In the last twenty years since the 1998 Tobacco Settlement Agreement, Carroll County farmers have been required to diversify their farming operations into agricultural enterprises that will be successful for them into the future.  One route farmers took was focused on growing produce and meat, as well as developing a vegetable, fruit, and meat market for the community.  The Riverview Farmer’s Market was established in 2004, and in the 2019 season, there were twelve vendors (including three new vendors) with an incredibly diverse selection of products, including: traditional vegetables, blueberries, microgreens, blackberries, melons, honey, eggs, wine, and meat (beef, pork, lamb).

In the 2018 growing season, the Market members and Carroll County Extension Agent for Agriculture and Natural Resources collaborated to host the first Farm to Table Dinner in Downtown Carrollton.  The goals for the event included:  spotlight the farmers growing food in the county, encourage consumption of locally-grown food, and increase awareness of the Riverview Farmers’ Market.   The funds generated from the dinner would be used toward saving for a permanent structure for the Market.  With the tremendous success and sell-out crowd for the first dinner, the decision was made to make the event annual.

To bring uniqueness to the Farm to Table Dinner, the decision was made to move the location of the dinner to another area of the county.  This idea evolved into becoming an opportunity to celebrate and spotlight other communities in Carroll County.  For 2019, the location was the Ghent Baptist Church in Ghent on the northeast corner of the county along the Ohio River.  Ghent was settled in the late 1700s and was a bustling river town complete with its own Ghent College.  The Ghent Baptist Church’s original congregation was developed in 1800 with the current church building constructed in 1843. 

Just like with the first Farm to Table Dinner, this event was a collaborative effort among many different entities inside and outside of the Cooperative Extension Service.  The farmers of the Market provided all the local produce and greenery for the event as well as serving a vital role with the planning, preparation, and decorating of the dinner.  A local Ghent caterer, MoonGlimmer Gardens, developed an amazingly unique menu and assisted in decorations for the second year in a row.  A local farmer and woodworker used a walnut tree on his land to create wooden discs to serve as plate chargers for the tables.  This serve as a gift to all dinner guests.  4-H’ers, volunteers, and Market members served the food during the dinner. All agents and staff of the Extension Office worked behind the scenes to help the event run smoothly.  The Carroll County Extension District Board fully funded the dinner.

The 2019 Farm to Table Dinner was held on a Saturday evening on July 27, 2017 under the pavilion of the Ghent Baptist Church.  56 dinner guests attended.  Of those 56 dinner guests, 29 guests were new attendees who did not attend the dinner last year.  Before the dinner began, guests were invited to tour the Ghent Baptist Church by a member of their congregation who provided the history of the building and Ghent as a whole.  All proceeds from ticket sales ($1400) went to the Market.  Following the dinner, two separate county residents who attended the dinner came forth offering the use of future locations for the dinner.

Members of the Riverview Farmer’s Market are pleased with this year’s dinner and look forward to the future years.  This dinner has interestingly become a date night for attendees, providing a special dining opportunity that is unique to anything else that takes place in the county while also promoting our local farmers in the Riverview Farmers’ Market.

The third Farm to Table Dinner will take place on July 25, 2020 on a farm in the Worthville community of Carroll County.