Tomato Day at the Lawton Farmers Market

LAWTON, OKLAHOMA (July 1, 2020)--There’s nothing like a big, juicy, ripe, red tomato in the summertime. It’s that time of year when delicious, locally grown tomatoes are at their peak and the Lawton Farmers Market wants to celebrate the most popular fruit of the summer by holding Tomato Day at the Market on Saturday, July 11 from 8:00 a.m.-Noon.

Due to the Covid-19 Pandemic, and in the interest of public health, safety, and welfare, the Lawton Farmers Market will not hold their annual Tomato Festival this year but will still be celebrating summers most popular fruit by setting aside this special Tomato Day.

“We do want to celebrate the tomato as we are entering peak season for tomatoes here in southwest Oklahoma, however we want to do so with the public’s safety in mind,” said Dr. Ed Legako, local pediatrician and board president of the Southwest Growers Association. “Therefore, we are not holding our annual tomato festival, but we are replacing it with a Tomato Day at the market. We recognize that there are more people raising homegrown tomatoes than ever before so we do want to have a fun activity to replace our normal events by holding a Biggest Tomato Contest where the tomatoes will be judged by weight. We would love anyone growing tomatoes to bring in their largest tomato for a chance to win a $50 prize and bragging rights.”

The Biggest Tomato Contest is open to the public, all entries must be at the weigh-in booth by 10:00 a.m. All tomato entries must be grown by the participant, there is no cost to enter and the prize is $50.00.

Dr. Legako added that while masks are not mandatory at the market, they do encourage people to wear masks and continue to practice social distancing for the safety and well-being of everyone at the market.

For more information visit the Lawton Farmers Market Facebook page.

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