19th Avenue Farmers Market

Growing Beautiful Things from the Ground Up

It’s a different kind of family-run company, but when it comes to creating beautiful things from the ground up we have a few things in common with the dedicated team at 19th Avenue Farmers Market. At Mansouri Living, we are a second generation family business and proud to be growing our father’s vision. Similar to our company, 19th Avenue Farmers Market is more than just a business, it’s in their roots.

Located just a seven minute drive from our upcoming project North on Bayview, a mixed-use integrated community , the 19th Avenue Farmers Market is a fabulous spot to pick up fresh, local Ontario-grown produce. The De Filippis family has been farming here for over 50 years. Just ask Farmer Dom, or his grandsons, Vito and Anthony who are all stewards of the land Vito De Fillippis started farming back in 1960. In this fantastic interview with Farmer Dom, he talks about their beginnings:

“My father was a very hard-working entrepreneur…He came to this country, landing in Nova Scotia in the 50’s. He was about 16 or 17 years old, looking for a future. He got a job there on a potato farm, and at the time was paid $5 a week plus room and board. But it wasn’t like the room and board today. It was living in a barn, their bed was a wooden bunk with straw for bedding”.

Farmer Dom was in the fields alongside his Dad from when he was a baby (he claims his crib was out between two rolls of stacked beans for shade). And after becoming a licensed auto mechanic, the fields called to him. Dom went on to run a successful produce business and retail fruit stand before eventually taking over his father’s fields and two old tractors.

Today, the family farms over nine hundred acres of produce and have upwards of 40 tractors. They sell wholesale produce out of the Ontario Food Terminal and of course run the incredible 19th Avenue Farmers Market providing beautiful flowers, herbs, plants and produce. Shopping local, supporting family farms & biodiversity while getting the quality food for, all in a one-stop shop.

The market is open 9-5 daily with all COVID-protocols in place for safety. Their Instagram page is loaded with mouth watering photography. We took a few photos on a recent trip there.