Modesto Certified Farmers Market

The Modesto Certified Farmers Market (MCFM) is downtown Modesto's longtime farm-direct market, founded in 1979 by two Modesto Junior College agriculture instructors and then-Mayor Peggy Mensinger to connect Central Valley farmers directly with local consumers. Held on 16th Street between H and I Streets, next to the Stanislaus County Library, the market runs twice weekly and features seasonal produce, handmade cheeses, jams, honey, kettle corn, and crafts, with vendors permitted to sell only what they grow or make themselves.

Beyond shopping, the market features live music at every session, twice-monthly chef demonstrations using market ingredients, and monthly kids' craft activities, and it accepts CalFresh and WIC benefits alongside a Market Match program that doubles the value of CalFresh dollars spent there.

Having operated continuously for more than 45 years, MCFM is one of the most enduring pieces of Modesto's civic and agricultural identity, and it doubles as a genuine community gathering point rather than a purely commercial market.