Imagine a local store where a customer can not only get the best in seasonal fruit and vegetables at a wonderful reasonable price, but also helps to support local farmers who nurture their own produce and want to sell it locally. The further produce is trucked to market, the more expensive the product ends up being. This is why markets, such as the Fluvanna Farmer’s Market at Pleasant Grove and the Charlottesville Market in Downtown do so well. What if you could get the taste of a roadside produce stand at a year-round store?  Faulknier Produce fulfills the need, seeking the freshest food products available to them and selling it to Fluvanna residents.

The first thing you notice when you walk into the store, adjacent to the new Asian Cafe at Jefferson Centre, is the refreshing smell of farm-raised fruits and vegetables. Then, a customer is not only greeted by the colorful apples and tomatoes, but a wide variety of products ranging from honey to jams. The store’s owners, the father and son team of Gordon and George Faulknier, work hard to bring Fluvanna residents fresh foods at the best possible prices, sometimes even beating the prices one might find at local grocers. Together, they are re-creating the farmer’s roadside fruit and vegetable stand that one can visit even in the frozen tundra of the Central Virginia winter.

George Faulknier, the son of the store’s partner Gordon, spoke about the history of the new addition to the Fluvanna business community. The store opened in December 2010. The father and son team work well together, forging a partnership that is bringing in customers and expanding the store beyond just farm-fresh produce. Experienced in grocery sales, Gordon once owned the Hill Top Grocery, and was well-known for specializing in produce. 

“We live here in Fluvanna,” said George when asked why they have opened a store in the county. After owning a little stand in the Town of Louisa and looking for something to do in their home county, the two men decided to bring the concept of an old-fashioned roadside stand, indoors. 

“We needed somewhere to get out of the weather,” said George as he described how the business got started.

The produce and other products are brought in from locations that are as close to the area as possible. Shelves and tables are neatly stocked with products. The Faulkniers, first and foremost, like to sell local produce in their store, but they are also at the mercy of Virginia’s late spring to late autumn growing season.

Currently, the store does have some local products available, mainly Virginia apples and fresh eggs. To keep up with the demand for produce, the owners bring in the highest-quality and freshest fruits and vegetables from produce growing regions, with a preference for foods from the United States, if possible. They also sell farm-quality products such as jams, jellies, salsas and fresh jarred honey. The duo even brings in produce that may not be all that common in most grocery stores, such as Vidalia Salad Onions, which resembles a large scallion and is prominently shelved in the front of the store.

Faulknier Produce not only caters to customers that visit Jefferson Centre, but they even deliver produce to local restaurants in Fluvanna, Charlottesville, Louisa and Orange counties. The father and son team are marketing a free delivery service to residents of Lake Monticello, provided the customer makes a purchase of $10 or more.

The store is poised to expand as the weather gets warmer and more produce becomes readily available. Faulknier Produce is at 265 Turkeysag Trail, Suite 104, between the ABC Store and the Asian Cafe. It is open Monday through Saturday from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. It can be reached at (434) 996-5825 or (434) 589-0950.