Don-O-Ray Farmers Market — Local services in Kelowna

So I don’t know what happened. 🥲 I went to get pumpkins (I got some there last year) and they had some bigger ones instead of smaller ones. I wanted to know the price so I went inside. The gentleman before me also inquired about price and the lady said she’d give him them for $3. So he paid for two and went outside. We were looking at the same pumpkins and he took two. I wasn’t sure if I’d find any I liked so I didn’t pre-pay. I did find three (for reference they all fit in the cart so they weren’t ginormous lol) and I went inside to pay. I was expecting to pay maybe $5-6 not necessarily the $3 he paid. I was behind a lady in line and a different lady was at the till. The lady asked how much the pumpkins were and the lady inquired about what size. She pointed to mine and said that size. The lady gave her the price of $5 and she paid and went to pick out pumpkins. (By the way there was no one out there checking sizes of people who pre-paid). I got to the till and I kid you not the lady said mine were $15 for two and $10 for one so $40 in total. I was shocked but not rude and said that she just charged the lady before me $5 for the same size (even before she picked her pumpkins). She then said that it was more a $10-$15 one. I said no thank you and said I’d put them back then she said she’d give me all three for $30. (Still a far cry from the other quotes). I did put them back but I found it kinda crazy that just because I seemed to be bringing the pumpkins inside I was paying more? I don’t honestly understand. 🥲 I love going there and never...

There was a few things that really bugged me at this place. There was no staff around the enclosures to ensure the animals safety. They say on a couple enclosures, 1 family at a time but there were multiple families in at the same time. There was this one chicken, a black one. By itself in a cage (which is fine, maybe it likes being solo) and person after person came in and petted it, while it faced the corner wall and was shaking. It didn't move from that spot the whole time we were there. The bunny enclosure was another one that bothered me. There were at least 25 people in the large cage, and there's a spot in the middle with a shed. There's a sign on the door saying to keep it closed to keep it cool in there, but was it closed? No. Was there a staff member there ensuring it was? No. There's a smaller cage, made of wood where the bunnies can go in to get away from socializing if they wish BUT the roof can open, so people were just opening it up and taking the bunnies out... there's a couple other spots bunnies can go to hide, but people were just lifting up what they were hiding under. It was actually really hard to watch. I watched a mom move the wooden thing, exposing the bunny and her child picked up the bunny by its ears.... there really should be staff within the enclosures to ensure the safety and well being of all the animals. There's a staff member in the duck enclosure but none of the others. Shame on you guys. I won't be returning. Of course, where you can pay to enter and pay for your items at the market was...

I wait for this place to open every year, it feels like I am going to visit friends while I pick out my fresh produce.

More recently I showed my (out of town) boyfriend this gem and now his family wants him to bring fruit back with him every time he comes to visit. His mother who doesn’t eat fruit in Canada because it doesn’t taste as good as her motherlands could not stop raving about the Peaches and Cherries he brought home for them to try saying they were the best fruit she’s had since her last summer visit to Portugal. His daughter has been baking all week and raving about her ingredients in the most yummy looking texts.

Kam went out of his way to go get peaches and cherries that would be suitable for transport all the way to Edmonton. He took the time to explain why it isn’t great to transport perfectly ripe fruits that showed me a true pride in his work and product that you’ll never experience at a box store.

It’s not only Kam, but everyone at this farm that puts the love into the food we admire so much. Thank you Don O Ray for filling my table with love...