The Second Mile Marketplace and Food Hub, located in Salmon Creek, is filling a long-running need in Clark County for increased connectivity between hyperlocal farmers and buyers. The organization, part online shopping space and IRL commercial kitchen and event space, is unique to the area, while building on long-running connections at farmers markets and previous hub-type iterations such as the Vancouver Food Coop. Buyers can choose from a variety of produce and other farm grown goods and receive a box of items each week. During the Stay Home, Stay Healthy order, home deliveries are free. Later, there will be a charge associated with them, but pick-ups at the storefront location and other drop points will remain free of charge.
Consumers can order goods during a four-day window, from Friday morning to end-of-day Monday. People must register to shop, and payment information can be saved for a quicker experience. Boxes are delivered or available at drop points on Thursdays, and new producers are added every week. Gift certificates and play-it-forward programs are available.
“We are specializing in local to Clark County, and preferring the small farmers who might otherwise not have available options to sell their product,” Second Mile CEO Holly Hansen and helper Ann Foster said in a statement. “We will add farmers as we find that we can handle increased volumes.”
Located in Salmon Creek, the Second Mile Marketplace and Food Hub is also a commercial kitchen, offering kitchen rental, storage, meeting space and business development assistance. Prep stations and equipment are rented out by the hour at varying levels of time commitment at a sliding fee scale of $10 to $18 per hour. There is also shelf space to reserve by the month in dry, cold and freezer options.
