Ready to eat foods are easy to find and lay our hands on, especially when we are busy with work. 

But such processed foods may not necessarily be the best for our health, particularly if they become part of our regular diet.

Fortunately, we now have more options when it comes to real food -- food that is unadulterated, and brought to us straight from the farm where it is grown, without too much interference in between. 

The Central Singapore Market, organised by Central Singapore CDC, is one such platform to encourage residents to eat healthy, live sustainably and inclusively. 

This means not only do the vendors sell food as they are -- unpretentious with no extra fillers or substances added -- they are also local businesses, with some of them supporting social causes that aim to give back to the community.

Now that’s wholesome, both literally and figuratively.  

Held on the last Saturday of every month at Bishan MRT station -- yes, it’s happening this Saturday, Oct. 26, too -- the Central Singapore Market features several vendors which bring fresh, organic produce to residents in the area. 

Here are some stalls that are worth a visit if you’re a health nut (if you’re not, you should be). 

1. EcoProtect Organic Farm

Don’t settle for stale, pesticides-ridden vegetables. 

Do your body -- and the environment -- a favour by getting the freshest, organic produce from Cameron Highlands at EcoProtect Organic Farm. 

The produce, which includes cherries and sweet corn, are grown on the highlands, where the air is fresh, and where the stream water is pure and uncontaminated. 

And now that you can get your fix of organic produce from the Central Singapore Market directly, you don’t have to endure the winding roads up the mountain where the produce is grown, and risk getting carsick. 

2. Mushroom Kingdom: Grow your own mushrooms 

The benefits to consuming mushrooms are numerous. 

Not only are they low in calories, fat-free, cholesterol-free, gluten-free, and low in sodium, they also provide important nutrients, such as potassium and vitamin D. 

While they are easily available at grocery stores, nothing beats plucking your own mushrooms from within your own home, and enjoying them whichever way you like it -- grilled, baked, or fried. 

And if you’re more of a micromanaging hands-on kind of person, you can even grow them yourselves with these mushroom growing kits from Mushroom Farm. 

The growing kits, the Singapore-based Mushroom Kingdom said, are meant to educate people, especially children, on the importance of knowing where the food on our table comes from. 

If, however, you think this is too much of a hassle, there’s the option of getting mushrooms -- both as fresh produce and air-fried snacks -- from Mushroom Kingdom directly. 

Sourced from a mushroom farm in Malaysia, these mushrooms are organically grown without any chemical fertilisers or pesticides.

Sounds good already. 

3. Handmade Crafts by Leny

Have you ever felt guilty throwing away the fresh plastic packaging that your food came in, or the plastic bag you get when you purchase a simple item at the convenience store?  

With Handmade Crafts by Leny, you can now convert your plastic waste to brand new pouches with one-of-a-kind designs that nobody else is carrying on the street. 

4. UP[cycling] Assembly by Enterprising Mums United 

It can be difficult for single mums to juggle their parenting duties with the need to put bread on the table.

With Enterprising Mums United (EMU), a social enterprise set up in 2016, they can produce crafts for sale at their own time, and add to their income as the sole breadwinners of their families. 

The enterprise also attracts stay-at-home mums from low or middle income families with financial constraints. 

Each craft they sell goes a long way towards bettering their lives, as well as their children’s. 

5. Very Special Arts Singapore (VSA)

Very Special Arts Singapore (VSA) will be selling Lacquer Craft products made by their artists as well. 

Having disabilities might have earned them more than a few curious glances in life, but that has not stopped them from producing wonderful works of art that will add a splash of life to any interior spaces.

Some artists will be there to demonstrate live water colour painting too. 

6. Visually-impaired busker Jaffar Sidek 

Jaffar Sidek is a visually-impaired busker who sings while he plays the piano. 

A music lover since young, Jaffar said his passion for music was further helped along by a music teacher from England he met when he was a primary school student at the then Singapore School for the Blind.  

While Jaffar now makes a living out of busking -- he even composes his own songs -- he still works occasionally on the side as a computer programmer. 

Watch him perform at the Central Singapore Market and give him your support! 

That’s not all the Central Singapore Market has to offer as well. 

Check out these other stalls! 

More stalls

Flush your body with nutrients from smoothies made from all sorts of fresh, organic produce at Mum’s Love is Organic.

Give your immune system a boost as well with honey sold by Little Green Bee that contains 17 different amino acids are beneficial to our health.

That’s un-bee-lievably awesome. 

Be part of the market

The Central Singapore Market is now inviting more “farmers” to join them so that they can grow their community. 

If you have a healthy food item you want to share with others, and/or a social cause you want to support through your business, you can write in to [email protected]. 

We might have a long way to go before we lead a truly socially-conscious lifestyle, but that doesn’t mean we should stop trying. 

In an increasingly interlinked society, that shouldn’t be too hard. 

This sponsored article by Central Singapore Market is making the writer rethink her life (food) choices.