Thousands Flock To Sacramento's Farm-To-Fork Festival

SACRAMENTO (CBS13) - It's the largest zero-waste event in the country, and it's in Sacramento.

The first-ever Farm-to-Fork Festival drew thousands to Capitol Mall. Growers say the exposure will help their business.

"I came here to eat," said Betty Yee.

Betty came hungry.

"I don't think I need lunch anymore. I sampled everything," she said.

At the Farm-to-Fork Festival in downtown Sacramento, there was fresh food, farmer's booths and local restaurants featuring local produce.

"It's just amazing. I'm going to start at one end and work my way to the end and see what they've got," said James Penn, a festival visitor.

"There are a lot of farmers that are so close to us that I didn't even know existed until I came here," said Teresa, a festival visitor.

Zack Pass of cheese maker, Laura Chenel, says it's events like these that helps get the word out.

"The farm-to-table movement really helps local farmers and it reinforces sustainability for all of us," said Zack.

"If we're supporting the restaurants and the farmers, the farmers will have to grow more to support the restaurants that improve the economy here locally," said Mike Testa, a Sacramento Convention Center & Visitors Bureau spokesperson.

Believe it or not, the Sacramento region is said to be the farm-to-fork capitol of America.

"The fact that we can buy directly from the farmers isn't something that most people get to do," said Mike.

And with more than a million acres of farmland, dozens of countries all over the world receive the fruits of their labor.

"This region produces 80 percent of the nation's caviar. We grow more sushi rice than Japan grows themselves," he said.

The festival wraps up tomorrow. Organizers estimate that as many as 15,000 people visited the festival on Saturday.