Paul and Marsha Johnson were both born and raised on farms. So it seems a most natural order to things that they would end up representing farmers and sharing beautiful bounties of fruits and vegetables with Seaside locals and visitors.
“We’re your farm connection,” Paul Johnson explains. Every week they visit up to a dozen regional farms to pick up the variety of produce they then bring to the Seaside Farmers Market. Along with their 5-year-old son, Cooper, this weekly endeavor has become a true family affair. “He looks forward to coming every Saturday, helping out but also playing with other kids,” Paul adds.
Their booth is set up a little differently than most of the others’. It is arranged so customers can walk into their tent, put their hands on the produce and carefully make their pick. For nearly eight years, they’ve been coming to Seaside with Paul greeting repeat customers with his big signature grin.
Paul’s Pick of the Crop offers fresh produce each week at the Seaside Farmers Market.
“We only want to share the very best,” Paul says. With a past career in yacht sales, he uses those skills of relationship building and negotiating with the growers he represents, acquiring the best quality produce from Southeast Georgia, Central Florida and South Central Alabama. Furthering the family ties, they also source a great deal from Marsha’s dad’s operation, C & B Edmondson Farms out of Slocumb, Ala.
Five years ago, the Johnsons realized they needed extra help at the weekly market. They met Rachel Nussbaum. Rachel has become like a member of the family, too. “You meet so many people each week and just look at this brilliant backdrop where we get to work,” she says.
In Seaside, customers can also enjoy Paul’s Pick of the Crop’s fresh produce at several local Seaside restaurants like Shrimp Shack, Pickle’s Burger & Shake, and Wild Bill’s Beach Dogs. They frequently provide the Dawson Group farm-grown strawberries, tomatoes, corn and onions.
This summer, Paul’s Pick of the Crop will offer everyone’s seasonal favorites including sun-ripened tomatoes, Chilton County, Ala., peaches and healthful greens like spinach and kale.
This family is dedicated to bringing the freshest and loveliest fruits and vegetables to Seaside. Their enthusiasm for the work they do is passed along to the customers they serve.