By: Jake Ferguson and Jon Schuller
With the smell of rain in the air, the last farmers market of the season in Cesar Chavez Plaza was the perfect setting for a major announcement from Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson this morning.
Known popularly as The River City or The City of Trees, Sacramento can now lay claim to an exciting new moniker: America’s Farm-to-Fork Capital!
Surrounded by a sea of white chefs’ coats, Mayor Johnson was joined by nearly three dozen of the area’s top culinary talent to announce the new proclamation to an excited crowd of media, local officials and foodie enthusiasts.
“Right here in Sacramento, we have a lot to be proud of,” said the former NBA star and Sacramento native. “This is the best of Sacramento. This is the Dream Team of chefs in Sacramento!”
In conjunction with the Sacramento Convention & Visitors Bureau, the California Farm Bureau, and a coalition of local chefs, today’s proclamation is intended to market Sacramento as a farm-fresh culinary hub. According to the mayor’s office (and cited in today’s City Beat blog), the region is home to between 7,000 to 8,000 acres of “boutique farms” and touts more than 50 farmers’ markets.
Randall Selland of Ella Dining Room+Bar and Selland’s Market & Café helped further illustrate that connection to local agriculture—literally.