Chicory Market improving accessibility to healthy, local food

With up to 75 local providers, John and Kate Bishop are not only providing fresh, locally sourced food to their customers, but they are supporting local growers. The benefits to all are apparent.

Some people see what needs to be done in the world, yet they do nothing. Then some decide to act.

John Martin and Kate Bishop are both interested in food from a policy point of view.

“We are also interested in health and nutrition,” says John.

The couple lived in the Mississippi Delta – Greenwood, where John worked for the newspaper, and Indianola, where Kate taught school – before moving to the northeast (Baltimore and New York). John ended up in the arts and nonprofit world while Kate earned her literacy specialty degree and trained other teachers.

“We wanted to get back to the South,” says John. “Kate is from Oxford, and we had a friend who ran the Farmer’s Market. He was closing it and talked us into taking it over.”

That was in June 2017. The couple renovated the store and changed it to Chicory Market.

“We are proud that our store has been a food space in Oxford for over thirty years,” says John.

It started with Burlin Hollowell running a produce stand out of the old service station building in the early 1990s. He sold vegetables that he and his friends raised, and he purchased exotic produce that distributors had trucked in. The next owners were Frank and Liz Stagg. They expanded the grocery offerings and continued what Burlin started by tapping into the local food movement. They also carried foods that appealed to Oxford’s growing immigrant communities. People soon learned that the Farmer’s Market was a hub for quality produce, and it was a place that welcomed all. John and Kate have made the space their own and connected with a new generation of farmers and producers.

Growing up in Oxford, Kate was raised in a community connected by food. According to the history of Chicory Market on the company’s website, she recalls eating watermelons and pimiento cheese from the old James Food Center. Kate and John “feel strongly about creating a special place that preserves and grows the spirit of Oxford as a place that nurtures creativity and welcomes newcomers and curiosity seekers.” John says the market serves people from all walks of life.

“This is a place where all feel welcomed. Here we are, five years later, feeling an overwhelming sense of responsibility. People are more interested than ever in eating local.”

With up to 75 local providers, John and Kate are not only providing fresh, locally sourced food to their customers, but they are supporting local growers. The benefits to all are apparent.

“We are in one of the most fertile areas in the country,” states John, “but Mississippi still has issues with obesity and diabetes. Having ready access to healthy foods can make a huge difference. It can even make a difference financially.”

During the COVID pandemic when national supply chains were falling apart, Chicory Market was able to source locally.

“Even with our most recent inflation, a lot of local producers have been able to circumvent those forces,” John says. “Their prices have remained stable, and people are eating better. I think people are seeing the value and sustainability of buying locally sourced food.”

The majority of their meat comes from local and regional farms dedicated to cruelty-free and environmentally sustainable practices. Local suppliers include Home Place Pastures in Como, Falkner Farms in Tylor and Brown Family Dairy in Yocona. 

The store has a three-fold mission to support the local food system by working with farmers and other local providers to source quality food items for the community while improving accessibility to healthy, local food for people of all income levels and lifestyle, as well as to build a community around food involving people of all means, colors, creed, and life backgrounds. “We are fortunate that Oxford is still small enough to have a store like this. We also have the University here, which gives us a cultural perspective.”

In addition to locally sourced produce, proteins and other local food, Chicory Market offers fresh seafood.

“We are one of a very few places in Oxford that sells fresh seafood. We get regular deliveries of fresh Gulf shrimp, salmon and some other Gulf fish.”

In an effort to expand their offerings, Chicory Market began adding prepared foods the year after John and Kate opened the store.

“We offer prepared foods seven days a week, from traditional chicken salad to sides and entrees using seasonal produce. That allows us to purchase even more from local farmers, and to avoid food waste by using produce before it goes bad.”

The market also makes casseroles, soups, and sandwiches.

“During football season, we do a lot of tailgate foods, and for Thanksgiving we do a lot of sides. Then we’ll crank up our holiday menu.”

There is an outdoor seating area where people can dine on site, and John says they are planning an expansion that will provide a larger place for the community to gather outdoors.

For more information on Chicory Market, visit the company’s website here.

Source: magnoliatribune.com