A vibrant celebration of local food, delectable flavors, and convivial community hits the Fairfield square on Friday, September 5, 6-10 p.m., for Fairfield First Fridays’ Harvest Celebration.
This special night will shine a spotlight on Southeast Iowa’s rich agricultural roots. Local restaurants and vendors will be serving up dishes made with ingredients grown and produced right here in our region for a true “farm to-table” experience. So come hungry, pick up your map of participating food establishments at the Boosting Local Foods Booth, and enjoy your evening meal downtown to kick off the night!
In addition to regular vendors, the evening features a Mini-Farmers Market featuring some of treasured Fairfield Farmers Market vendors. Visit the Boosting Local Foods Booth for the opportunity to play Local Food Bingo for fabulous prizes—win extra points if you’re wearing overalls! You’ll be able to swap vegetable jokes, seasonal recipes, and gardening advice. Snap and share photos at the Selfie Station. Catch a glimpse of a local personality or two in vegetable costumes!!!
Live music by one of Fairfield’s favorite bands, Adam and the Jim Bob Cats, starts at 6:00 p.m. in the gazebo.
Thinking about refreshing your commitment to shopping local? It’s not just about being a good person—it’s about getting more: more flavor, more connection, more joy. Buying local food is the easiest way to make a difference without trying too hard. Whenever you spend $20 at a local market, it circles back to your schools, parks, and quality of life. By keeping your money where your life is, you get a better town, better services, and better connections.
At a time when rural culture often gets erased or overlooked, local food helps people preserve identity with pride. By shopping locally, you become a part of something instead of just being a consumer. Make it a habit.
When you know where your food comes from, you trust it—and the people behind it. And that trust seeps into other parts of community life. That’s how rural communities stay strong, even in tough times. Local food doesn’t just feed us. It can keep the whole town going.
We all know that Iowa has the soil, the rainfall, and the growing season to produce amazing crops. Can we envision a future together where we use our incredible resources to grow food for all of Southeast Iowa? With Iowa’s good land and good people, we might as well eat well too.
Fairfield’s First Fridays has teamed up with the Resilient Action Committee to bring you this local celebration—all centered around the Fairfield square!
This event is co-sponsored by Bomgaars, Everybody’s Whole Foods, Fairfield Farmers Market, Fairfield First Fridays, and the Sustainable Living Coalition.
Giveaways will be provided by Bombgaars, Deanna’s Garden, Diana Watt Cards, Newton’s Own, Sew Awesome, and The Bakehouse.