Thursday Nov 14, 2024
Thursday, 21 January 2016 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
Good Market - Pic by Harsha Niroshan
Starting 23 January, there will be a Good Market event every Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. in Court Square, Galle Fort. The Galle Good Market has been developed in cooperation with the Ministry of Southern Development and the Galle Heritage Foundation.
Good Market highlights products and services that are good for people and good for the planet. It is a curated marketplace, which means all vendors go through an application and review process to ensure they meet Good Market standards. Good Market started in Colombo in 2012 with 32 vendors. It now has 273 Good Market approved vendors throughout the country and nearly 90,000 Facebook followers.
The Galle Good Market is focused on organic farmers, social enterprises, and responsible businesses in the southern region. Visitors will find organic fruits, vegetables, spices, tea, heirloom rice, and houseplants, natural goat milk, and much more. Specialty food stalls will have Sri Lankan coffee drinks, baked goods, traditional rice and curry, fresh hoppers, local fruit juices, waraka jam, kithul flour pudding, kurakkankokis, lunudehiachcharu, fish ambulthiyal and many other village treats.
Local artisans will feature clothing, housewares, and gifts made from indikola, wetakeiya, hana, terracotta, coconut shells, wood and other natural materials. Southern service providers will offer ayurvedic treatment, ecotourism experiences, environmental consulting, well-being classes, and more.
If southern customers are interested in products from Colombo Good Market vendors that are not yet available in the south, they can contact the Good Market shop team at 0773772122 and pre-order for pick-up at the Galle Good Market.
The Saturday Good Market in Colombo will still be open weekly from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the Colombo Racecourse. The Good Market organic and natural food shop is open daily from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. across the street from the Racecourse at 14 Reid Avenue (Philip Gunawardana Mawatha), Colombo 7. Good Market organic farm visits and other travel experiences can be organised by contacting [email protected] or 0774134455.
Good Market was started by volunteers. It is now registered as a not-for-profit Guarantee Limited company and operates as a mission-driven social enterprise. Good Market events were set up to be sustainable, but not profit-making. Stall fees are kept as low as possible to reduce the entry barrier for rural producers, social enterprises, and new businesses that are socially and environmentally responsible.
Want to get involved? There are opportunities for organic farmers, non-profits, social enterprises, responsible businesses, volunteers, part-time positions, photographers, musicians, poets, performers, educators and anyone who cares about the environment, community, and health. For more information, visit www.goodmarket.lk or contact 0770208642.