Brand new market? Just hired or just elected? The 2025 Farmers Market Bootcamp offers a wealth of information to help you get ready for opening day!
We’ll take you behind the Information Booth to learn about core operational requirements, tools, and tips from seasoned market managers.
We’ll also help make sense of the alphabet soup of acronyms for licenses, permits, food access programs, and essential infrastructure. Perhaps best of all you’ll connect with other new (and returning) managers and board members from six states who share your passion and unique new job.
The 2025 Farmers Market Bootcamp is a collaboration between the Washington State Farmers Markets Association and five other states, including OFMA. It will feature a series of virtual training sessions via Zoom, structured in four parts:
General sessions: Two Thursdays, March 13 and 20, from 9:00 am to 12:00 pm (Pacific).
Board member session: Tuesday, March 18, from 3:00 pm to 5:00 pm (Pacific).
State-specific session: Each Partner will offer a session focused on state-level information. For OFMA, this will be our Annual Meeting and Leadership Training, held on Thursday, March 27, from 9:00 am to 12:00 pm (Pacific).
When you sign up for the Bootcamp, you'll be automatically registered for all four sessions. Attend as many sessions as you can — we hope you'll join us for all of them!
The regular price for markets from State Partners is $75. Markets from Oregon can use OFMA’s promo code for a $50 discount: enter OFMA25BC when selecting your Oregon ticket to receive the discount. (This discount is thanks to our partnership with WSFMA and USDA FMPP grant 24FMPPWA1211.)
Want to know more? Below are details of what will be covered at each session:
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The first two days of Boot Camp provide general farmers markets tools and training for anyone who has just been hired, is looking for a refresher, or is interested in updated information.
We encourage new (and returning) board members to attend to learn more about farmers market operations, their role in sustaining a strong market organization, and building a great team. -
New in 2025, we are offering an “add on” to Bootcamp for participants who are current or incoming members of a farmers market Board of Directors, Advisory Group, or other leadership position.
This session will focus on how farmers market organizations are unique, scaling governance and management to market size, and where to find resources throughout the year.
All Bootcamp participants are welcome to attend this session. However, content will speak to the specific roles and responsibilities of Directors and Advisors of farmers market organizations, not to the day-to-day management of a farmers market.
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Each State Partner will offer a session focused on state-level information.
For OFMA, this will be our Annual Meeting and Leadership Training, where we’ll come together to reflect on the work that’s currently shaping Oregon’s farmers markets.
This is more than just a meeting—it’s an opportunity to connect with OFMA and fellow market leaders, learn about key initiatives, and gain skills to shape the direction of your market in the year ahead.
Whether you're a long-time member market or a new market or supporter just joining the conversation, you’ll be part of the collective effort as we connect, learn, and grow together in 2025.
On the agenda for this year’s Annual Meeting:
OFMA’s organizational updates and accomplishments.
Meeting current OFMA board members and voting in new members.
Introducing OFMA’s adopted strategic plan, and learn how it aligns with your market’s work over the next three years.
Sharing stories from OFMA’s climate resilient grant recipients and how we are ensuring the continuation of this vital program.
And, introducing OFMA’s new Leadership Community of Practice, launching in April and facilitated by Sagdrina Jalal. Our kick-off session at the Annual Meeting will explore leadership styles through individual Enneagram assessments, helping us understand how we and others show up to the work of organizing markets.
This session will lay the foundation for deeper exploration of the Four M’s of Market Leadership from the Anti-Racist Farmers Market Toolkit in future Community of Practice sessions. Through tools like trust-building, strength finding, dynamic systems exploration, storytelling, synthesis, and emergence, participants will gain the ability to engage key stakeholders and activate meaningful change within their farmers market and broader community.