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Date: 6/8/2021
CHICOPEE – Fruit Fair is ready for summer. The locally-owned and operated supermarket is stocked with a variety of seasonal plants, flowers, fruits and vegetables for the warm weather.
According to Sam Newell, co-owner of Fruit Fair, they have tomatoes, peppers, marigolds and many different floral and vegetable plants. Newell said that all of their plants and produce are sourced locally.
“The plants grow really well when they are local. That way they are used to the same kind of environment that they grew in, so the survival rate of the local plants is a lot more than the survival rate of plants that are imported from, like, 500 miles away,” she said.
Fruit Fair gets their produce from Red Fire Farm, Michael’s Greenhouse, Bardwell Farm and many independent farmers in Hadley.
Newell said that their most popular items right now are their tomato plants, pepper plants, hanging flowers and planters. She said that as the seasons change they will be sourcing other plants and produce as well. Newell said she anticipates they will have strawberries, blueberries and pumpkins in later months.
Fruit Fair is also gearing up for the return of customers with COVID-19 restrictions lifting. According to Newell, customers who have predominantly done online ordering for the past year are now starting to come into the store.
To keep the store modern and to keep up with customer requests, Newell said that they are doing some renovations. This includes putting in a new floor and a new produce case.
“Our floor was very old. We have been here 85 years, so we really needed the floors. We are putting brand new flooring down,” she said.
The new produce case will also allow Fruit Fair to offer more varieties of local produce.
“We are starting to get those kinds of requests from people. I think people are more conscious of everything that goes on in the background like where the food is coming from, if it's local, if it’s sustainable. People are actually starting to question that and steer away from canned goods and things like that, so in order for us to carry that many fresh varieties, we need a new produce case,” said Newell.
Fruit Fair will remain open during renovations, which Newell said they hope to finish in a month or so.
Those interested in staying up to date on Fruit Fair’s renovations, produce offerings and more are encouraged to visit their Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/Fruitfair.