Area farmers, gardeners and local aficionados have an exciting opportunity to do something big with locally grown food. It’s called the Austin Central Market.

We have been excited to see how Nebraska-based farmer Larry Aden’s vision of a locally grown food co-op takes shape ever since Aden bought Johnson Floral last summer. Aden’s vision was to get locally grown fruits, vegetables and other products to market, a veritable smorgasbord of tasty treats all made by your friends and neighbors. Residents can sell things on consignment to the market, so they can make a tidy profit depending on their hustle.

The market also plans to build an aquaponics farm to raise freshwater fish and lobster, as well as produce more edible and ornamental plants, among other things.

This is a potential win for Austin and an interesting prospect for anyone who wants a community space to sell items. The idea is different from a farmers market, as Aden has described Austin Central Market as a “locally grown supermarket” ready to cater to resident needs. It could have potentially have more items than our already wonderful farmers markets as well, given enough time.

We believe this is an interesting project the community can really buy into. We hope residents support Austin Central Market over the next few months as growing season kicks into gear. We can’t wait for the idea to ripen and blossom into another innovative Austin success.