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New rules to take effect in October mean some changes at farmers markets in Santa Monica, most notably the Sunday one on Main Street. Thanks to a City Council decision, prepared food vendors at markets must meet new criteria, namely being local -- as in local to Santa Monica -- and having sustainable practices.
Six of the 13 prepared food stalls at the Main Street market will soon be reserved for local businesses, meaning other vendors had to apply and fight for the remaining seven spots. One of them who lost is Corn Maiden from Harbor City. "We are probably one of the two or three most popular booths. We have lines and lines of people every single Sunday," the President of the company told the Santa Monica Daily Press.
64 vendors applied for the spaces. Of the new vendors to be seen in October, they include many from Main Street: Finn McCool's Irish Pub, Lula Cocina Mexicana, Manchego and Euphoria Loves Rawvolution. The city's other three markets have fewer prepared food booths.