New Bedford Farmers Market- Downtown/Custom House Square

New Bedford Farmers Market- Downtown/Custom House Square sits within a larger Coastal Foodshed effort to help both producers and consumers across Greater New Bedford and Southcoast Massachusetts buy healthy, local food more easily. That mission gives this market a clear shape: food access and local farm sales are treated as part of the same work. Coastal Foodshed also emphasizes multiple ways to shop in New Bedford, including indoor and outdoor options year-round, placing this market inside a broader local food network rather than as a stand-alone stop. For shoppers, that means the market is tied to an organization focused on getting fresh food to more households while helping local producers reach customers.

Why it matters locally

Greater New Bedford and Southcoast Massachusetts are the stated focus of Coastal Foodshed’s programs, and those programs are designed to support both the people growing food and the people buying it. At this market, that local role is practical rather than abstract: Coastal Foodshed says its programs build food equity by making healthy, local food easier to buy. It also connects access to payment flexibility, noting that it accepts multiple payment options, including SNAP and HIP, to increase customers’ access to fresh food while helping local producers reach new customers.

That matters in New Bedford because the market is part of an organization that also works with Housing Authorities, Social Service Agencies, and Food Pantries through a network of more than 30 partners. The result is a market shaped by local food access and producer support at the same time.

Know before you go

No dogs are allowed, so that is the first detail to factor into your plan before heading over. Restrooms are not available on site, which can matter if you are shopping with kids or building this stop into a longer outing. Payment methods are clearly established, and Coastal Foodshed frames multiple payment options as part of how it expands access to fresh local food.

This market is connected to a wider New Bedford shopping network that includes Coastal Foodshed’s Food Hub Space in the Kilburn Mill and a retail store used for customer pick-up, alongside other indoor and outdoor market settings in the city. Coastal Foodshed also describes outdoor market activity in Buttonwood Park on Buttonwood Street and indoor market activity at the Buttonwood Park Senior Center/Warming House, reinforcing that its New Bedford operations span more than one site.

Payments & SNAP

SNAP is accepted here, and Coastal Foodshed explicitly includes SNAP among the payment options it uses to increase access to fresh food while helping local producers reach customers. HIP benefits are also part of that access approach, with Healthy Incentives Program benefits applied upon purchase for free fruits and vegetables.