The Vashon Farmers Market will launch its 2016 season this Saturday with an expanded food access program, continued work on plans to update its space and more fresh produce than ever before.

Market manager Caleb Johns spoke to The Beachcomber last week about the upcoming season and noted that the biggest change this year will be the expansion of the market’s food access program for those in need.

The Vashon Island Growers Association (VIGA) spent $6,600 on its “Market Bucks” and coupons last year. The “Market Bucks” are part of a matching program where VIGA matches the first $10 spent each week by its food stamp customers with $10 in market currency for fresh produce. They also match WIC’s summer fresh produce checks and the Senior Farmers Market Nutrition Program vouchers 100 percent. VIGA coupons are given to various island nonprofits who share them with clients or use them to purchase food for client meal preparation.

“VIGA will now receive money from the state for the program,” Johns said, “which is fantastic because it will free up the money it would normally have spent on it for other things.”

The market will include more farm vendors and more prepared food options this year, according to Johns, who said that at the pre-season vendor meeting about a dozen of the 75 vendors in attendance were new. Saturday’s opening should see roughly two dozen vendors and a VIGA booth to get the ball rolling at the Village Green.

And speaking of the Green, the “space re-imagining project” will continue, with the goal of adding three or four alternatives to the plans offered by the University of Washington team last year. Johns said that the hope is to have all options ready to present to the planning committee  by the end of the summer.

Live music performances will return around mid-May, and the market’s two biggest celebrations — Harvest Festival and CiderFest — will be back again this fall.

This year the market will not offer expanded hours, maintaining its 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. time period for the duration of the season, but will offer the mid-week mini market again from June to September.

“The Wednesday market went well last year,” Johns said. “It saw a more than 400 percent sales growth over the previous season.”

The mid-week market will host about six or seven vendors and will run from 3 to 6 p.m. on Wednesdays. Johns also noted that the food access program will be in place at both the Saturday and Wednesday markets.

Saturday’s opening will feature a pea-start giveaway and a raffle for a VIGA membership.