farming to the local food system, beginning Saturday, April 4, 2020, VIDA, in conjunction with the Virgin Islands Police Department and the Virgin Islands Department of Health, will be allowing farmers to vend produce at the Rudolph Shulterbrandt Agricultural Complex, #1 Estate Lower Love on St. Croix from 6:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. On St. Thomas, beginning Sunday April 12th, the Bordeaux Farmers’ Market will be supported with the assistance of We Grow Food, Inc. from 6:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. This temporary relocation of market facilities is meant to ensure the health and safety of our community while minimizing complications related to sanitation, hand washing, crowding, and enforcement.
As such, vendors utilizing this option will be required to:
- Practice social distancing of six (6) feet, as appropriate.
- Utilize provided stations for hand-washing and sanitation purposes.
- Create distance between stands, to limit crowds and reduce the number of customers within your area.
- Consider pre-packaging bags of fruits, vegetables, other items to limit shoppers’ handling of food and to keep customers moving quickly along.
- Having, if possible, a different person handling products and handling money OR washing hands or sanitizing in between these tasks.
- Remove tablecloths and sanitizing tables regularly.
- Eliminate samples and eating areas while directing customers to take all foods home with them.
- Please consider utilizing the CDC’s updated information on cloth-based face coverings.
We remind our vendors and our community that an on-farm stand for raw produce; shelf stable packaged foods like jams, jellies, or baked goods; or a farm’s own eggs do not need any additional licenses and we encourage farmers and consumers to utilize alternate means of distribution including:
- Checking out our running list of where our vendors have temporarily relocated here.
- Delivery and/or pick up options, or alternate locations such as road-side stands or other places that customers can drive-through or pick up
- Putting signs or information on social media or websites to explain changes, delivery options, or extra precautions you are taking to limit exposure to COVID-19.
- Suggestions for extra precautions: Instruct customers not to handle food. Package cheese, eggs, and produce for customers, even if these items are individually packaged. Open egg cartons for customers to see the eggs they are getting instead of having them handle multiple cartons.
For any questions, please contact our Department or email us at info.doa@doa.vi.gov.
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