Oxford’s Chicory Market appeals to locals for many reasons. With a friendly staff and a retro interior, the establishment’s new location in Mid-Town Shopping Center attracts people who wish to grocery shop local. The heart and soul of Chicory Market, though, is the fresh produce and local farmers that provide it.
“My friend told me about (the new location). I went to the previous location (on Highway 7N) a few times and I loved it,” freshman general business major Megan Mullen said. “I like that it has healthy options.”
One of the many farms that stock the shelves of Chicory Market is Southern Cultured Creamery. The dairy farm, a 45 minute drive away in Pontotoc, Miss., is run by a husband and wife, Jake and Kaitlyn Anderson.
The Andersons started their own dairy business around 2015, growing and learning more with each year.
In 2022, the pair started bottling and selling their milk and cheese products. After a slow progression of getting the business up and running, the Andersons aspired to expand their product sales beyond Pontotoc.
The couple partnered with Chicory Market, whose mission is to support local farmers like the Andersons and provide the Oxford community with fresh produce.
“They’re one of our larger accounts,” Jake Anderson said. “It really helps to have a place to move milk.”
The Southern Cultured Creamery currently sells three cheeses at Chicory Market: their Monroe, Redlin and Two-Dollar Pistol.
Customers can also purchase their regular and chocolate “cream top” milk, named after the separation of cream that often forms on the top of dairy in its most natural state.
“Some folks that are not acclimated to it think it’s starting to go bad just looking at it, but you just shake it up a little bit and everything goes back just fine,” Jake Anderson said.
He explained that their milk is non-homogenized, meaning it is bottled straight from the cow.
“The processors will send the milk through a real high speed filter where it breaks up the fat so it can’t come back together,” Jake Anderson said. “There is evidence that this could affect people’s digestion. That’s the only thing we can figure that makes ours easier to digest.”
The relationship between local farmers like the Andersons and Chicory Market create a unique shopping opportunity to the Oxford community.
