Get it fresh at produce auction
Published 1:02 pm Saturday, August 12, 2017
- Boxes of grape and cherry tomatoes were among the many kinds of produce available. -- Stephen H. Cowles | Tidewater News
COURTLAND
Owners of regional farmer’s markets and restaurants know that one place to find the freshest produce and other delicious edibles is the produce auction on Agripark Drive, just behind the Hardee’s on Route 58.
Auctioneer Gus Daniels of Chesapeake calls out for bids of fresh produce at each pallet.
For the past few months at 7 p.m. each Thursday, scores of people move around the pallets as Gus Daniels of Chesapeake as he calls out for bids in that rapid patter so familiar to auctioneers everywhere.
Last month, an average of 175 to 225 people showed up weekly, according to Monica Marks, who helps to collect payments from buyers.
Jon Pittman of Moyock Farm Market in Currituck County, North Carolina, said he regularly comes here for the freshest local vegetables to sell at his place.
A first-time visitor was Melissa Bond of Suffolk,who bought several boxes of jalepeno and habenero peppers for $7 to use for cooking and eating.
Although attendance had dropped noticeably, the auction continues through Oct. 12. Sweet potatoes, some vegetables and, of course, pumpkins and other ornamentals will be plentiful.
