Northbrook Farmers Market

Northbrook Farmers Market pairs produce shopping with a civic mission: local nonprofit community and service groups can reserve a free Community & Chamber Table once per season to share their work, and the market describes itself as the only all-volunteer-run market on the North Shore. That volunteer structure is visible in its scale, with shoppers coming from more than 40 ZIP codes and 27,000-plus visits last season. The market also puts food access at the center of its identity, noting a cumulative $130,000 in free money distributed through SNAP benefits assistance. Taken together, this is a Northbrook market built around both weekly shopping and organized local support.

Why it matters locally

The market’s all-volunteer structure is one of its defining local facts, with certified market managers Dale Duda and Juliet Ziak serving alongside a board that includes Charles Mann, Carol Currie, Bonnie Burnett, and David Riguzzi. That setup matters because the market connects shopping to neighborhood institutions and service work instead of treating them as separate tracks.

Its partnerships make that tangible. Northbrook Chamber of Commerce and Industry members can use a free table at the market, while local nonprofit and service groups are invited to participate once per season. The market also partners with Northfield Township Food Pantry to collect fresh fruits and vegetables for pantry clients, extending the reach of what gets bought and donated on market days. Friends of Northbrook Farmers Market, also called the Onion Heads, volunteer to promote the market’s mission and goals.

What you'll find there

The named lineup in Northbrook leans heavily toward organizations and neighborhood institutions, which gives the market a distinctly local footprint beyond farm shopping alone. Expect a mix that ties commerce, schools, and community groups into the same weekly setting.

• -Find Sunset Foods, Northbrook at the market.
• -Look for Countryside Day School, Northbrook in the vendor mix.
• -Northbrook United Methodist Church is also part of the market roster.
• -Northbrook Community Nursery School appears among the participating vendors and organizations.

A seasonal event adds another layer of purpose: Summer Stock Day collects dry goods for pantry shelves, including toilet paper, diapers, and paper towels.

Know before you go

No restrooms are listed for this market, which may shape how long you plan to stay, especially with kids or if you’re making a longer morning stop. Dogs are welcome, so visitors bringing a leashed pet won’t need to leave them at home. The market sets up at Cherry Lane and Meadow Road in Northbrook.

If you like markets with visible on-site community participation, this one builds that into the season through its free Community & Chamber Table for local nonprofit, community, and service groups. The market is also managed by Illinois Certified Market Managers Dale Duda and Juliet Ziak, with Duda serving as market manager and president of NFMA.

Payments & SNAP

SNAP/EBT is accepted here, and the market highlights food-access support as a core part of its work. It also accepts Senior Farmers Market Coupons and WIC vouchers. The market says it has distributed a cumulative $130,000 in free money through SNAP benefits assistance, giving this program unusual weight in the way the market operates.