The Tasty Tomato Festival is moving. Where? It rhymes with Roma
Romas in NOMA.
The Tasty Tomato Festival, which celebrates and promotes locally grown food, is moving to Earlewood Park on North Main Street. And to celebrate the festival’s 10th anniversary, admission will be free.
For the past nine years, the festival, which has been named one of Southern Living’s “Best in the South” things to do, was held at City Roots urban farm in Rosewood, which has transitioned from vegetables to hemp.
“When we first started, the festival was meant to celebrate the good things that were happening at City Roots,” said Sustainable Midlands Executive Director Jason Craig. Now the organization wants “to support the different organizations and businesses bringing fresh food to North Columbia.”
Partners for this year’s festival, to be held July 13 from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m., include Axiom Farms Cooperative and Rare Variety Cafe.
Axiom Farms is a cooperative backed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Natural Resources Conservation Service that supports Midlands farmers through training, workshops, logistics and even equipment rental. The farmers in turn provide fresh, locally sourced food to local communities.
Rare Variety Cafe is a new vegan cafe at 4622 N. Main St. whose owner, Bonita Clemons, also plans to establish a small grocery. The grocery would fill the gap for fresh food left by the closures of the Bi-Lo/Harvey’s on North Main and the Piggly Wiggly on Beltline Boulevard.
Sustainable Midlands also is partnering with North Columbia Business Association. The association’s executive director, Sabrina Edwards, said the festival could be a two-fold blessing for the area.
“It will bring more people in to see what we have to offer,” she said. “And we’re kind a food desert. But we have lots of people with gardens — NOMA (community) garden is really unique. So (Craig) is bringing it to the right place. This is an excellent fit.”
In addition to moving, the festival also is returning to its roots a bit, Craig said.
“It started as a community festival with food and morphed into a music festival,” Craig said. “We want to get back to more of a community festival. But there will still be music and craft beer. Things like that.”
There will be a tomato contest. It includes eight categories: Best Big Red, Best Big Yellow, Best Purple, Best Unusual Tomato (striped, rare variety, etc.), Best Small Red, Best Small Other, Best Tomato Grown in a Public Garden (includes schools and communities) and Best Tomato Grown by a Child.
Check the group’s website in the coming weeks for rules and other information on the contest.
The music lineup is still developing, Craig said. Applications for vendors are available on the organization’s website. Volunteers are sought.
Sponsors for the festival include the city of Columbia, Food Lion, Cottontown Brew Lab, Senn Brothers Produce, Experience Columbia SC, and Richland County.